Like the song goes, "It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing." If you find your toes tapping, then your 'table's got timing. As to wiring, I do my own using extremely thin solid core, mixed in with a favourite cheapy cable I find better balanced than any other, natural sounding, and detailed. But that's another story. If I were going to buy one, I'd go for the Incognito kit, which uses uninterrupted Cardas wire from cartridge clips to RCAs, a good design, and an aluminum plug to kill resonance all in one.
If I were looking for a good used 'table for cheap fun, I'd get an AR-XA (usually $30-$50). Grados love low-mass tonearms, so keep your eyes open for Grace tonearms, Black Widow tonearms, or Mayware unipivots, quite cheap except for the Black Widow. Except for the unipivot, the Rega's bearings are superior to these but you'd be amazed anyway at how the Grados open up when matched to these. If you pay $30 for the AR, then you shouldn't be too scared to drill out the AR subchassis. Alternatively, the Aristons (either the RD11 or RD80) come with a separate armboard so you can mix and match, but cost more (typically $200). They usually come with either a Mayware or Grace. Stick a Grado on these, and rock the night away, because timing doesn't get better than this. And all these tonearms benefit from rewiring too. But if you just want to plug n'play, then get a Connoisseur, and stick a Pickering or Stanton on it and find out what your grandad got so excited about! Astonishing dynamics and swing for $30, plus cartridge. Tonight I solved my problem temporarily by matching a Black Widow to an Ariston RD80, which gave a good, smooth and detailed sound with no brightness in my system. And it rocks, with the Platinum. Now I can relax and listen to music again, relief. Have fun!
If I were looking for a good used 'table for cheap fun, I'd get an AR-XA (usually $30-$50). Grados love low-mass tonearms, so keep your eyes open for Grace tonearms, Black Widow tonearms, or Mayware unipivots, quite cheap except for the Black Widow. Except for the unipivot, the Rega's bearings are superior to these but you'd be amazed anyway at how the Grados open up when matched to these. If you pay $30 for the AR, then you shouldn't be too scared to drill out the AR subchassis. Alternatively, the Aristons (either the RD11 or RD80) come with a separate armboard so you can mix and match, but cost more (typically $200). They usually come with either a Mayware or Grace. Stick a Grado on these, and rock the night away, because timing doesn't get better than this. And all these tonearms benefit from rewiring too. But if you just want to plug n'play, then get a Connoisseur, and stick a Pickering or Stanton on it and find out what your grandad got so excited about! Astonishing dynamics and swing for $30, plus cartridge. Tonight I solved my problem temporarily by matching a Black Widow to an Ariston RD80, which gave a good, smooth and detailed sound with no brightness in my system. And it rocks, with the Platinum. Now I can relax and listen to music again, relief. Have fun!