Is this why my analog rig isn't so hot?

Hi Psychianimal,

If I insert the KAB in my system, will the Inmates still respect me? :)

Anyway, I used to have the Technics SL-1600. It was used (according to the ad) in most radio stations (FM, I think). I don't remember how it sounded, but I do remember it was always advertised in the Playboy magazines. It was quartz driven. The arm - when you press to start - would know whether it was a 45 or an LP because it had a sensor - hell, it was an unassuming piece of high-tech machine!

Later on through the years it was the Yamaha PF-800 (I think), and finally a little more accepted table, the Rega.

I haven't gone very far ahead, have I? Or is it just a state of mind?

Regards,
George

Nobody messes w/ the modded 1200 anymore. Not here, not in the Asylum. You'd have to spend around $5K to equal or outperform it. There's quite a few 1200 modders out there...Tracy from Barbados, Nightdoggy, Alex Yakovlev (the last two electrical engineers), Zaikesman (read his review in accessories), other Asylum inmates and yours truly. Alex installed a Rega RB600 tonearm in his 1200 and reverted back to the stock tonearm!

I used to have a 1700, then went to a Yamaha P20, Pioneer PL-540 and then looked at belt drives some four years ago. One day I came up with posts of people modding their 1200's, in Japan, Europe, USA. I started researching and found out about certain Needledoctor salesman who, being able to have any belt drive in stock at dealer cost, uses a modded 1200. He told me about Kevin and the rest is history...

With the external power supply and good power cords (AC & DC) the 1200 plows effortlessly through complex passages. It's very fast, stable and with linear decays. Try listening to piano solos and check out if the notes fade linear or whether they wobble. Playing hardcore salsa will also prove to be a SERIOUS obstacle course. A lesser belt drive will flunk either test. A kick ass belt drive or idler wheel deck will have no problems whatsoever. It doesn't have to be a direct drive. Speed/rotational stability under real loads is the name of the game...

Ken,
Thank you for elaborating on your advice to George re: Clearaudio and Teres. That's all I was asking for, something specific to fill in your original statement, which you must admit was rather terse.

As for what I'm enamoured with or how sensitive I may be, you hardly know me well enough to offer a useful opinion.

Regards,
Doug

Nobody messes w/ the modded 1200 anymore. Not here, not in the Asylum. You'd have to spend around $5K to equal or outperform it. - Psychianimal

I don't doubt your assessment regarding the KAB 1200. If a $950 table could equal or surpass one that costs $5000 - that's a hell of an improvement. But who would trade in his "hight-end" table like the VPI or Clearaudio for a mass-produced Technics 1200 wannabe?

Unless there's overwhelming support of this table, I'm afraid I would stay with the status quo. Perception is just too hard to break down.

If those gentlemen you mentioned, including yourself, could make a mediocre Technics 1200 into a $5,000 monster, you probably would mod other tables.

Can you mod my table?

I'm more curious than convinced, actually, so please don't feel I'm a snob - of which I'm never one.

Thanks and regards,
George

George, you should talk to Kevin. He's the one that profits from selling modded 1200's, not me. He also knows a LOT more than me...

Perception is indeed a problem. Most people perceive Bose speakers as the bomb, while most audiophiles perceive that a little motor on a plinth and a plastic/glass platter will deliver a high end musical experience...

To answer your question on modding, it can't be done. The farthest you could go with a regular belt drive would be to install a load sensing DC motor on a flared platter. The closest to this would be a modded Oracle. The Technics uses a sophisticated circuitry to sense and correct changes in speed/loading. It does so @ some 3500 times per second. The economies of scale have permitted Panasonic to sell such technology at a low price. The unit has some inherent weaknesses and that's what the mods address.

I'll leave you with this thought:

In my analog rig I don't wan't 'analog' sound. I don't want an artificially enhanced soundstage, 'warmth' nor slowness. I want my analog and digital rigs to sound as close to each other as possible. Both must sound like recorded music. I use a modded direct drive TT and a modded ( by Dan Wright ) belt drive transport. The weaknesses of each rig have been addressed to achieve a rather uniform sound. They still have their own idiosyncracies, but the sound is right on. My next door neighbor is a 20 yr kid and he says that you'd never know it's records that one is listening to--that it sounds like CDs. What a compliment!