Are the new TTs any good

[lifewater]

Dear friends, I have seen ads at ebay.in for TT with brands ranging from Lenco, Denon, Ion Audio etc. Are they any good ? if so there are a lot of people among who want to shift to Vinyl but are held back by the prospect of huge financial investment implications. Also cartridge/stylus/belt etc of vintage models are not easily available (none knows better than me in this matter). Moreover there is a peace of mind in buying new because of the warranty cover.

It would be of great help if gurus chip in with their advice.

Regards

lifewater

 

[sreejithsreedharan]

Hi,

I am no expert.. But here is my little sugstn...


The new TTs are no good otherwise they are high end.. I doubt even the high end can be any good when compare to vintage stuff..

So don't go for new ones.. better search for old vintage direct drive TTs..

Kuruvila sir is an expert in this n would suggest you contact him before making any dcsn..

Thanks,

Sreejith..

 

[sann]

@lifewater, Post in the wanted section of this forum about the TT you are looking for, you could get a good TT / leads from the forum members.
I got my Technics DD, TT through the HFV from Dr. Shivam, I am very happy with it and enjoying the wonderful world of vinyl.
-sann'

 

[lifewater]

@lifewater, Post in the wanted section of this forum about the TT you are looking for, you could get a good TT / leads from the forum members.
I got my Technics DD, TT through the HFV from Dr. Shivam, I am very happy with it and enjoying the wonderful world of vinyl.
-sann'

Thanks sann,
Its not that I want to buy TT, I already have two, not very high end - Garard 2025T and a Garard 301. I have started this thread so some of us can be benefited with the suggestions/answers. There are many among us who feel reluctant to ask and just keep browsing the forum.

However thank you very much for the answer.

Regards

Lifewater

 

[stevieboy]

Hi lifewater,

A lot of the TTs offered new are pretty decent and good for someone looking at a particular price point and just wanting to plug and play. A colleague picked up a Lenco from flipkart and is very happy with it. He will never go to the lengths I go to, rewiring, browsing for headshells, experimenting with carts etc and for his needs that is perfect. He also digitises his vinyl through the USB output. What's not to love about such a modern TT?

Regards

 

[malvai]

Thanks sann,
Its not that I want to buy TT, I already have two, not very high end - Garard 2025T and a Garard 301. I have started this thread so some of us can be benefited with the suggestions/answers. There are many among us who feel reluctant to ask and just keep browsing the forum.

However thank you very much for the answer.

Regards

Lifewater

dude, the Garrrard 301 is about as high end as it gets! just simply bring it up to spec and it will beat $5k TT's from the current generation - hands down!

i feel some of the vintage TT's really have a lot of potential.

I feel a Technics Sl1300, SL1200 can beat modern TT's upto 80k easily.

The garrard 301, 401, Thorens TD124, Lenco GL 75 etc are truly unbeatable at ANY price points...

 

[Saket]

dude, the Garrrard 301 is about as high end as it gets! just simply bring it up to spec and it will beat $5k TT's from the current generation - hands down!

i feel some of the vintage TT's really have a lot of potential.

I feel a Technics Sl1300, SL1200 can beat modern TT's upto 80k easily.

The garrard 301, 401, Thorens TD124, Lenco GL 75 etc are truly unbeatable at ANY price points...

+1. You put my words right in this post. Garrard 301s/ 401s are legendary TTs. Just try to get a quote for them, if available, from OLX & other such sites and you will feel that you are sitting on a treasure!

Not to mention, the great precision & build quality of DD Technics can have many modern days TT for breakfast!

 

[Shivam]

Project makes some good turntables at affordable prices. They get my vote for someone looking for a new turntable.

 

[himadri]

Hi
The Rega RP3 is good value for money. Cant match the big boys of the idler drives but at 50k does many things which only a 150k digital source will do.
Cheers

 

[lifewater]

Thats it friends. Thank you all for your replies. Now Sir, I do know that the Garrard 301 sits in high end territory and I am very happy with it, but here we are talking about the modern day TTs as it is very difficult to find TTs like Garrard 301 / 401 readily on the net. Even if someone sells it, invariably there is bound to be some problems with it. I personally dont at all feel comfortable buying from quickr / olx etc.... but here on hifivision it is a different ballgme altogether. There is a sense of camaraderie on the forum and hardy would anyone cheat any of their forum members.

BTW yesterday checked out some dealers in Delhi and most of them are offering the DENON DP29 F TT for 9K rupees.

Regards

Lifewater

 

[arj]

Lifewater i believe most of the entry levels with built in Phone/carts etc are really great to start your hifi and else the investment into the whole system can be huge and it gives a good flavour..of course as you go higher things improve but the effort taken in setting those like a Garrad/lenco etc are also really high and sometimes can be a enthusuasm killer.
9K is not too high and well worth the investment. please do check if they do come in with a Phono pre as well as a Cartridge as they can bump up the price. Given a choice you will be safer with a Denon...

But in the end it depends on your apetitte for "Investment" as well as the resolution of the rest of the system..

 

[greenhorn]

but here on hifivision it is a different ballgme altogether. There is a sense of camaraderie on the forum and hardy would anyone cheat any of their forum members.

But just to be on the safe side, don't count on it. A few shady characters do pop up now and then.

