Audio Technica AT-LP5

[Fantastic]

Has anyone bought the Audio Technica AT-LP5 turntable ? Seems to be the pick for serious users.

 

[Fantastic]

Got my AT-LP5 a couple of weeks ago. Apart from the fact that it's totally manual , its a very nice turntable. Been listening to it through the internal preamp. Haven't listened to it much due to lack of time. Will have more time next month.
It would have been nice if they included a vertical height adjustment for the tone arm. But that can be sorted out I guess using other methods if required. I have some other older turntables to compare it with . The older turntables have much heavier platters !

 

[Ashenden]

Got my AT-LP5 a couple of weeks ago. Apart from the fact that it's totally manual , its a very nice turntable. Been listening to it through the internal preamp. Haven't listened to it much due to lack of time. Will have more time next month.
It would have been nice if they included a vertical height adjustment for the tone arm. But that can be sorted out I guess using other methods if required. I have some other older turntables to compare it with . The older turntables have much heavier platters !

Have you tried digitizing your records through the USB? How good is the digital file quality?

 

[Fantastic]

No I have not done that yet. Don't you feel that evaluating that is subject to a few variables. Like if we use the internal sound of the computer, or used an external DAC etc. Will post results when I try that. I plan to try out different cartridges first. I have a few .Most are AT . Also need to check out the accuracy of the RIAA network AND how it sounds with an external preamp.

 

[Ashenden]

No I have not done that yet. Don't you feel that evaluating that is subject to a few variables. Like if we use the internal sound of the computer, or used an external DAC etc. Will post results when I try that. I plan to try out different cartridges first. I have a few .Most are AT . Also need to check out the accuracy of the RIAA network AND how it sounds with an external preamp.

OK. Please do post your impressions. I was planning to borrow one and digitize my collection to 16bit/44.1kHz. I think if you're using the same cartridge and stylus that it came with, it should be almost at par, assuming you don't use an external DAC or preamp

 

[Bhaskar Jyoti Talapatra]

Got my AT-LP5 a couple of weeks ago. Apart from the fact that it's totally manual , its a very nice turntable. Been listening to it through the internal preamp. Haven't listened to it much due to lack of time. Will have more time next month.
It would have been nice if they included a vertical height adjustment for the tone arm. But that can be sorted out I guess using other methods if required. I have some other older turntables to compare it with . The older turntables have much heavier platters !

Hi friend
Where from have you sourced it? Have you bought it from any dealer or have it through any on line dealer? Another question is it fully manual?
Regards
Bhaskar

 

[Fantastic]

Hi friend
Where from have you sourced it? Have you bought it from any dealer or have it through any on line dealer? Another question is it fully manual?
Regards
Bhaskar

A friend carried it over from the US. Its a 110 V unit. I use an external step down transformer. It's a pain, but once set up there is no issue. It's completely manual from start to finish. At some point I'll see if the internal transformer can be changed to a 230 V unit. Should be available in Singapore as a replacement part. Or I could have one wound here . The original is well shielded ! But right now it doesn't matter.

 

[Bhaskar Jyoti Talapatra]

A friend carried it over from the US. Its a 110 V unit. I use an external step down transformer. It's a pain, but once set up there is no issue. It's completely manual from start to finish. At some point I'll see if the internal transformer can be changed to a 230 V unit. Should be available in Singapore as a replacement part. Or I could have one wound here . The original is well shielded ! But right now it doesn't matter.

Hi
Fantastic
Thanks for your reply. I came to know about lp5 from your post. I have an Audiotechnica LP 60 which is fully automatic. I am contented with its performance. But I want to have a TT which is fully manual. Your post is of immense help in that regard.
Regards
Bhaskar

 

[Fantastic]

It is normally listed at US$450/- on Amazon.com . But they dropped it to 399/- for some time. Then recently it went back to 450/- for a few days and then again dropped to 399/- ! Now it's back to 450/- ! Wonder whats happening .

 

[Vinay2013]

It is normally listed at US$450/- on Amazon.com . But they dropped it to 399/- for some time. Then recently it went back to 450/- for a few days and then again dropped to 399/- ! Now it's back to 450/- ! Wonder whats happening .

This is Amazon's trick to lure buyers who are interested and looking for it. Helps them to decide quickly on next price drop.

 

[Fantastic]

I checked out the capacitance on the AT-LP5 turntable.
With cartridge removed the capacitance was measured at the end of the RCA plug which goes into the external amp. This would include capacitance of the arm tube wires , the socket on the arm , the connection from the arm leads to the RCA socket on the turntable plus any capacitance enroute ( via the pcb ?) , the RCA socket , two RCA plugs on the external cable and the external cable capacitance . It was around 390 pF. The capacitance of the external RCA cable alone was around 290pF ( cable supplied by Audio Technica).

This probably isn't good if you use an external phono preamp. Many older mm cartridges generally required high capacitance in the region of 470 pF etc. So those would work OK over here if the preamp had a low capacitance input. Often that cannot be controlled by the user. Many modern mm cartridges require typically 200pF or less. So you will have to use a low capacitance RCA cable and preferably short ones like say 1/2 meter in length. From the measurement here it appears that the capacitance at the RCA socket on the turntable when operating in the Phono Out mode , would be about 100pF. So for some of the newer mm cartridges the external RCA cable AND preamp input should not have more than 100pF . Very easily exceeded for typical phono preamps and connecting cables unless one is very careful.

If we used the internal phono preamp , the RCA cable capacitance would not matter much as its connected to the output of the internal preamp.
It would be interesting to see what a frequency response sweep ( off a test record ) looks like when using the internal preamp and preinstalled cartridge ( AT-95 EX ).

 

[Fantastic]

Forgot to mention something. When the cartridge on the arm is switched to the internal preamp, it will not see the capacitance of the RCA cable or the RCA plugs and socket that's there. So it will see possibly less than 100pF and it would have been easy for the AT engineers to match their preamp to the cartridge. But if we used a different cartridge we would not be able to change the capacitance if it is required ! If you are competent enough playing around with circuit boards you probably can . Something which most users can't do.
It's something to keep in mind while experimenting. I'll post a simulated ( electrical ) HF response of the existing cartridge with different capacitance values. Remember that one can usually play around with the input dc resistance also in external preamps if you have a test disc to check the response. Everything requires time which is often in short supply !
Luckily for me I bought a few different styli for the same cartridge a couple of years ago ( For the AT-95 ) . They are different from what's on the supplied cartridge ( AT-95EX). Will see if they make a difference.