Townsend elite rock TT

[Alfi]

Would be nice to see a photo of that Alfi, since I can't get my head round how the top plate is fitted.

[Daniel Quinn]

very nice .

[antonio66]

I'll second that, always think the Rega arm looks good on a Linn.

[_D_S_J_R_]

PT , Roksan . Townsend ,voyd , NVA

And I am sorry I don't accept your premise that all Japenses DD decks made such tracks sound worse but now somehow miracously "modern set up" {wtf?} as alleviated this problem , it sounds like dealer mumbo jumbo to me .

None of those decks existed in the time frame I mentioned and current faves like the PL71 were gone in six months after 1974 or thereabouts, only being around for a season or so! I remember the Sony PS-8750/Grado Signature 2 being at least as good if not better than an old LP12/G707Supex or LP12/Hadcock/Entre/Lentek head amp. The early oracle was good for a few days after set-up but it used to drift for some reason. The Gyrodeck didn't exist and the likes of the Logic 101 and Systemdek had yet to mature, by which time it was too late. The Systemdek was too softly sprung and the wallowy sub-chassis wasn't the easiest to handle.

Say what you like Doc, I'm no longer in a position to demonstrate what I'm saying here regarding performance of now vintage gear and it frustrates me big-time, but I was able to demonstrate these MUSICAL differences back then as I set the bloody things up right to start with, unlike many *at the time.* It's irrelevant now anyway and my vinyl playack interests are elsewhere, as you well know

P.S. I use the same tune-dem listening criteria to judge current gear and the NVA amps easily fulfils in this aspect...

[Daniel Quinn]

Bullshit , you could buy a pt in 1979, pretty sure by 1983/4 all I mentioned would have been available .

And your historical recounting of your experience answers bugger all . What as changed which makes jap decks better now than then at playing multi-track rock .

[Lindsayt]

Name me a 1970's to early 80's deck that made 1970's multi-track music sound better off vinyl?

From my own personal listening tests: EMT 930, EMT 948, EMT 950. With hindsight, wish I'd been writing to various European radio stations if they could let me have their old 930's when they replaced them with 950's in the 1970's. And did the same again with 950's when they replaced them with digital in the 1980's.

I'd also add Garrard 301, 401, Thorens TD 124, various Lencos all of which were available used at that time.

I also strongly suspect statement / top of the range models like Pioneer Exclusive P10's, P3, P3a's, Sony PS-X9 would. I'm not sure how far you'd need to go down the Japanese product ranges before you found something less enjoyable than the LP12 for 1970's studio recordings.

[Daniel Quinn]

vinyl engine

pt1 1979
roksa n 1984
townsend elite rock 1982
townsend elite rock II 1984
voyd 1987
nva 1992 - [ Bloody hell Richard you took your time }

[jayman67]

dave mentioned a supex cartridge,any thoughts gents on this,ive bought a sd900 super that needs a re tip,are they worth it?

[Alfi]

Thank you both (DQ & antonio66) for your comments on my Heinz 57 varieties LP12.

It was hastily cobbled together as a hunch that it may be a performer and worthy of experimentation. Given the sonic outcome it, merits my giving it some serious time to produce a neater and perhaps a sonically better job of it with the implementation of a Voyd style box section sub-chassis that I've already fabricated


Alfi.

[_D_S_J_R_]

vinyl engine

pt1 1979
roksa n 1984
townsend elite rock 1982
townsend elite rock II 1984
voyd 1987
nva 1992 - [ Bloody hell Richard you took your time }

PT1 - absolute crap when first launched, the company was wrongly regarded as a joke at first and it took a while for the thing to not fall apart and be the rather good machine it became

Roksan - far too late for 1977

Rock was expensive and not popular to start with, Rock II was superb with Excalibur and Decca Gold, but it was too late as the LP12 had the cachet by then.

Voyd was also good but far too late

I agree the EMT as used professionally in its trolley was a superb deck which I remember the BBC used for transcription work,. We had BBC engineers from nearby Broadcasting House visit regularly and rave about them, but I don't believe any of them used them at home - again, expensive.

In the late 70's, Garrard 301's, 301's and TD124's were cheap as chips and being sold on because they were noisy through the speakers, either through iffy manufacture (Garrards), bad plinths (all) or needing service (TD124). A Thorens 125mk1 was far superior in terms of signal - noise but the less good bearing tolerancing of the mk2 and early 126's made them sound less good ime.

As said many times, and not just because of the LP12, the biggest and best jap decks weren't sold here. I remember the Micro-Seiki DDX and DQX 1000 models being incredibly feedback prone, and for some reason, the full SP10 with obsidian plinth and matching '500' tonearm (I think) never blew the then spec LP12 away, despite costing loads more and being a visual delight.

The whole 'sound' thing about the LP12 seemed to start in the mid 70's. By the late 70's, its popularity was set in stone and growing year on year, as was the price incidentally, although to young enthusiasts with increasing disposeable income, it didn't seem to matter then.

I was able to compare a Rock II/Excalibur/Decca Gold with master tape. very close indeed, although the dryer, leaner sound when compared to the average mid 80's LP12, wasn't liked as much by the LP12 fans I remember.


P.S. I'll fuck off again after this, but regarding the Supex, it's a classic 'added halo' MC and the template for some of the exalted but badly coloured expensive Koetsu's that followed. The mids on a good one are exquisite with loads of air and depth and with a delightful melodic tone, despite marginal tracking. The fact that it over-eggs reality is irrelevant to audiophool types. I love my working 900E Super despite this and it loves massy Jap tonearms of the period, the once recommended Grace 707 not really the best choice I subsequently discovered..