Rega RP8 or Technics SL1200G

rauliruegas

The GST-801 is a engineeering tonearm lesson for any manufacturer designer. Way way better than your V that I owned.

The GST-801 suffered from a host of problems, including its compromised geometry by not getting the counterweight in the same plane as the record. That makes it a pretty poor "tonearm lesson." They also suffered from quality control problems, which is why my dealer at the time stopped selling them and why used ones are often sold in pieces, with some parts missing entirely. It's no wonder that they are no longer manufactured. According to vinylengine.com, it's the same as the Acos, so I'm not sure why you think that the two are "way different."

I ditched my Lustre probably 30 years ago and never looked back. As I mentioned, the Fidelity Research and SME put it to shame in my systems although - to be fair - those are more expensive pickup arms.

And you couldn't possibly have owned my SME V, because I bought mine new from a local dealer.

all those undamped FR are the worst design ever. Period.

That's an interesting pronouncement but coming from the same guy who (iirc)  insists the Triplanar arm suffers an inherent design flaw, it doesn't mean much. In fact, such extreme pronouncements are usually meaningless. The world of audio - and especially turntables and pickup arms - isn't as simple as those like you would insist.

The Lustre GST-801 was an interesting design, though. If the manufacturer had ever updated it with better geometry, materials and QC, it might have been a contender. Now it's just an oddity.

Hi jsm71, when you get your Technics 1200G with cartridge, please do a review of it. I was close to getting this or looking at the 1200GR. The Technics is maintenance free and based off the history of the 1200 series the reliability will be excellent. I have owned Rega and had a P3-24 and enjoyed it especially after the Groove Tracer upgrades. Regas run slightly fast but add to their PRAT. The biggest problem I had with the Rega was pitch stability, which I could hear with piano.

I also owned a Technics 1200 (Original) and it wasn’t bad, the speed was spot on. I currently own a VPI Classic 1, which I love and it’s speed and powerful motor is spot on and there is no need to use a SDS, but you do have to do maintenance on it yearly and the Unipivot turntable can sometimes be a bear to set up. The Technics will be spot on for speed stability and it has a heavy platter and bass should be excellent, just like the VPI. The Rega RP8 seems to be an excellent table, but using those rings to adjust VTF is not something that I want to go back to.

Looking at some of the better tables are coming with detachable headshells, like the Technics. I think you are going to be very happy with this. I think people get caught up into to thinking because of the looks that this is a DJ table and yes they can use it, but Technics is clearly going for the Audiophile this time around and actually they were trying to do it with the original, but  because of the low price of the original, the DJs caught on and used it and the Audiophiles never excepted it.

@cleeds 

It sounds like you're talking about different tonearm. Could you explain what do you mean by "better geometry" of GST-801? Look here, it's Baerwald and it's dead on the right geometry. 

I also don't understand what do you mean by  "not getting the counterweight in the same plane as the record" ? Look at the counterweight here.   

I'm using Lustre GST-801 today while my reference is Reed 3p "12 Cocobolo. Lustre GST-801 is a nice tonearm, but i don't use magnetic tracking force. The price for Lustre is much cheaper than for FR-64s for example, but Lustre comes with 2 different counterweights and additional ring weight. It's a solid arm, very well buit (imo). My sample was not a NOS one, that's the problem, some tiny screws are missing, but nothing serious.  

@sid1

I think people get caught up into to thinking because of the looks that this is a DJ table and yes they can use it, but Technics is clearly going for the Audiophile this time around and actually they were trying to do it with the original, but because of the low price of the original, the DJs caught on and used it and the Audiophiles never excepted it.

The original without upgrade is a dark sounding turntable, perfect for "disco" clubs as a dj deck, but definitely not an audiophile turntables. Own them for 20 years, upgraded many of them for friends.

The problem is that the DJs will NEVER buy a $4000-5000 turntable (keep in mind that you need a pair of them), so the new Technics 1200G is definitely for audiophiles, not for the DJs. This is not the question anymore. 

I don't know any DJ who will jump on $10 000 pair of new 1200G while the legendary and cult status (in the dj world) 1210mk2 available for $800 for a pair! No single club or bar will replace their old SL1210mk2 with new 1200G for $10000 (pair). So audiophiles should not worry, the 1200G simply not affordable for 99% of the DJs or even Clubs. They will be happy to buy them for $500, but not for $5000. DJs are more obsessed about records than analog gear, especially when it comes to the turntables (old SL1210mk2 is a standard) and cartridges. 

Technics made new series of turntables for audiophiles and surely those turntables are x10 better than old series. The ONLY part they are sharing is the dusct cover, the rest is completely different. 

chakster

Could you explain what do you mean by "better geometry" of GST-801? ... I also don't understand what do you mean by "not getting the counterweight in the same plane as the record" ? Look at the counterweight here. 

As with many common arms, the Lustre/Acos didn't get the counterweight on the same plane as the record, and that is shown in your link. Pickup arms such as the SME V, the Triplanar, and the Reed 3P that you use get that right. That improves tracking, and helps stabilize VTF under dynamic conditions.

My sample was not a NOS one, that's the problem, some tiny screws are missing, but nothing serious.

I'd wager that it's the exceptional Lustre/Acos sample today that doesn't have missing screws and parts. It's nice that you don't think that's serious and enjoy the performance of your arm, but I simply don't have patience for things that fall apart, especially pickup arms. Mine started to fail after just a couple of years of light use. The SME V, however, has performed in my system without incident since around '92.

I do think the basic Lustre design was imaginative and showed potential, and could have been improved upon if the manufacturer had ever sought to correct its flaws. But that never happened, even as the competition kept improving.