Myryad Amplifier and Acoustic Research ES 1 turntable

[vmscbe1974]

Dear friends

One of my source seller from Erode has offered the Acoustic Research ES1 Turntable and Myryad Amplifier. The turntable costs a whopping of Rs.85000/- and is it worth that money? the turntable is a demo piece from Singapore. he regularly visits Singapore and gets items. Myryad amplifier i have never come across .

I am bit skeptical to go for very hi end electronics for want of service back up. He is been in this field for almost 30 years. Guide me .

Regards
Srinivasan

 

[G401fan]

The AR ES 1 turntable was issued in the early '80s, and was a pretty good variation of the original Classic AR turntable of the three point suspension belt drive design. Looked quite elegant in its layout. Production discontinued after a few years. Cost about $450 at the time. Is it worth 80k today? Your call. I would not pay more than a quarter of that.

Myryad amps are well regarded, British made, that might be a good buy, depending on the price.

 

[sunder]

Myryad amps are very neutral and transparent nature amps.

 

[reubensm]

I would have thought that the AR XA was a better investment, if you are into belt drive turntables. From what I've heard, I always thought Thorens belt drives, sounded more lively.

 

[kartick]

I would have thought that the AR XA was a better investment, if you are into belt drive turntables. From what I've heard, I always thought Thorens belt drives, sounded more lively.

Hey Reuben. I recently acquired a Thorens TD160 deck from a dear FM. The intention of purchasing the deck was so that I could modify the plinth and the arm to elevate the sonic performace. While researching on the same, I came across this very informative link on Thorens TD160 TTs: Building new plinth - Page 4 - Vinyl Engine

There are certain experienced people who have played around with Thorens, Linn for many years. They have observed the nuances in sound after using different plinth materials. Some posts in the mentioned link indicate that the Thorens TD160 is not a lively sounding deck. It will be good to know from you if you have experience with this model, suggestions on plinth design for TD160. Others contemplating a belt drive TTs like AR, Linn, etc. can also benefit from this.

 

[kuruvilajacob]

Hey Reuben. I recently acquired a Thorens TD160 deck from a dear FM. The intention of purchasing the deck was so that I could modify the plinth and the arm to elevate the sonic performace. While researching on the same, I came across this very informative link on Thorens TD160 TTs: Building new plinth - Page 4 - Vinyl Engine

There are certain experienced people who have played around with Thorens, Linn for many years. They have observed the nuances in sound after using different plinth materials. Some posts in the mentioned link indicate that the Thorens TD160 is not a lively sounding deck. It will be good to know from you if you have experience with this model, suggestions on plinth design for TD160. Others contemplating a belt drive TTs like AR, Linn, etc. can also benefit from this.

I have several AR models, a Linn and few Thorens models. It is not recommended that these suspended turntables should ever be modified with any plinth . Plinth modification is best for idler wheel Turntables such as Garrard 301,401 and Lenco L 75 where the rumble noise can be reduced by heavy plinth if done correctly. So I feel you should abandon your plans to build a new plinth for your Thorens 160.

 

[kartick]

Thanks Mr. Jacob. I would still recommend if you can go through the link, if you already havent. Its quite informative.

 

[reubensm]

Personally I have always avoided belt drives but I've heard quite a few and they are very 'fluid' and "gentle". To give you an example, if you listen to "Marooned" by Pink Floyd on a Thorens TD160, you'd be transported to another planet. Alternatively, if you listen to Black Sabbath's War Pigs, it would sound a bit un-inspiring. But again, these are my views. I have heard the AR XA for years, and have had some long listening sessions with it as Dad use to take us to a friend's home and he had one of these. Very enjoyable turntable. I heard the Linn Sondek again, at Mr. Kuruvila's place and it sounded really good. For the music he was playing at the time, it sounded way better than the other TTs he had. If you are guy who wants sound-attack, then go for idlers. If you are a perfectionist and love accuracy, then go for direct drives, if you are guy into smooth listening, go for the belt drive. I would believe there is no point in meddling with the plinths of direct drive and belt drive turntables. If the belt drive uses a suspended plinth, then technically, the size of the plinth is immaterial. I have been doing some experiments with my Garrards using multiple layer plinths and box type plinths. Sound wise, I felt the old box type plinth sounded better but the multilayer plinths were more absorbent when it came to containing vibrations. On another note, for a person like me, minute changes to the sound with these mods, generally goes un-detected. There needs to be a significant difference for my ears to register it.

Hey Reuben. I recently acquired a Thorens TD160 deck from a dear FM. The intention of purchasing the deck was so that I could modify the plinth and the arm to elevate the sonic performace. While researching on the same, I came across this very informative link on Thorens TD160 TTs: Building new plinth - Page 4 - Vinyl Engine

There are certain experienced people who have played around with Thorens, Linn for many years. They have observed the nuances in sound after using different plinth materials. Some posts in the mentioned link indicate that the Thorens TD160 is not a lively sounding deck. It will be good to know from you if you have experience with this model, suggestions on plinth design for TD160. Others contemplating a belt drive TTs like AR, Linn, etc. can also benefit from this.

