Turntable Wars- Reviewers take sides

Thanks guys, nice to be here.  I fall asleep every night to the TV timer and a Seinfeld episode, watched Festivus yesterday!! (had to add Festivus to my dictionary otherwise it shows a red line under it!!)

HP used to store audio gear in his garage for decades.  I was there one day around 1998 when he pulled out a Dynavector 501 arm from 1980 something from that garage and said to me "What the hell is this".  I was bowled over.

He did not have the Classic Direct against the big Clearaudio, by the time it was available he was already sick and not able to do anything.

Mat and I were there when he compared Cat Steven's 'Peace Train" on the Classic 4 and the Clearaudio trying to show me how the Uber table showed the sounds drifting into the background and how it just went lower and lower but the end result was the Classic 4 did exactly the same thing for 1/17 the price sitting on a piece of 3/4" plywood!!

HP was amazing though, had a great ear, but like all of them they play the game and keep the equipment moving through.  I could write a book.

HW

Halcro, I have the TT-101 in a custom made plinth the same size as the Classic Direct and made of the same materials which makes comparisons easy.

Using two 12" arm bases and moving the 12" 3D arm wand with Atlas between them the comparison is very interesting.   Both tables have amazing speed control and very low wow and flutter, 33.33 is 33.33 on both tables.  The piano and solo violin sound absolutely natural with no spectral shift due to speed error.  Very impressive from both.

The problem is when you get to dynamic range and the power of the orchestra, the TT-101 just doesn't have that you are there slam that a real orchestra has and what is on the master tape.  I think it is the fact that all these Japanese direct drives have skimpy platters that seem actually flimsy and drop on the motor, the VPI has a 20 pound solid aluminum platter damped with MDF and the platter is the rotor, not a platter dropped onto a motor. 

I mounted a Scout platter and centered it on the JVC platter, raised the arm almost 1.2" and it sounded much better.  I don't think the thrust plate was designed to handle this weight.

Bottom line is the JVC at the price they go for is excellent and when properly mounted and used with a good arm can really sound very, very good.  I can't say that much about a few other Japanese direct drives which sound thick and congested.

HW