Sony PS-X9

Jose', I certainly did not mean to cast aspersions on either the Basis turntables or the Verdier.  They are both worthy.  Mr Verdier passed away a few years ago, so the Platine may in fact start to accumulate some collector value or at least it may be a stable value.  Same, sadly, goes for the designer of the Basis turntables (Mr Conte, I think).  I'm just a direct- and idler-drive guy.

@lewm 
No worries.  No offense taken. On that note (direct drive) there are nice examples readily available,  I've considered.   My experience is limited and thus defer to the experience of you fine members. 

Jose

jg2077
The Verdier seams like a cool table. Thinking of purchasing as to hear/play with it.

jg2077

All anyone that is a first time user with La Platine can do, is "play with it" , to try to figure it out. It is a unique way to play your records. It is a String Drive design and all components were made to work best with string/thread.
For business reasons a belt pulley was "added" to the parts list - for Sales and to appease audiophiles. Running La Platine with belts is like riding a bike with training wheels.
   
Now many try and figure it out, but fall prey to the audiophile itch to modify it. Since all its body parts are easily accessible and viewable - it is easy to fall to this temptation. I can understand this. A modified La Platine is no longer La Platine.

For the Collector - I guess you can park it on a shelf and admire the platter ?  
The most collectable La Platine is the Granito version - the most expensive to make, and a limited run was done for audiophile hungry Japanese.

I had many conversations with Mr. Verdier when he was alive. RIP
@OP Someone alerted me to your post or I would never have seen it. Any questions feel free to pm me or ask me on my virtual system. Just Click on Wile E Coyote. 
Cheers

@ct0517 
thank you, PM sent.

I don't care to modify, much less park it.  Gentlemen, I have had a modest technics 1200 for 30 years...just looking for a cool (beauty is in the eye of the beholder), good sounding TT with some collectability value.


I appreciate all the patience/help given.
Regards,
Jose


regards

The La Platine has one design flaw (at least).  The unit is top heavy and rests on spongy feet.  Since the platter is well balanced, this isn't an awful problem, but platter inertia coupled with the biasing weight of the tonearm and its built on mount can cause the whole shebang to tilt.  Some owners modified theirs with more solid footers.  The Granito version has a heavier base, which would shift the center of gravity down lower toward the mounting surface. I personally don't like the long thread drive and the concept of mounting the motor separately on a distant pedestal of its own.  This could cause all sorts of havoc with the drive system.