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Turntable suggestion -- budget.. or not?

Not another budget turntable thread, you might sigh... Heh. Well, I promise to make it interesting. A bit about myself first before I get into the main reason for the thread:

I am a musician and fully embrace tube technology and the general 'tone quest' that goes along with (in particular) guitar playing. I've built most of my amp gear -- circuit copies from the late 50s/early 60s. Some of the same characteristics that I seek in guitar tone, i'd like to also have in my listening setup -- warmth. I'm already familiar with the adjectives that get thrown around when describing tone. So, no need to hold back.

So, I'd like see what all the fuss is about... Vinyl appeals to me purely from the sound quality aspect. I have an extensive cd stash, and very little vinyl (this will change if the 'proof' is there).

I'm currently demoing a Pro-Ject 1.3 TT at home right now with a Cambridge 651p into a solid state power amp and out to speakers. The later two pieces gear likely won't change. However, going forward (and if the quality is there) I will build gear to surround my TT setup.

The 1.3 is nice, but the motor on the side is a bit gimmicky IMO. I can hear the hum from the motor (and I *do* have it on a good base). It definitely looks the best! The 651p sounds a bit bright to my ears too. Despite this, I'm quite impressed with what I hear from vinyl. I've been playing alot of recordings I know very well (Miles "kind of blue", and some wes montgomery) and in general things sound not only different but *better*!

Now to the questions. I'm leaning on sending both the 1.3 and 651p back for the reasons I mentioned above. I've had about 6-8 hours of continuous playback and I realize the break-in period is still happening, but I'm not hearing the warmth that I'm looking for. Sure, it will get better with more break-in, but I want something to knock my socks off right out of the gate.

Thoughts? Where should I go from here?
128x128martinman
frogman
7,493 posts
 
Some good suggestions above, particularly re getting a better phono
preamp. I bought my son the Cambridge that you have for his modest (and
pretty good sounding) system, and while pretty good sounding, it's far from
high-end; lean midrange with an obvious electronic character. But, my
main suggestion is this:

When considering turntables remember that a turntable is a
"system". You can work towards the "tone" that you
want via wise tonearm, cartridge and cable choices; as well as phono pre,
of course. The main thing that a turntable brings to the table ;-), (OR
NOT!), is the GROOVE of the music. While the tonearm and cartridge are
also important contributors, what determines wether you will extract the
FEEL of the music encoded in the vinyl is the turntable; determined by
wether it has correct speed stability and accuracy. I strongly suggest that
when considering a turntable you focus more on this aspect of
performance. For a starter tt with this attribute I would second the Rega
suggestion. Used, earlier vintage Oracles are also killer in this dept for not
a lot of money; and look very cool. Good luck!
rotarius
431 posts
 
Maybe I missed it but what cartridge are you using currently? I did have a Cambridge 650p and thought it sounded lean and bright with my carts as well. I suggest you start with a vintage Denon, Pioneer or Technics DD. I don't care for the build quality of entry level Pro-jects and Regas.
ebm
9,311 posts
 
TW ACUSTIC big step up.
buconero117
2,311 posts
 
Used Denon 47F should satisfy your needs. Don't buy of these unless you can pick it up, otherwise you will be wasting your money.
jawks
41 posts
 
If you don't mind me asking, what is your estimated turntable budget?
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