Early SOTA vs New Something: Conundrum

Here ya go! Magnum Force!

(1) A man’s got to know his limitations (HD) - Bing video

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1. I wouldn't install a new cartridge in an arm I knew was not positioned correctly.  That will make installation alignment difficult if not impossible.  So you will not experience the potential of the new cartridge.

2.  I've owned a couple of SOTAs and they can be very good tables.  But as others mentioned they do require maintenance (more than just bearing oil).  As I remember, the MDC-800 was a decent arm so probably doesn't need to be replaced, once installed correctly, so long as it is not damaged.

3.  I prefer the stability of speed in a decent DD table, such as the new Technics.  So my choice would be to buy that.  And there should be a buyer for the SOTA, particularly someone who can upgrade it themselves for a reasonable cost.

The new AT art9 solved issues with the tonearm placement , so that was a good thing.

The MDC-800 arm I quite like. Simple, straightforward to adjust and stays there without fiddling. Seems to work well.

I have considered trying a Technics 1200g table, but am unsure if it would be more than a sideways move, as at the moment the SOTA is functioning well (within the limits described earlier) 

I have thought to bring the Technics in and see how it pans out. Then go from there. Truth is it may not be an upgrade at all. Thoughts?

I have a 1984 model.
I put a new Garrott Bros p77i on it a year ago, and it sings pretty sweetly.

IMO - Either move it and the LPs on, or consider an upgrade.

I got a whole box of parts from Wisconsin… new tone arm, new board to put it on, etc.
It is a bit of money just in the TT, and the arm and cart add more.
If you change the phono stage then it just adds even more.

Sort of depends on the enjoyment you get from it, so either at least add a cart. Fix it up, or dispose of it.

The cart alone was, in retrospect, a great value and may be all you need to get most of the way to enjoyment. But it still needs set up.

Which arm is on there? And what is the spindle distance?
I may have an extra arm board.

@yogiboy , Thanx. I thought that line came from Dirty Harry

rsf507, motors do not have "pace" as long as they are spinning at the right speed. Variations in motor speed cause changes in pitch long before you would notice a change in "pace." We call this wow and flutter.

AC motors are more desirable in turntables as they are self-correcting. As long as the AC they are getting is accurate they will "fight" to maintain the desired speed. 

The motor in the older tables is an AC motor. The Eclipse motor is a three phase AC motor driven by a computer controlled phase converter. It is just as accurate as any DD turntable and it's method of correction is quite different. It corrects the speed slowly as this is much less audible than the usual immediate correction. It also shows you the exact platter (not motor) speed down to one thousandth of an RPM. Along with a more massive platter, the high torque of the motor and vacuum clamping, the pitch stability of the Sota is state of the art. Due to the magnetic thrust bearing and isolating suspension rumble is also at the state of the art. Some people will argue that certain DD tables are quieter. This is false as you are not just interested in the rumble generated by the turntable itself but also the rumble generated by the environment. Only a suspension tuned to a very low frequency can protect you from environmental rumble. If you want to see what environmental rumble looks like just put your stylus down on a stationary record, turn the volume all the way up and keep an eye on your woofers. Have your wife turn the dryer on. Try tripping the furnace. Walk around. Jump up and down in front of the table. All that dancing you see your woofers doing is environmental rumble. It is doppler distorting everything else the woofer is doing. Make sure your rumble filter is off! You can jump around all day long in front of a Sota and the woofers will remain dead still.

@sbank , I need to point out a slight correction on your comment. Not all 9" and 10" arms will fit on a Sota without modifying the plinth cover. As the Sota's arm board is recessed, some arms like the Tri Planar will not fit without cutting away part of the plinth at at the back and right hand side of the tonearm board well. Arms with VTA towers will generally not fit. It is also critical to not that you can not just throw any compatible arm on any Sota tonearm board. In order for the suspension to function correctly at the tuned frequency it has to see a specific mass at that corner of the turntable. The tonearm board mass is varied to accommodate the mass of the tonearm. Some of the older models fine tuned this with lead shot in a well under the tonearm board. The "sweet spot" is however, pretty wide as we are talking about 1-3 Hz.