Any Love for the Pioneer PLX-1000 Yet?
I'm finding the love. I feel strongly that if you're going to trouble someone (me) to take a platter off, move a rubber band, put the platter back on (when there are so many other options that don't require those extra steps), it should really be worth it. The short story for me: Rega 2 wasn't. I didn't think it was even close. Here's the longer story. I had a self imposed budget of $800 for a turntable. I don't know why anything past that point felt wrong, but it did. I was drawn to the idea of getting vintage, and that was originally my intent (Pioneer 570, maybe). I spent a lot of time visiting Austin's vintage stores (there's at least three good ones). I spent way too many hours scouring eBay lists for months - but always shy to pull that trigger. The local vintage stores (mostly) appeared to be way over priced. I also read all these boards (probably the most helpful). I questioned a lot of jaded old former band/FM radio engineers now selling vintage equipment. I *tried* even talking to Magnolia staff at Best Buy (that was the most painful). I debated and discussed and argued over vintage versus new, and DD versus belt drive. I became a tad obsessed. So, here's the tables I tried, running from a Denon AVR-x3200 / Rotel RB-1572 pre-amp to a pair of Polk lsim 705s. For each of these I used the blue Ortofon cartridge. Tables were preempted with ART DJPRE II Phono Preamp. Audio Technica 1240 Technics 1200 MK2 (with stuck tonearm weight) Rega 2 JVC JL-A40 DD (partially restored) Pioneer PLX-1000 The JVC was what I was wanting to replace (which got me started on this journey). The AT1240 was just okay, I can't say much else. It seemed fine, not great, not terrible. The Technics actually seemed to have a significant improvement in the quality of the sound, but alas the wires were beginning to fail and the counterweight was stuck (so back it went). Next, after a lot of reading, I was excited to try the Rega 2. I was expecting the greatest "wow" factor. I must be the only one underwhelmed by this table. Also it was so light and "simple" - that actually bugged me - it felt and sounded so insignificant. It was also the most sensitive of all the tables to feedback. It was also played as the softest volume. I don't get the attraction, but I'm certainly don't have the background or experiences of all these places selling and bragging about that table. It is so fun trying to return a Magnolia product to a different Best Buy location. So, after all the running around the PLX was the one that felt substantial (like the Technics); it was heavy to begin with. It also was fun to set up; a lot of quality, metal, thoughtful contents (a rubber mat, for one). I like the blue lights. I like how stable it feels (not like the Rega "toy"). And, without question, to my ears it sounds the best -- by far. The detail, the bass, the volume, NO FEEDBACK. This might be the one. I'm gonna sit with it a while and see, but clearly had a small "w" wow factor. |
Pioneer is a nonsense since the Technics is back to business with $1700 SL1200GR and more expensive G model for serious audiophiles. Pioneer lovers should look for PL70 II instead. At that time Pioneer did not tried to copy Technics design. Their original Pioneer P3 and P10 are amazing ! In my opinion the original Pioneer desing from the 70’s is better even today. It would be much better if the Pioneer could continue with their own design based on flagship models from the past. But Pioneer today is no longer a High-End manufacturer, they are in PROFESSIONAL AUDIO field, in that field the Technics is an iconic turntable, every manufacturer just copy Technics design to sell their product when Technics was out of business, let’s face it! This strategy crashed with Technics return! Now when brand new fully upgraded Technics (Made in Japan) is available who need a bad clone made by Pioneer in China ??? Who cares about reviewers, anyone can touch Technics to compare it to the Pioneer. New Technics is superb, no doubt Technics SL1200GR is just $1700 new in USA, watch this video Forget about old Technics turntables, look for the brand new GR, G or GAE (depends on the budget). They made an affordable GR version for everyone and it’s better than old mkII, mk3D, mk5 or whatever version, because the whole Matsushita tooling is brand new and from the old design we have only the Dust Cover. The rest is completely brand new and way dirrefent from the old Technics. |
