Have your say & ask the experts

Hi Everyone,

I am thinking of getting my first turntable, after many amazing  sessions listening to my mates Orbe SE I seem to have caught the vinyl bug! My current system is a Roksan caspian Int Amp with CD player and Monitor Audio Silver speakers.  I have about £500 to spend to get a turntable and phono stage, my current thinking is a Rega P3 or a Project Xpression 3. Which choice would you make? And are there any alternatives?

Cheers,
Eddie

I would say blow most of the budget on the TT and only use a cheap phono stage, the upgrade that when funds allow, then the cartridge.

 Having an RPM 5 I would go for thatas the cartridge it comes with is very good, and use something like a CAMBRIDGE AUDIO 540P and then replace with a £200+ stage.

 

Chris

The Rega Fono Mini is both the pick of the budget phono preamps and cheap. Couple that with a Technics SL 1200 or 1210 and you'll have a system that will last for many years. The Rega turntables are good, but to my mind the Technics is significantly better (PRAT, noise floor, musicality, though not as forgiving of poor pressings). I've not had good experiences with budget Pro-ject decks so would avoid them.

P3 - super turntable; out the box, plug in and play. Job done in 30 mins or less.

Attach a cartridge that fits your preferred sonic tastebuds (as it were) and you have a deck that'll compete with your Caspian CD player without question.

P3-24 with the additional £148 power supply would be my very strong recommendation. The power supply almost doubles the ability of this already fine record player. Add a decent cartridge and you're there. I'd also recommend the budget Rotel amplifiers as these have fantastic inbuilt phono stages, though your Caspian is probably a better amp overall.

Remember the budget is £500.

 

Chris

£398 for deck plus £100 cartridge and the power supply can be added later.

 I don’t wish to put the op off buying a TT but if you have no vinyl and are starting from scratch you can buy a lot of CDs for £500.
It can be good fun sorting out vinyl from secondhand shops if there are any in your town/city but there is always a gamble on the quality and the secondhand shop in my town never seems to have anything I want.
You also need to remember that vinyl is more expensive that CDs, I have recently purchased a 180g backtoblack series LP that cost me £26.99 when I could have bought the CD for £12.99 and a deleted LP that cost me £15 when the CD was £8.
I have also waited 4-5 months to get a copy of Joe Bonamassa Sloe Gin on vinyl (now in stock at Amazon) when I could have bought the CD anytime. You may have different taste to me and not experience the same problems.
You also have to remember that it is easy to rip a CD to MP3 format for playing on a Ipod etc but a pain in the …. converting something off vinyl.  
Having heard a Caspian CDP I am not convinced that spending £500 on a TT and Phono amp will run it close and would advise you have a long demo before you decide.
Remember a Orbe Se is about 2 grands worth of TT.

On the other hand, used LPs can be bought for next to nothing. The sound from a turntable is different to that of a CD player - neither better, nor (given a decent turntable/cartridge/phono amplifier combination) worse. the

New vinyl is expensive as you say, and the whole 180gm part has no influence on the sound. I buy new music on CD or SACD if possible and music from the 1980s or earlier on LP . Generally if something came out on vinyl first, it will sound better on that medium rather than the re-issue on CD. Re-masters should be avoided.

Haven't heard the Orbe, but would imagine the silence and speed stability of the Technics would match it.

Rega P3-24 + Rega Elys 2 cartridge (factory pre-fitted and aligned)  £488

Rega Fono-Mini MM phono pre-amp  £55

Buy a Rega TT-PSU at a later stage. Not essential but very effective and makes a real difference.

No, that's it I cannot do this anymore!

 I - as a Rega user on and off for 26 years - may be getting rid of vinyl or buying a Technics SL-1210 Mk5.

One moment I cannot be bothered with it all and the next I want a turntable that does not look like a bit of black laminated chipboard with really bad hinges!

The Technics is a classic and iconic turntable and the last word in 1970's retro chic, sold 3.5 million of them in 30 years and is shiny

By all accounts it sounds very good. It has no problems playing 45rpm discs (no need to switch off, take the platter off and change the position of a rubber band on a pulley, then re-assemble platter and switch back on again!)

I am not many years off my half century and feel I have earned the right by now to a speed change button that does not cost extra money and hinges that allow the lid to stay up with a little more than just blind faith!

Rega have had three brand new turntable sales from me in 26 years so the flat-earth naysayers can go and shake their beardy heads at someone else. I want a shiny turntable!

[Exuant stage left chased by Rega 're-education' personnel armed with butterfly nets.] 

Seriously, the Rega P3-24 is very, very good and the Elys 2 cartridge (factory pre-fitted and aligned to save you time, faffing, money, or even damage) partners it well.

If, however you go for the Technics SL-1210 for around the same price, tell me what it is like if I don't have mine by then

Thanks for all the great replies everyone!

I am having a bit of a conflict making the decision. Whenever I hear a good recording on CD it never fails to get a big smile, on the other hand, as said, whenever I hear a rough re-issue the caspian will reveal all the rubbish in it, and when I consider that the original vinyl could have been bought for next to nothing compared to the cost of the CD, it makes me cringe! The orbe is indeed a very expensive TT (especially with the arm, cart, power supply and speed control he has on it!!) I realise I won't be getting the same result. But by all most folks I have spoken to, the TT's I am looking at will blow the caspian away (a bold claim!) I guess the best advice I have had, is listen carefully at the demo!

Thanks again,
Eddie

 

I am a big fan of vinyl, and only recently dispatched my LP12  /Ittok off to some new owners. It sounds very beguiling and certainly unique, but it didn't blow the socks of the CD6SE, in fact, if I was really honest, I slightly preferred the much deeper and better conrolled bass that my NAD C541 had, whilst the Cyrus is in a different league again....there I said it, I actually prefer a CD based system to vinyl and I never ever believed that would ever be the case. I will admit though, that the Linn had a certain shimmer about it, a certain sparkle which I doubt was necessarily accurate, but did sound very pleasant. Ultimately, it's accuracy I am after, hence my ultimate preference.

If you want to get into vinyl, then may I suggest something a little leftfield?

I've been using a vintage Pioneer PL-12d with a new Denon cartridge. The turntables regularly appear on fleabay for around £30, and the Denon DL-110 is around £75-80 at the moment.

The combination is remarkable for the money - far better than I would ever have expected.

Now, it's not an LP12/Ittok (which I can vouch for having just bought one), but it was more involving and enjoyable (if less detailed) than my Radius V/2M Blue.

It's a suspended belt-drive design, a la LP12, albeit greatly simplified, but was the midrange TT of choice in the 70s for very good reason. It knocked the socks off the Garrard SP25s/BSRs and the like.

I would also say it betters the Rega Planar 2, having had one previously.

That way, you have spent around £100 on the turntable, meaning one of two things.

1) If you find you don't like vinyl then you have only spent £100 and can flog it for pretty much what you paid for it.

2) If you do like vinyl, you have £400 to spend on LPs. I reckon at car boot prices etc that's somewhere around 300 albums - a damn good starter collection!

chebby:

One moment I cannot be bothered with it all and the next I want a turntable that does not look like a bit of black laminated chipboard with really bad hinges!

The Funk Firm Vector turntable - very smart little beastie!

Over the OPs budget, but seek out a deal or secondhand one and you never know..r