akirk Posted July 9, 2005 Share Posted July 9, 2005 A couple of years ago the cartridge on my Bang and Olufsen turntable was damaged and became unusable. I ended up selling the turntable because it uses a special B & O cartridge and I didn't want to pay the high replacement cost. I was planning on selling my record collection but now am having second thoughts. Although CD's are so nice and handy there's still something about vinyl albums - maybe it's nostalgia hitting me, I don't know. Anyway, I'm thinking about trying to find a good used turntable on eBay or elsewhere for not a great lot of $$$'s. I was wondering if anybody had any good recommendations on a good brand/model, etc? Also, any recommendations on good cartridges would be appreciated. Thanks for your help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mighty Favog Posted July 9, 2005 Share Posted July 9, 2005 Maybe Thorens TD125 or something more modern like Music Hall MMF5. I love my Yamaha PF800 but they are not easy to come by, the Music Hall would probably sound better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlieboy Posted July 9, 2005 Share Posted July 9, 2005 I think it depends on what you think not a great lot of $$$$ actually is. Some great deals on Thorens as mentioned . mabye a Thorens160. Also some great DD like pioneer pl-61 or pl-50. It really depends on your budget. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garymd Posted July 9, 2005 Share Posted July 9, 2005 There are dozens of options between $100 and $1000. In order to help, we need a specific budget. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted July 10, 2005 Share Posted July 10, 2005 Besides price, there's also direct-drive or belt, new or used, manual or automatic... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirk Posted July 11, 2005 Author Share Posted July 11, 2005 OK, here is a bit of clarification on what I am looking for in a turntable: budget - less than $200, new or used - definitely used (more bang for the buck), manual or automatic - probably manual or semi-automatic, direct or belt drive - unsure. I was kind of under the impression that belt drive turntables were better, since the belt acts to dampen out any vibrations that the motor might impart to the platter. Is that correct or not? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sputnik Posted July 11, 2005 Share Posted July 11, 2005 I wanted to replace my B&O RX turntable and went through several 1970's vintage TTs recently. The best I found by far was the Dual 701. It was the top of the line for Dual in the early seventies and came mated to a very good cartridge - the Shure v15 III. The Dual 701 cost over $400 new in the seventies. I picked up a nice one off of ebay for about $150 with the cartridge. I picked up another fuctional one in reasonably good condition for $80 just for the cartridge and spare parts. I've seen these used Shure v15 cartridges go for over $75 alone on ebay. The German build quality, operation, and especially the performance are much more robust than the B&O or others that I tried. I have no plans on ever replacing it. It is a very quiet direct drive semi auto operation TT. The platter is massive - about 8 to 10 pounds. Here is a link to comments on Audioreview.com. Dual 701 I'm sure that you'll get some other good suggestions. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted July 11, 2005 Share Posted July 11, 2005 ditto on the music hall models Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcmjrt Posted July 13, 2005 Share Posted July 13, 2005 I'm looking for a TT too so though I'd try to keep this thread alive. I'd like to replace a TT in a console and end up with a good secondary system so appearance and dustcovers don't mean much and I'd be looking to keep it under $150. Obviously, for that budget it needs to be vintage which is fine since it's going in a vintage console. Any other specific recommendations besides Thorens160? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arfandbark Posted July 13, 2005 Share Posted July 13, 2005 Many members swear by vinyl over CD's. The albums are not costing you anything to keep.. I'm in the CD group but that's because the vinyl that wasn't stolen is scratched up terribly... I rergret giving away my good vinyl to this day. Hope you don't make the same mistake.. WOOF! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcmjrt Posted July 14, 2005 Share Posted July 14, 2005 I had thought about getting rid of my vinyl more than once as I hadn't been listening to it for quite a while but hearing everyone talk about their records got me to listening to mine again and I'm enjoying them. I even purchased a few recently at a garage sale. I have a decent table and cartridge for my main unit but was hoping to pick up someting relatively cheap for a secondary system. It seems like cheap and TTs just don't go together too well. I guess we low budget types will have to get lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mick Bell Posted July 14, 2005 Share Posted July 14, 2005 Akirk: I have an excellent Thorens 166 with a Grado cartridge I'm willing to sell. Original owner, originl box, manual. I may even have an extra tone arm. Mick Bell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thoriated_Tiger Posted July 14, 2005 Share Posted July 14, 2005 Another 'ditto' for Thorens. I run a TD-145 with an AudioTechnica 440ML. Does very nicely for not much cash at all. The arm is somethin' else, tho.. got hit with the ugly stick, and likes medium-to-low compliance carts.. lower the better. (Any recco's for carts for this old beastie? MM please.. can't swing MCs with my preamp.. eff. mass is 16.5 g.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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