Sutherland little loco mk2.
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Anyone have good DAC recommendations to pair with a turntable? 
JK, no room and no impetus for the effort required with but if I had a record, I’d try this. I saw the technique years ago and was wondering if anyone has heard of it and more importantly would throw a sacrificial print to the process to see first hand how well it works.
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Haha, i have heard of this method, but never tried it. Apparently it doesnt damage the record, but can’t speak from experience.
Hey turntable lovers.
I have a collogue in work who is considering getting himself first turnatble and since we talked about audio before he asked for any recommendations. Since I have platonic love with turntables and no knowledge, could you please help with some recommendations?
His budget is 300-400 USD and he is considering to be a part of one of these options:
- Getting Sonos speakers to play with everything
- An all-in-one with its own speakers
- Just using the Bose sound bar (but it doesn’t have RCA cables)
Thank you!
I don’t have a turntable, but this looks cool…
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I went yo the record/cd store today and in the back they had this listed for sale for $250.
I dont know much about turntables but this looks like a model that most say is worth it and easily repaired.
Does anyone know about this one? Im going to call the store and ask about the details on it.
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Turns out they wanted $650 but said theyll do $600 for the confusion. It was looked over by a “local guy” they use. No dust cover and the heigh adjustment is frozen (common and curable), everything else seemed to be in food working order. Im kind of split on it, $500 and lower i would bite. $600 is fair but also the used market is at a crawl so its hard to bite.
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@Souldriver I’m not pushing you one way or another because turntables are not my expertise, but, these are the types of scenarios where you can make some big leaps.
“They don’t make ‘em like they used to” is a real thing. While everyone is focused on new releases, all the older well made stuff gets looked over and presents an opportunity for you. I have a feeling turntables are somewhere you can get into the higher end of things for reasonable money if that’s what you’re looking to do.
It may not be this unit at this time, but it might spark you into researching it and others in that era. You might find that there are two or three you’d love to have, and then boom… one of them appears in your price/condition strike zone and you can’t hand over the money fast enough.
But be intentional about figuring out what’s going to make you happiest, then execute.
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Aren’t you the guy complaining about not having room in the house? A turntable seems like it would need a fair bit of real estate to operate.
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You are correct. This all came about as a surprise opportunity when i was just looking for used CDs. I thought it was $250, which if working is total steal, or buy and sell for a profit territory. Sadly it wasn’t, so this is probably dead.
I am still interested in whatever the Empire will be. Owned by an employee and made basically in my home town. Coincidentally the building is right next to where my doctors is and a few blocks from a certain nice german bar. But once again if the price isnt there or its a hassle otherwise then meh.
There is space, it would require rearrangements and effort. But if its not 100% perfect then its an easy excuse in my backpocket to save money and effort.
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Just bear in mind with turntables, you’re going to be investing in a phono preamp and a cartridge ay least. And if you start to take it seriously both of those can get up there in cost. You are also probably going to be either finding someone with setup tools and paying them or buying them.
Also for used units, there can be issues with the bearings on some units which are not feasible to fix in any sort of cost effective way. Unless it was a steal, I’d want to see/hear one running before grabbing it, it’s not a big issue for well maintained units, but It’s something to be aware of.
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This past weekend I made either a really good or really bad decision, though I am hoping it is the former.
For a few hundred I picked it up this Dual cs721 from a known turntable specialist. He set it up before i got there but spent a solid 45 minutes going over everything with me. From basic functions, to maintenance, to setting all the adjustments in case i decide to swap something. All it really needs is a light cleaning.
I decided making a new plinth for it will be a good summer project, especially as the one that came stock with these in the US was mostly plastic.
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Did a clean and polish on the aluminum platter.
I used something called Flintz which is a non-abrasive liquid metal polish. It worked ok but it loaded up my cloth near immediately with black aluminum shmoots so you have to keep rotating to clean spots.
The rubber mat got a wash with water and dawn.
Before:
After:
I wish i had a lathe i could have strapped this to so i could ease some of the circular scrubbing. I need to find a way to get between the strobe indicators, but that’ll be another day.
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Find someone locally that can do dry ice blasting.
What would that be for?
It would clean up everything on that platter, zero damage. A car detailing place would have it and I’m sure you can’t swing a dead cat around on the Island without hitting a shop that would do it for you.
Ill take a look. A lot of it what is left seems to be staining in the machine grooves that i couldnt get with a toothbrush or rag. Not sure if the dry ice can get into those grooves either.
The Flintz would go on and turn black as you worked it in, then despite being called a liquid it would get pasty and you have to buff it off. But i think despite what i used the paste would settle in the grooves a little. On the bottom i didnt go hardcore since i really need a wheel with the grooves and buildup.
It’s raw aluminum, it’s going to tarnish as soon as it’s clean.
As long it can read the encoder on the outside it’s harmless.
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Congratulations on the Dual, which were very popular in Germany at the time alongside Thorens.
They were built in the Black Forest where I live.
Dual still exists today and the new models are very promising.
Dry ice blasting is a good idea, you can get into every corner and it looks aesthetic in the end.
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