Question for the group here. Am currently running a Technics SL-1710 with a Denon DL-103 through an Alva Duo into a CXA81. I got the Technics on eBay, it’s very clean and works great, pitch controls are a bit fidgety but they may just need a deep cleaning.
Have been toying with the idea of getting something like a Rega P3 or Avid Ingenium, would these really be considered an upgrade, would I notice any difference? I am thinking probably not but just wanted to get the opinions of others.
First…no offense taken! I am however not sure about the notion of “hidden ‘damage’” - most of the functions of a turntable are easily observable: does the platter spin reliably at the designated speed, does the signal travel cleanly to the phono stage without distortion, does the tonearm allow the needle to track accurately across the record surface. Any anomalies with any of these things are fairly obvious.
I am familiar with commodity turntables; I have a Yamaha YP-B2 which is clearly one of these…but it just looks sooo nice! The Technics SL-1600/1700/1800 line are not of the same ilk. I think they may have have been rebadged and sold by others but they were manufactured by Technics (Panasonic) and they were flagship products in their line. Their design has stood the test of time.
Good to know about the Rega. I remain intrigued by the Avid…