How many of you remember you remember your very first high-end turntable? I can still remember the joy of UPS delivering it and setting it up. My first 'table was a Rega Planar 3, glass platter and all, outfitted with the JVC 7045 arm that Peter Aczel raved about in Audio Critic. Mounted in that arm (incredilbly with VTA) was a Grace F9E. I also remember calling the people up about some sort of overhang gauge and they responded to me like I was from Mars (this was back in 1980).
IN my youth I was exposed at home to several TT designs TT that were High End in their time : Rabco , Lenco, Mitchell GyroDec , etc and a slew of arms Transkriptor, Grace, etc.. My first table was a Linn Sondek Clone whose name I can't rememebr wasn't a Rega with a Linn Basik arm around 1987~88 .. Cartridge was Sumiko Oyster Bluepoint and some $15 Grado whose model escapes me
IN my youth I was exposed at home to several TT designs TT that were High End in their time : Rabco , Lenco, Mitchell GyroDec , etc and a slew of arms Transkriptor, Grace, etc.. My first table was a Linn Sondek Clone whose name I can't rememebr wasn't a Rega with a Linn Basik arm around 1987~88 .. Cartridge was Sumiko Oyster Bluepoint and some $15 Grado whose model escapes me
First good turntable was a Denon DP-45 (direct drive)with a Grado Gold MM cartridge.
Moved up to used DP-72 with a Van den Hul MC-2.They don't make them like this any more!
Then I fell in love with parallel tracking arms (RABCO),Clearaudio etc.
My resident turntable is a Mitsu LT-5V derivative, vertical standing,all metal construction,twin external motors,
ouboard power supply,and parallel tracking arm with parts from Diatone LT-1 (mainly the titanium armboard and the tracking mech.)
Weighs around 65 kilos (turntable), around 85 with motors and PS. Sitted on custom granite plate makes a whopping 105 kilos total weight.
Cartridge is a Van den hul "The Condor" 0,55mv output ,special order with lighter body and silver coils.This is the end for me!
My first non-changer was a Thorens TD-165 with Shure M95ED. But it really wasn't high end. I then had a Thorens TD-125 II and an Ortofon VMS-20E, which was somewhat better. But I sold that and bought a used early Linn LP-12 with Grace 707 tonearm and MC cartridge. That upgrade was astonishing -- I 'd love to have that ancient combination again in good condition!
My first non-changer was a Thorens TD-165 with Shure M95ED. But it really wasn't high end. I then had a Thorens TD-125 II and an Ortofon VMS-20E, which was somewhat better. But I sold that and bought a used early Linn LP-12 with Grace 707 tonearm and MC cartridge. That upgrade was astonishing -- I 'd love to have that ancient combination again in good condition!
I don't think you were alone owning a Thorens. I'll be you a lot of fledgling audiophiles had at one time or another a Thorens turntable. Tell people you have a turntable nowadays and I'll bet you the only name they know is Thorens. But somehow the revolution they started passed them by.
A used Linn LP12 pre-Valhalla mod was my 2nd table. And I also used the Grace F9E on it until the bearings wore out a year later. The Grace was replaced with the Basik (yuck) and eventually I mounted a ETII (quite successfully since had the best Linn setup guy around in NY do it) quite successfully despite people saying it couldn't be done
I made my lunch, date and beer money DJing in high school and college. While my folks had a TD 165 MkII and a Revox linear tracker. My mistress was a pair of SL-1200s. I still have a pair of 1210 M5Gs today.
I dunno about what folks would consider high end but what I consider my first "high end" table was a VPI Aries 2 with a JMW 10.5 and SDS. As time went by I just found the darned arm to be a dog to set up. No anti-skate and getting azimuth right using the drop weight was a nightmare. A never ending ping pong match between VTF and Azimuth is not my idea of fun. I moved up to an HRX with a Graham Phantom L. The L meaning Long otherwise you wouldn't be able to use the darned periphery ring. The Graham is perfect for me. Idiot proof and immune to my sausage fingers. I heard the TW AC-3 in January of 08, sold the HRX, kept the arm and got another one (actually a first run of the Phantom II, you can tell because it still doesn't have the little bubble level found in the current run) I'm not itching for any upgrades at this point. Seems I found the combination that best suits my current tastes. Now if only Tri Mai can hustle up and roll those Ultimates out so I can get my hands on my brothers VII for my Koetsu, I think I'll be very happy.
I like how Jay_S stated it, my first non-changer was in 1978-79 a Sanyo belt drive, S-shaped tone arm with an Empire 500.
Then around 1987 picked up a a Dual Cs503-1 (plastic body), and as the saying goes; anything better than a DUAL is high-end. Well I still have the $250 turntable but it's been modified like crazy with at least $1,000 of goodies added and plus hundreds of hours worth of experiments/tinkering put into it. I could not have had more fun if I just bought a better table, in fact the experience only makes me want to build my own from scratch.
Hi folks, my first turntable that I would consider high-end was the Ariston RD110 Superior. Very heavy (in those days) and the tonearm base is well isolated from the external vibrations. I have fond memories of it.
Hi folks, my first turntable that I would consider high-end was the Ariston RD110 Superior. Very heavy (in those days) and the tonearm base is well isolated from the external vibrations. I have fond memories of it.
Thanks for the link, kach22i. In those days when the seller was trying to sell me the Ariston, he told me it was like a Linn Sondek. I didn't quite believe him but liked the turntable anyway, but the link shows there is some basis for equating the Ariston to the Linn.
I guess mine was the original AR with its integrated arm and a Dyna Pas 3 preamp from the 70's. Relied on my R to R tapes of vinyl for many years while wandering in the digital desert, mercifully returning to vinyl several years ago.
My first high end table was a Thorens TD-124 MK2. It was fitted with Ortofon 212 arm and Ortofon moving coil cartridge. State of the art at the time, and I guess some audiophiles today still prefer these to modern.
My first "high end" turntable was a French turntable called ERA which had a Stax UA7 with a Sonus Blue Label cartridge. I still have the turntable and arm but the cartridge was included in a trade for some Magneplaner MG2s. This was back in my college days in Ithaca, NY in the year that the Grateful Dead played at Cornell. That was a great concert. For the money, I believe the best budget turntable is the Project III which comes with a good arm and an Ortofon cartridge.
My first "high end" turntable was a French turntable called ERA which had a Stax UA7 with a Sonus Blue Label cartridge. I still have the turntable and arm but the cartridge was included in a trade for some Magneplaner MG2s. This was back in my college days in Ithaca, NY in the year that the Grateful Dead played at Cornell. That was a great concert. For the money, I believe the best budget turntable is the Project III which comes with a good arm and an Ortofon cartridge.
I don't remember much about the concert itself, but the recordings of the show do bring back some vague memories that it was a very good concert (May 8, 1977 - Barton Hall).
I don't remember much about the concert itself, but the recordings of the show do bring back some vague memories that it was a very good concert (May 8, 1977 - Barton Hall).