Why do turntables sound different?

inna,

I think that almost everyone on these forums, think that they are applying science and art to their system at whatever level they are at.

Few mention that they are new to this hobby.

Fewer mention that they are wannabes.

 I mostly agree with your comments. But, unless you have your Studer and have it fine tuned/ calibrated and your tapes match the calibration of that Studer; your almost in the same boat as the TT / vinyl people. I may be wrong on this point; perhaps you or Ralph can comment and clarify.

 I will still wait for the Technics 10R.

It would be great if you would post your system with pictures. Help us visualize. 

Thanks and Best

Oh no, I don't have Studer, that's my future project, but I am familiar with good tape sound. And I certainly would not get any high-end table without comparing it to the tape. As for proper alignment and calibration, I would leave it to professionals, there are still people who know how to do it. It is also how I would choose speakers - with Studer or Ampex as a source. And if I was a crazy audiophile millionaires I would also move along three sets of electronics - solid state, hybrid and tube to audition speakers. Let's say, Gryphon for solid state, Ypsilon for hybrid and Lamm for tube. 
Some would say why such an effort, just get Continuum and that's it. They might be right but they might be wrong too. So, speakers frst, 'wire with gain' second, turntable/arm/cartridge/phono last.
nkonor, why are you so sure about that Technics ? Do you already use Technics and want to upgrade? It's expensive stuff.

We are not really closer to answering the original question. In essense, the only kind of answer we have so far is they just do sound different. Or, they just color the sound differently and that's why they sound different. The exact science behind it let alone art remain elusive.

The exact science behind it let alone art remain elusive.

I laid out what the engineering principles are. How well a turntable manufacturer adheres to them will determine how neutral their machine is.

We have a Studer A-80 in the studio. Of all the solid state machines we have, it is clearly the best performer (and by that I mean the most neutral).
Tape calibration is not hard if you have an MRL test tape and the manual for the deck. The main difference between consumer decks and pro decks is that the consumer decks are usually set up for flat 1K-10K record and playback, while pro decks are usually set up for flat playback with the lowest distortion in record.

When we recorded Canto General, we used two different machines. Essentially one was tube and the other solid state, both fed the same signal from the mic preamps. That way we were able to audition the difference between the two master tapes. The tube-mastered tape seemed to sound more detailed on both the tube and solid state machines, so we went with that.

Its a simple fact that all tape machines sound different (assuming proper calibration), just as all turntables do (and for that matter, a lot of digital playback).

To defend Ralph against myself, though I only attack him when he is advertising, he is not alone who thinks that modified Technics SP10-MK III with the right arm, cartridge and phono comes very close to the tape sound. I just wonder if top belt drive tables were involved in those comparizons. I think, not sure, that when Fremer was evaluating the Continuum Caliburn he actually said exactly that - closest to tape, and so he got it for himself.
It's easy to choose an open reel deck - just get Studer A80 or 810 or Ampex, and if you cannot any of those - Otari. But with turntables, considering that there are many, it's not easy even if you can audition them. But yes, I would actually compare any table with my deck. In other words, even if you are not going to use the deck, you need it to choose a turntable ! And possibly speakers too. In fact, anything. I don't think many do it this way but maybe more than I would expect.