Quite the journey, since looking for warm and cozy socks on Amazon and AI kept showing me Turntables. 🤣 So the the journey began.
Very precise and clean sounding. Yes, I’m selling it after 4 months. 😅
Song is from the first track of the Sidewinder LP by Lee Morgan. Very catchy.
I see a lot of comments suggesting used/vintage gear instead of buying new. So that lead me on a bit of a quest to see if I can make a neglected vintage turntable sound just as good or better than my current more expensive table, the Project EVO2 w/ Blue Stylus).
I started off buying an old Vintage Thorens TD-166 MkII from a local estate sale for $220.
Took it home and tested it and it sounded like hot garbage. Replaced the belt, cleaned, oiled, replaced stock feet, and cartridge with At-VM95ML, which wasn’t at all easy with this table.
First I needed a special gauge for alignments since the screws from the bottom. Second, I needed specific screws to mount it. No one in my city had or country for that matter. Specifically metric M2 10mm length. Finally found and ordered through grainger. Now I can put everything together and test. Did about 1.92 tracking force.
Tested after cart install and alignment. Sounds very good. How does it compare? Sounds good, but is it significantly different or better than my Project? That I’m not sure. It was cheaper to put together. Also, keep in mind, this table is super sensitive to foot falls. I would have to wall mount it.
All in all, I think this was a good learning experience and maybe a vote for going vintage on the cheap, if you are willing to do the work.
The table itself was already in great condition, just no maintenance done in 50 yrs. If you go vintage, maybe don’t get one with a suspended table and a headshell with screws on the bottom. Be prepared for wall mounting it. That said, yes, I’m getting another Thorens in a few months and selling both the Project and 166.
Cost of Vintage: Table $220, belt $24, Cart $179, special cart gauge: $42, special screws $6= $471
Cost of New Project currently: $799, Blue Stylus $198= $997
So yes, one vote for giving vintage a try.