Looking for thoughts from Nottingham Analog table owners


Really like the looks and the build quality of the Nottingham tables, and it does not hurt that I am originally from Nottingham, England to start with...lol
But I have read a few reviews that claim they are pretty tricky to set up and some suffer 60hz hum fairly easily?
Would like to hear from actual owners, your arms, carts etc
Would be upgrading from a Funk Firm Vector with Grado Gold which is deathly quiet as far as hum and in its own right is very musical in my rig.
Thank you
128x128uberwaltz
I have the Ace Spacedeck with Ace Space arm. Never had any problem with hum (in fact, first time I've heard that), and quite honestly, the overall setup is pretty simple and straightforward.  Proper attention needs paid to what it sits on, but that can be said about most turntables.  I've never heard your current 'table so can't comment on what sound differences would exist, but I love the way my Nott' brings across the music. Expressive, rythmic, dynamic, and gets the goosebumps popping and foot tapping.  I've had a number of 'tables in my audio life -- some cheaper, some more expensive -- and like the Nott' the best.  It just pushes all my buttons (which is a subjective, personal preference thing to be sure)  Wide range of cartridges: Benz Lo2, Benz MC-SCHEU, Cartridge Man Music Maker, Grado Reference, an Elac and a Goldring I can't remember the models of, Zu modded Denon DL-103, and currently a Koetsu Black.  The Ace Space arm is medium mass, so low compliance carts like the Zu and Koetsu need a little extra mass at the headshell to get the resonant frequency right. 

A couple things I don't like, but live with and work around:  there is no azimuth adjustment on the Ace-Space (or any of the Nott' arms, as far as I know).  You can reportedly twist the headshell in the arm tube to change it, but I couldn't get mine to budge, and even if I could that's a ridiculous method for adjusting azimuth. But there's a workaround for that.  I'm also not  delighted with the way the arm post mates with the armboard. There's an outer collet that you snug in with setscrews to secure the arm in place, but with the tolerances involved it's easy to cock the arm out of perpendicular as you tighten the setscrews. Possible of course, just something that needs paid attention to.  But all that said, I'm not sure there's any analog rig in this price bracket that has every aspect nailed to perfection, so it comes down to finding the sound you want and the tradeoffs you're willing to live with.




@bcowen
Thank you for your insights, just the sort of info I need from actual owners
Think it was a review in AbsoluteSound that had major problems with 60hz hum. They ended up preferring a Rega over the Nottingham Interspace.
I am fairly happy with present deck but you know how that goes, grass is always greener on the other side.....
I was also looking at a nottingham analog studio  tracer 2 cart to go with the interspace deck, any experience with that cart?
I hate to be the one, but I can't resist. I'm planning on hearing the Analogue Works table soon. The dealer I spoke with has experience with Nott's, and says the AW tables are a bit more lively sounding. I also like the fact the tables I will listen to are fitted with Ortofon (12") and Jelco arms. I think it's hard to do better than the latter for the price. As a bonus, I prefer the look of the AW tables, which remind me of the Palmer tables. I have no affiliation... just personal interest in the line. I'm sure they share certain qualities to the Nott's, since they are based on Mr. Fletcher's designs. As far as the livelier presentation, assuming that the Nott sound is darker, I'm sure that will be about taste, and system synergy. Cheers -Don
@uberwaltz   Sorry, but I have no experience with any of the Nottingham cartridges.

@fjn04   There's also the Pear Audio 'tables that are very similar to the Nottingham(s).  In fact, the Cornet 2 tonearm is nearly identical to the Ace-Space with what look like only minor aesthetic changes:

http://pearaudio-analogue.com/products.html