 

[kuruvilajacob]

Thanks Mr. Jacob. I would still recommend if you can go through the link, if you already havent. Its quite informative.

Mr.Kartick,
I have gone through the link. While I agree with many of the observations of the experienced members of that forum, the improvement in the sound reproduction after the many modification mentioned may not be worth the effort IMO. This is not to discourage you. Just my opinion. Yes, thank you for the link which was very informative.

 

[jls001]

Since we're already OT, I'll add some more - If the original plinth of the TD 160 is in a bad state, making a replacement plinth is a good idea in my opinion. The original plinths were usually made with chip boards (I think that's what they're called) and they tend to chip off at the edges due to aging. At least mine has. Badly. The replacement plinth I have in mind is a copy of the original, but made of hard wood. So it will be a box plinth with the same dimension as the original (at least the internal dimensions need to be same as original). The project is in limbo as I don't have a light arm to go with it.

 

[kartick]

@Mr. Kuruvila - Thanks for your inputs. I understand that your intent is not to discourage my project and that you mean well.

The Thorens TD160 has been one of those decks which people across the world have used to mod heavily. I was anyways wanting to experiment with a different turntable which could have given me an option of playing around with a custom plinth and tone arm. Reading up on the various threads on several forums and basis inputs received from you guys here on HFV, worst case situation may be that there may not be huge improvement in the overall SQ of the deck even when the plinth has been modded.

However, whatever I understand from my limited knowledge is that when it comes to any TTs performance, it should be about about the harmony between the plinth, tone arm and the cartridge. Not negating the other aspects that come into play, but primarily those 3. I will be using the Denon DL-103R on this deck, which I specifically bought for this.

Right now I am considering a plinth being constructed out of Sheesham wood. Preferably carved from a solid block. It will be paired by a custom light to medium mass arm also made out of Sheesham wood. The basic guideline that I will be following is to not go overboard and keep the plinth simple. Taking cues from the stock plinth. Mr. Viren Bakshi has been very kind to help me with this project. I will be doing it under his guidance. I subscribe to his sensibilities when it comes to audio and find his approach very minimalist and yet effective. My Lyrita phono stage is also currently being modded to suit the gain settings of the DL-103R.

All things aside, if the project does not result in any significant sonic improvement, it will at least make the deck look good. I will be initiated properly into the world of belt drives and will be educated on several aspects.

If anyone has any specific inputs, you may please share the same.

 

[prem]

Hi Kartick

You are in safe hands with Mr Viren Bakshi

I assume he is also making the tonearm for you. I like his Garrard wooden tonearm

 

[kartick]

Hi Kartick

You are in safe hands with Mr Viren Bakshi

I assume he is also making the tonearm for you. I like his Garrard wooden tonearm

Absolutely. I have also seen the wooden tone arm play on Viren sir's 401 & 301. The arms have a simple construction and suit well with the carts sir uses. When we were planning the tone arm mod, sir was quite confident on the pairing of the DL-103R with the arm. That is why I got it. I am quite thrilled to listen to the modded deck. Hopefully will be ready soon.

Cheers !!

 

[reubensm]

Can you throw some more light on Mr. Viren's wooden tonearm design?

 

[kartick]

Can you throw some more light on Mr. Viren's wooden tonearm design?

At this moment I am not well versed with the technical specifications of the tonearm. What I know is :
- it is made of Sheesham
- it is a uni pivot arm
- it is light to medium mass
- length is 12 inches
- tone arm wiring is Copper unshielded
- It does not use an explicit head shell

It would be best if Viren sir could shed some light on this. He can correct the facts stated above.

 

[kuruvilajacob]

Karthick,
Please ensure the plinth is big enough to accommodate the 12" tonearm. I have noticed the the original plinth of most models of Thorens are made with very light wood. I am sure the company must have had some specific reasons for it. So sticking to a lighter plinth may be safe. As you know, all these suspended models isolate the arm board. So when the arm board is cut for a larger plinth to fit 12" plinth, measurements have to be carefully taken. Just a few thoughts that came to my mind from my experience making plinths

 

[kartick]

Karthick,
Please ensure the plinth is big enough to accommodate the 12" tonearm. I have noticed the the original plinth of most models of Thorens are made with very light wood. I am sure the company must have had some specific reasons for it. So sticking to a lighter plinth may be safe. As you know, all these suspended models isolate the arm board. So when the arm board is cut for a larger plinth to fit 12" plinth, measurements have to be carefully taken. Just a few thoughts that came to my mind from my experience making plinths

Yes, Mr. Kuruvilla, we are going to take that aspect into consideration when finalizing the dimensions of the plinth. Also, I would keep the weight reasonable close to the original. But nothing excessively heavy. Once things take shape, I will share the details.

 

[jls001]

As you're planning on using the 103R, go for high mass arm. Say, 25 to 30 grams effective mass.

 

[kartick]

As you're planning on using the 103R, go for high mass arm. Say, 25 to 30 grams effective mass.

Yes, I understand that the 103R requires a medium-high mass arm. I checked with Mr. Viren and he was comfortable that the arm will be suiting the cart well.