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Nottingham Spacedeck vs Rega Planar 8 vs Technics SL1200G

Hey Everyone,

An analogue newbie needs your advice.

Firstly I am not looking for any TT recommendations other than these 3.

My system is Devore O96, and the amplification would be either Lyngdorf 3400/Coincident Frankenstein combo or a Shindo pre/amp combo (forthcoming). The phono stage is TBD.

The sound I like is rich, full-bodied, with a good bass (I love percussion, and the double-bass instrument and  Mingus is my fav jazz artist). I am very sensitive to even a hint of brightness. I don't care about the typical audiophile presentation -- gobs of detail and soundstage but no soul.

My music of choice is jazz, vocals and small-scale instrumentals. No rock, no pop, no western classical.

Would love your thoughts on these 3 choices.

Since I am a newbie, easy setup is big win, which might tilt me towards the Rega or Technics, but with Nottingham I have a great dealer support that I would completely miss out on if I went with Technics (no Technics dealer in a 5000 mile radius).

I used to own a Rega RP6, so am familiar with Rega sound, and like it. But my RP6 was bested by my DAC (AMR DP-777) so sold it a few years ago. So I want a TT that will compete with any sub-10000$ DAC.

Looking forward to your thoughts that will help me scratch my analog itch.


essrand
uberwaltz's avatar
uberwaltz
13,381 posts
 
I obviously must vote for the Nottingham!
Own a Spacedeck cw with Spacearm, many say the arm is the weakest link but I have had no reason to change it yet, maybe some time in the future.
Very sturdy troublefree deck. Big plus was adding a Walker motor controller.
Also I run everything through an Equicore 1800 power conditioner so likely got as good a power feed to the motor as I am ever going to get.
Presently running a ZYX RS50 mc cart. Have not experimented with any vintage mm carts on here, I do that on my Denon DD deck.
Considered upgrading from the Nottingham a few months ago and then sanity returned! It's here to stay.
audiotroy's avatar
audiotroy
3,887 posts
 
The Nottingham is the epitome of the word musical, the Rega tables are faster and more articulate.

As mentioned before we have the 294 with the 12 inch Spacearm and the arm is great it does not seem as well finished as other arms that are mentioned but the design of the arm is excellent and ithe combo is super musical and engaging. 

You really can't go wrong with the Nottingham or the Pear Audio tables.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ

inna
7,913 posts
 
I listen to some of the fastest and articulate performers one can think of - John McLaughlin and Paco de Lucia. I also heard Paco de Lucia live. Nottingham is good enough in this respect, again the current should be good but that's with any turntable. Rega is not high end.
Putting different arm on Nottingham will throw the whole thing off the balance if the match is not right, it is a complicated endeavor to try a few other arms. I feel no need and have no wish to do it but I might upgrade to top Nottingham arm in the future. I heard people got excellent results with Origin Live better arms but cannot personally verify.
jdodmead
257 posts
 
Chakster

I only mentioned the  Black on my table, because the op was under the impression that it wouldn't be a good fit for the Ace Space arm.  I was not trying to steer him towards a Black, that's his choice and there are many of them. And as far as not changing anything for 15 years, I have had a few tables previous to the Nottingham  and I got off the merry go round once I got it.
agrippa
160 posts
 
" Putting different arm on Nottingham will throw the whole thing off the balance if the match is not right, it is a complicated endeavor to try a
few other arms. "

This is, with all due respect, utter nonsense. Matching is a non-issue, beyond finding a match with your wallet and personal preference, while fitting fitting it is simplicity itself. Nottingham will supply an arm base for any arm, or for that sake you can have one made locally. Or you can make it yourself if you have less than nine thumbs and access to the necessary tools.
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