considering a Maplenoll

Check out my "system" and my "threads" and you'll find quite a bit to chew on. I love these tables but the quality control was very funky. The Cleo replaced the Athena and is a step up. I would get the Signature Ariadne like I have if you could. I might be able to get you an Ariadne with some of the signature upgrades. You definitely need to be a bit more hands on than most. Good luck.

i had a maplenoll athena back when they were actually in business(the late eighties). it rivaled the sota and the goldmund studio of that day sonically, but needed constant care from the dealer. if the condition is great, having one as a collectible or 2nd table is cool, but a workhorse as a primary table would be the advised.

I had a Maplenoll which utilized a very cheap, double piston fish tank air pump to supply the air for the arm and the main platter bearing. The pump simply could not do the job. After less than an hour of operation, the air pressure would drop and the arm would freeze in place, causing the record to skip.

I could not live with the air pump problem. But, if you can get a model with a better pump or find a suitable alternative air pump, if you can locate the pump in another room (they are very noisy), if you can buy and/or build a proper dehydrator for the pressurized air, etc., it can be made to work.

The table/arm combination sounds quite good, it is just a big pain in the ass.

I have an Athena..agreed on the above comments.
It is a Tweeker' table...I have even tried double air pumps.
But the pumps are noisy!

The Athena was especially funky. If you go for a mid 90s upper end model that has been fixed up properly by someone who knows what they're doing, you won't have so much trouble. That said as someone who has been very hands on with my own and a dealer for 15 years. It ain't a Rega. If you can handle it, you'll get a taste of the magic of the Walker Procenium for 1/10 the price.