Suspended vs. non suspended turntable

Keith,in all honesty I'd seek out a good dealer,who might be so inclined to give you a trial product.That is the ONLY way,other than conjecture,to evaluate something that might suit your tastes!
I am lucky to have a close friend who has an almost identical system as me.Fortunately(for me),he is obsessed with spending money on this hobby,so he is used as the proverbial guinea pig.-:)
You have a better shot with a "reliable dealer"!

Dear Keith: +++++ " I want something which is transparent, detailed and dynamic with good extension high and low....."+++++

IMHO, one way or the other, those characteristics are almost what every one of us are looking ( between others ) and IMHO that depend on the whole system performance and not on the TT alone.

+++++ " Dynamics are most important, because I enjoy a punchy sound..."+++++

This is one critical characteristic that make a huge difference between live music and reproduced music!!! and again that " punchy " sound depend on what it is on the recording and the whole system performance.

+++++ " do not need or want anything that sounds warm, mellow, etc. because my system already sounds warm and mellow. At the same time it should not be too etched or analytical. " +++++

do you like that " warm mellow " sound?, you don't say it, because if you don't like it there are some answers that will be different if you like it.

Regards and enjoy the music.
raul.

Sirspeedy despite living in the second largest city in Australia, the local dealers who are supposed to represent the brands usually do not carry demonstration stock. I need something a bit more concrete than what the dealer says. I think you can understand where I am coming from :)

Rauliregas, I do like the warm and mellow sound - but my system has enough of that as it is and I do not want any more. In fact I have been trying to "cool down" the tonal balance a little bit by tube rolling. As for the rest of my system - it is probably nearly as good as it gets. Minus a few issues, it is more transparent than any other system I have heard.

Keith,

That budget warrants some travel,if necessary, to some of the best dealers in Asia. Plow through all the reviews that you can find. Stereophile and Absolute Sound have archived most of their reviews and there are several very good internet mags. I'd suggest rolling around in those for a week or two to see what tweaks your interest and then try to seek out dealers for the things of interest.

Also, if there are audiophile clubs in your large city you might visit one to see what everyone is using and perhaps hear for yoursel.

Dave

The former is a Mk4 and the latter a 'Classic' and I'd have to say it as little to do with whether the table is suspended or not but how well is it designed and built. It's kind of like comparing front wheel to rear wheel drive. That said, since a suspended table is more complex in design and fabrication, for the same budget I'd buy a non suspended TT. It would only make sense that suspension is going to cost more, unless cheaply done....something I would avoid.

Sure the Oracle with SME V arm beats the WTT in dynamics, blackness and detail but then the rig costs about 3x more.