How does the Technics SL 1200 compare with....

I guess if there were a financial interest in one of the turntables the results might not be cut and dry.

Happens all the time.

Audiofeil,

the fact is, except for the edginess, I prefered the Rega. Generally, I am always on the look out for a better, more elegant and, if possible, cheaper answer. I would have been delighted to find a cut and dried result so I could move on in definitive terms. Although I feel my comparison was not conclusive because of insufficient time, I do feel I got some welcome and relevant input.

The Rega P3 is obviously an entry level table for those who want a no fuss no muss set up. I'm not sure what that has to do with anything other than that it is arguably an appropriate comparison to the Technics, and a well known quantity to boot. I believe I made it clear tha I'm in a position to sell both. I do not think the Technics pulls the rug out from under the Rega line. My sense is they will appeal to different folks both sonically and otherwise.

I have no ax to grind here, although I get the distinct impression that you do.

"Happens all the time."

Peace.

Audio is obviously very subjective and there is simply no accounting for taste. That is not to say that there is no basis for ojective analysis, but people have different priorities and are sometimes willing to put up with some major downsides to get even a single major upside. It takes a much more ambitious product than either of these to aspire to being uncompromised. In my original review that I posted in the now defunct thread, I noted that my reference Maplenoll table understandably blew both the Rega and Technics out of the water. I couldn't live with either of those as my sole table. One of the two LP used to test had very challenging sybilance and the Rega had a real problem with it. The 1200 handled it better but was muddier across the board, although quieter. I suspect that this is plinth and arm related rather than direct vs. belt issue. The high mass, highly damped plinth of the Technics is the poloar opposite of the purposefully low mass highly rigid, undamped plinth of the Rega. Choose your poison.