401 birch or slate?

@dover Also replaced platter and bearing which have transformed the table. This is NOT your dad's old Garrard in a ply box!

@noromance 
Hi there,
Good to hear about your upgrades. Great looking 401 with the slate plinth.

Since my last post I have rebuilt my listening buddies AG 401 with a custom engineered quartz stone plinth, 12kg brass platter & bearing, and Kuzma 4Point11. Cartridges are Kuzma CAR50 and Van Den Hul Calibri. The Kuzma replaced a Moerch DP8 & Helius Omega. It's an excellent arm and works with the 401 beautifully.

So yeah - I have a good idea of what you've got.

I think the 401's are a bargain as far as high end tables go and there are plenty of off the shelf upgrades.

@noromance 
Should also tell you I built a 301 for a spare TT for myself and to run 78's. It blitzed my old second deck which was a Platine Verdier.

Some of my mods included -

Full motor rebuild, new bushes, blueprinted evrything internally - only runs half as hot as original and very quiet.
I replaced all the rivets connecting the linkages under the chassis with nylon bushes/teflon washers & nautical grease to eliminate most of the metal to metal contact under the chassis.
Separated the motor on/off switch from the on/off lever so that when you change records the idler wheel disengages but the motor remains running - this is a big advantage because the motor takes a while to stabilise each time you turn it off and on. It also removes 230V from under the cartridge.
Reworked the bearing and platter.
Custom built a high density compressed fiber bamboo plinth.
Replaced the rubber inserts under the chassis with carbon fibre washers. 301 is through bolted to the bamboo plinth with carbon fibre washers above and below.

There are a few other tweaks as well.

Currently running Fidelity FR64S/B60 with various cartridges on that deck. A few of my friends have been shocked by the performance capability of the old Garrard.

FWIW the 401 is a better deck for modding, it has a stronger motor - the 301 is more rube goldberg.

the 301 is more rube goldberg.

And to think what the prototype was like displayed at an early exposition and looking nothing like the final version.

fun thread…i have my long range eye on 9” Kuzma as it will fit my SOTA

i need to stumble on a 401 garage sale find……probably like hoping for a barn 356….. ha.