Well, the Classic is a very good sounding table; for a lot more money than a good HW19 MK1-3; but, it won't give you the flexibility to change arms that the HW series will. If by "better buy" you mean more bang for the same amount of $, I would say no. If by "less difficult" you mean easier to set-up, then the Classic is hard to beat. But a HW19 with a great arm, and a better cartridge afforded by the less expensive HW19; then things get really interesting.
Bpoletti does a nice job of explaining the options in the HW line. I would only point out that part of the flexibility of the series is that the suspension can easily be changed from sprung to non-sprung.
Bpoletti does a nice job of explaining the options in the HW line. I would only point out that part of the flexibility of the series is that the suspension can easily be changed from sprung to non-sprung.