New Vs Vintage Turntable?

[Matt P]

Have you considered a Thorens TD-160? Visually similar to the Linn (even more so with an aftermarket solid wood plinth) and uses a very similar sprung chassis design (in fact the Thorens turntable design predates the Linn) 

 

the Thorens turntables are very well regarded but sell for far less then the LP-12.

 

I've split the difference and have one of each, the Thorens for 33rpm duties and a NAD 533 (rebadged Rega 2 with a different platter) for 45rpm.

 

the money i've not spent on a fancier turntable has been spent on more records and replacement stylii / cartridges.

 

 

Matt

[RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE]

Well …I don’t need this at all ! I will be getting this later on in the year ! How could I not?!?

[NancyJohnson]

Despite moaning frequently about these younglings buying vinyls (😏), I'm getting a bit of a vinyl itch on.  I don't know whether it's the having or the getting tbh.

 

There's about 100 albums and a few boxes of singles in my spare room, plus I have access to a ton of vinyl that comes through the charity where I volunteer.

 

For me, I just need a built in phono stage and wireless (Bluetooth) connectivity so I can squirt the output into a Sonos system.  This isn't going to be a full blown addiction thing.  It would be nice to just hear a few things that aren't on Spotify.

 

 

[Dan Dare]

4 hours ago, NancyJohnson said:

Despite moaning frequently about these younglings buying vinyls (😏), I'm getting a bit of a vinyl itch on.  I don't know whether it's the having or the getting tbh.

 

There's about 100 albums and a few boxes of singles in my spare room, plus I have access to a ton of vinyl that comes through the charity where I volunteer.

 

For me, I just need a built in phono stage and wireless (Bluetooth) connectivity so I can squirt the output into a Sonos system.  This isn't going to be a full blown addiction thing.  It would be nice to just hear a few things that aren't on Spotify.

 

An old FM tuner is a good thing to have, for the same reasons. Cheap to buy and, as long as you're in a decent signal area (proper aerials can be a bit pricey) and can get results with a piece of wet string, it can give you access to a load of interesting stuff.

[Matt P]

13 minutes ago, Dan Dare said:

 

An old FM tuner is a good thing to have, for the same reasons. Cheap to buy and, as long as you're in a decent signal area (proper aerials can be a bit pricey) and can get results with a piece of wet string, it can give you access to a load of interesting stuff.

 

when i bought my Denon TU-260L the guy in cash converters said it wasn't worth plugging it in to test as they never got signal in the shop, I plugged it in anyway and even without an aerial i got the bbc radio stations loud and clear, possibly the best £20 i spent.

 

I upgraded to a TU-1800 a while back which adds DAB as well, just using a fairly inexpensive aerial from john Lewis It works brilliantly. quite a few of the DAB tuners i've come across have got pass through connections on the back so you can plug the FM tuner into the DAB, and then the DAB into the amp, when the dab is off then it just passes the FM straight through, doesn't need an extra amp channel.

 

Matt

[Alicatt]

It's a Thorens deck I have here in Scotland with a SME 2000 arm with a Shure cartridge, I inherited it from my late uncle and he bought it in the early 70's also inherited his record collection. It plays very good still, just before he passed he got himself a Marantz CD player, he was 87 at the time.

 

Back home in Belgium, while I do have a deck it is a cheap digital one from Akai, mainly I play bluray audio or DVD-A or stream if I have to.

 

 

[xgsjx]

A wee twist in the turntable hunt…

 

Mrs saw the Technics SL 1200GR2 today & loves it. So that may be sitting in my living room in the not too distant. 😎

[dmccombe7]

On 03/01/2026 at 19:28, xgsjx said:

It’s fairly solid where the unit is sitting. It’s wood, but right next to brick wall.  Not much of a dancer. 

I'm still using my old Sony deck from 70's. I replaced the cartridge on it, no idea what it is tho but it still works fine but doesn't get much use these days.

If you find the stylus jumping a bit do you not just adjust the balance weight to prevent jumping. Its not something i've ever had a problem with. The manual told me how to set the weight and its been there ever since.

Its a NAD power amp with Mission and Bose speakers. I tend to use CD's more or if practicing the set list just fire in the laptop to a spare input channel.

Think if i was buying a new deck it would be direct drive rather than belt which i've had to replace twice on mine over the years.

Dave

Edited 3 hours ago by dmccombe7

[SumOne]

11 hours ago, xgsjx said:

A wee twist in the turntable hunt…

 

Mrs saw the Technics SL 1200GR2 today & loves it. So that may be sitting in my living room in the not too distant. 😎

I'm a big fan of Technics. Have had 1210's for 30 years with only small bits of DIY maintenance needed. So getting the 1200GR2 I'm sure would be the last deck you'd ever need to buy.

 

.....however, I'm not certain the 1200GR2 (or older versions like 1200 and 1210's) are ideal for home listening. Isn't their main design for them to be built like reliable tanks to withstand DJs doing stuff like this: 

 

 

 

It's like getting a tank to do the school run. A lot of unnecessary cost, bulk and toughness, while missing some features that would be nice to have.

[xgsjx]

47 minutes ago, SumOne said:

I'm a big fan of Technics. Have had 1210's for 30 years with only small bits of DIY maintenance needed. So getting the 1200GR2 I'm sure would be the last deck you'd ever need to buy.

 

.....however, I'm not certain the 1200GR2 (or older versions like 1200 and 1210's) are ideal for home listening. Isn't their main design for them to be built like reliable tanks to withstand DJs doing stuff like this: 

 

 

 

It's like getting a tank to do the school run. A lot of unnecessary cost, bulk and toughness, while missing some features that would be nice to have.

I used to DJ quite a bit back in the 80s & 90s.  The majority of the time was on 1200/1210 decks.
I know that they're associated strongly with DJing rather than home HiFi, but from the research that I've done on the Mk7 decks, the GR2 and the G are more aimed at the HiFi market (they do a standard version for about £800, which is more aimed at the DJ market).  HiFi shops sell the GR & G, but rarely the standard & DJ shops rarely offer the GR or G (some do, but not many).
 

[SumOne]

21 minutes ago, xgsjx said:

I used to DJ quite a bit back in the 80s & 90s.  The majority of the time was on 1200/1210 decks.
I know that they're associated strongly with DJing rather than home HiFi, but from the research that I've done on the Mk7 decks, the GR2 and the G are more aimed at the HiFi market (they do a standard version for about £800, which is more aimed at the DJ market).  HiFi shops sell the GR & G, but rarely the standard & DJ shops rarely offer the GR or G (some do, but not many).
 

 

Ah right, I stand corrected. I thought that Direct Drive wasn't ideal for hi-fi and the 1200 types were all DJ focussed.

 

Either way, years of DJing and playing in bands means my hearing wouldn't tell any difference between hi-fi and fisher price!