 

[lifewater]

Lifewater i believe most of the entry levels with built in Phone/carts etc are really great to start your hifi and else the investment into the whole system can be huge and it gives a good flavour..of course as you go higher things improve but the effort taken in setting those like a Garrad/lenco etc are also really high and sometimes can be a enthusuasm killer.
9K is not too high and well worth the investment. please do check if they do come in with a Phono pre as well as a Cartridge as they can bump up the price. Given a choice you will be safer with a Denon...

But in the end it depends on your apetitte for "Investment" as well as the resolution of the rest of the system..

Right arj, the denon TT comes with phono pre and a cartridge as standard fitment.

But just to be on the safe side, don't count on it. A few shady characters do pop up now and then.

Possible ... all is possible. What life

 

[reubensm]

Dear friends, I have seen ads at ebay.in for TT with brands ranging from Lenco, Denon, Ion Audio etc. Are they any good ? if so there are a lot of people among who want to shift to Vinyl but are held back by the prospect of huge financial investment implications. Also cartridge/stylus/belt etc of vintage models are not easily available (none knows better than me in this matter). Moreover there is a peace of mind in buying new because of the warranty cover.

It would be of great help if gurus chip in with their advice.

Regards

lifewater

I've got 2 words for you - "Stay away!!"

They are rubbish and also heavily priced. Go vintage and that's the best bang for the buck. You can start with as little as Rs.1500 if you know where to look and of course, have patience. Use the cool off period to get as much of knowledge you can, on this medium before taking the dive. The key is not to indulge if you are not familiar with the concept. Also if you know how to service your turntable, there's nothing like it. The glamour of buying a new TT (the ones you've listed) will end in complete disappointment the moment you drive to your friend's house and hear his vintage Technics turntable play and this will change to despair the moment he tells you that his investment is less than half of what you invested

Disclaimer: not implying that you can buy a Technics TT for Rs.1500/- but you can start with a very basic HMV or Philips, play around and get a feel of the format, then upgrade. This will also give you time to collect vinyl. There's no use having a great and expensive TT with a collection of just 4 or 5 records to play on it, you'll get fed up in no time

 

[malvai]

Building on the above, you also need to check with yourself to figure out exactly how committed you are about the format. If you are not very committed, its all going to be money down the drain.

so, start slow. get your self a good DD like a Technics, Kenwood, JVC, Pioneer etc.... these vintage decks are an absolute steal at the 7-15k price point and beat any modern TT upto the 80k mark.

At 7-15k, you are not really commiting really big bucks. After a few months of play, and building a collection, you will be able to ascertain if this is the long-term format for you or not.

In my case, my analogue rig is my main rig.... The DAC or digital is used only for testing out newer albums that might be released on Vinyl, and if i like the sounds/music, I buy the vinyl. In some cases the music is just not there on vinyl, and that is when the digital front ends are really used!

 

[jls001]

Building further on the above, please understand that you will also need to invest on good a cartridge, a good phono stage, and have to spend time and money on hunting for good records.

The last part is a pleasurable exercise (for the most part, anyway:lol, but finalising a cartridge for your setup can be agonising and pocketbook draining. It depends so much on how wide and deeply you are willing to open your wallet, but also on what arm and phono stage you have, or are willing to buy. Your arm will impose limits on which cartridges you can use.

 

[lifewater]

Building further on the above, please understand that you will also need to invest on good a cartridge, a good phono stage, and have to spend time and money on hunting for good records.

The last part is a pleasurable exercise (for the most part, anyway:lol, but finalising a cartridge for your setup can be agonising and pocketbook draining. It depends so much on how wide and deeply you are willing to open your wallet, but also on what arm and phono stage you have, or are willing to buy. Your arm will impose limits on which cartridges you can use.

I understand. Presently using a Garrard 301 in stock form with a Luxman amp sometimes or a sonodyne SC 600 sometimes. Records.. have got 987 nos at present some of which has been played at the most twice !!!!.

Started this thread for the benefit of some of our fellow members and with the flow of information, surely people would benefit. Now how about improving a Garrard 2025T to get more out of it ? most people say it is junk, forget about it and so on, but or some of us new vinyl addicts this might be the only one available and I am sure would perform better than some new crop of plastic TTs

Regards,


lifewater
lifewater.

 

[arj]

I think i missed your post on the Garrard301 !
i take back what i wrote above

Whats the rest of your system...if you want your garrard to play to potential , Phono/Cart can be an intersting financial drain ! What tonearm do you have on it ?

 

[lifewater]

I think i missed your post on the Garrard301 !
i take back what i wrote above

Whats the rest of your system...if you want your garrard to play to potential , Phono/Cart can be an intersting financial drain ! What tonearm do you have on it ?

No issues arj, it has a 3012 tonearm and cartridge seems to be sure 97( ? is it 87). Quite right about the financial drain. Right now am almost belly up so was not talking too much about the 301 TT and its endless possibilities.

 

[john_k_antony]

Please excuse a noob question on this topic ..

Lets say if one can get hold of one of the following brand new TTs, can it hold up with Gerrard 301/401 with DL-103 cart ?

1. VPI Scout
2. Clear Audio Concept MC
3. Music Hall mmf 9.1

Well both the above TTs cost between 1-1.5L. However Clear Audio Concept MC and Music Hall 9.1 are plug and play TTs with decent tonearm and MC cart.

Can a vintage Gerrard with a good MC cart like, DL-103, can still smoke the above TTs ?

Note : I got myself a Project Debut III and wasted lots of money trying to upgrade it, but ofcourse in vain . I could have saved that money for a future upgrade. I am a beginner with a very modest collection of around 150 LPs collected in last 7-8 months.

-John.