2. analog
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Any one old enough to remember?

30 or so years ago when I was a grad student I bought a Thorens TD125MK-II turntable and mounted a "Formula 4" arm and a Sonus Blue cartridge on it. After storing it a number of years, I've set it up again and rediscovered my record collection - some horrors and some delights. Since I've recently upgraded my... well, I admit it, everything else... I'm now faced with a decision. Do I replace my elderly cartridge? the cartridge and arm? the whole thing?

Anyone been around long enough to remember anything about this arm and cartridge to know wheher it is worth keeping the arm and replacing the cartridge, or to advise me on how well my old Thorens (which still maintains its speed after a belt transplant) is likely to stack up against newer stuff? I've read a number of the other analog threads, but not seen this particular issue addressed.

Your collective wisdom would be most appreciated. Let's say for the sake of conversation that my budget for a completely new setup could be $1500-2000.

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lfb44
ljgj
955 posts
 
If it sounds good I would keep what you have. A new cartridge might be the first thing that would improve the sound if you are not happy . You could lose interest after going through your collection a couple of times. The Thorens 125 was a pretty good unit from my memory of it . The new VPI Scout is a great table for 1499 with arm - it gives my Aries a good run in sound quality if you are set in total upgrade. My friend bought one .
fbi
92 posts
 
~~~~Skip,
Those were the days! Used a Dual 1229 and a Sonus Silver P. It sounded great. Everything sounded great, or was it just the era. Era? Ear ah, could be my hearing was a little better then. The hours on the stylus may help your decision. Would have to believe technology advanced enough to make a noticeable difference, unless your hearing aged also, and may not make a difference. Still, if you put cleaner info out of the speakers, you would hear a difference. You could always take your table to a reputable dealer for a check up. Possibly they would do an A/B with another table/cartridge you are considering.

Just The Facts
By
jvia
195 posts
 
Sonus Blue was one of my favorite carts in the world, I remember this set up as id it was yesterday, and if my memory serves me well, the arm and the cart were a good match. Would be some concern on my behalf about the coils in the cartridge deteriorating over the years, along with the stylus as mentioned above, but you should have an idea of how many hours are on it. Bearing lubrication and tightness would be a concern , but I would imagine you have checked that. If you were to spend, IMO, $600 plus you could do better on the used market, but outside of replacing the cartridge, which the more I write on this the more I would think about doing, I don't think you would find anything under $1000 that would significantly sound better. Plus I would wait and use this setup a while to make sure I did not lose interest in LP's again. Plus, are you insinuating some of us are old?
lfb44 OP
28 posts
 
Old? Of course not - just around long enough to realize that popular choices come and go.

In reply to your questions and suggestions - using the records is unlikely to be a passing interest. When I (re)married a few years back, my bride arrived with a LARGE collection of vinyl that complemented my own. And, like many of the rest of you, I've discovered that records can sound as good or better than most CDs on a good system. After buying solid state equipment over the years, I recently treated myself to a set of new Maggies (3.6) and quickly came to the conclusion that I (and they) like living with tubes. So lots of things are changing and the turntable may have to be one of them.

Has my/our hearing changed since I/we were teenagers - you bet if you are over 50. After that we all start to develop presby-something - presbyopia, presbyosmia and/or presbyaudia. Hopefully the trade-offs are worth it - and the pockets are deeper.

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