PDA

View Full Version : Technics Upgrade advice



Tarzan
21-07-2010, 08:45
Morning all,it is upgrade time! However l do need some advice, my love affair with me Technics SL1200 continues, l will cut to the chase, she sounds superb, l mean really good, however for a bit of fun l bolted on to the tonearm lead a cable l really like with a further jump in sound quality, there was no hum issues, so l tried a different cable and again a nice jump in sound, this got me thinking do l stay with this set up which cost virtually nothing and go for a bearing mod, so l can kill two birds with one stone, or get the proper re-wire, which would give a bigger bang for the buck?However l am beginning to think go for the bearing mod so l can experiment more with tone arm cable( l do not think l could be with out the T/T for a fortnight or so!So l now leave the floor open what to do, and if the bearing mod which is the one to go for,Soundhifi, Mike New- help:).

DSJR
21-07-2010, 08:57
Ken Kessler "discovered" this deck by using a lyra as I remember and this was with original wiring.

What about the power supply? I think that should be done before the bearing myself. Sadly, the options will cost a few hundred quid (:() but if you have the funds available I'd still look here forst, as getting rid of the internal transformer (which is directly underneath the platter) must be a good thing IMO..

kininigin
21-07-2010, 09:03
hi andy,if you still have the stock wire in your tone arm i would say get it re-wired first if your not planning to get a new tonearm anytime soon.

I recently re-wired mine and there is a big difference in sound.Im not sure that you will get the most out of a new bearing with the stock wire you have at the moment and i think the thinking is to upgrade the psu before the main bearing,but im no expert and im sure someone will with more knowledge can advise.

Tarzan
21-07-2010, 09:41
To be honest the extenal PSU will be the last uprgrade l do as l like having as few boxes as possible- keep the suggestions coming chaps:).

kininigin
21-07-2010, 16:50
To be honest the extenal PSU will be the last uprgrade l do as l like having as few boxes as possible- keep the suggestions coming chaps:).

If the end result concerning the psu is an extra box anyway what's the difference going for it now :scratch: but each to their own.

I may be wrong but im sure i read on hear someone else who had the stock arm and upgraded the bearing and it made the technics sound worse or had some negative effects but he was changing the arm anyway.

Might be worth finding that thread.

The Vinyl Adventure
21-07-2010, 17:11
To be honest the extenal PSU will be the last uprgrade l do as l like having as few boxes as possible- keep the suggestions coming chaps:).

I can understand that, I have just gone through a box cut down...
But...
The psu, is the most bang for buck upgrade by a good margin IMHO... The timestep route, which gets my vote, takes up little space... I have mine sat under my rack.... Probably not the best idea... But for now it's the only solution
http://i728.photobucket.com/albums/ww282/hamish_gill/dbae7980.jpg

It kills 2 birds... It supplies better power... Obviously (although I don't know what I mean by better power) it also takes the ruddy great psu out of the techie which is also a huge advantage... Others will no doubt fill in the technical details!

chris@panteg
21-07-2010, 17:38
Hi Andy

I say go for the Timestep psu and also the Timestep bearing , the Mike New bearing ' shortly to be replaced by the Timestep HR bearing is worth going for if you intend to go for the new heavy platter .

But and this is the thing if that's a step too far then the much cheaper Timestep bearing is all you will need , its an excellent upgrade and you will hear the difference regardless of any wiring .

Upgrade the wiring of the stock Techie arm is a good move so long as it doesn't cost too much ! but if you really want to hear just how good the SL1200 with the above Timestep mods can sound , you need to be looking at a different arm such as the Jelco 250st or SA750 ' or if you can stretch a bit further a 309 .

To clear something up ' when i got the Timestep bearing i was running my DL160 into the mc input of a Cambridge 640p , which i subsequently found out was a disastrous mis match , causing overload and compression i have since changed to a Trichord Diablo which is perfect for the 160 .

kininigin
21-07-2010, 17:58
Hi Andy



To clear something up ' when i got the Timestep bearing i was running my DL160 into the mc input of a Cambridge 640p , which i subsequently found out was a disastrous mis match , causing overload and compression i have since changed to a Trichord Diablo which is perfect for the 160 .

yeah ignor my earlier comments about the bearing and the tonearm wire i couldn't quite remember the cause of your problems.

Tarzan
21-07-2010, 19:43
Thanks for the feedback chaps, will post in the morning- been on the lash most of the afternoon-you know how it is;):cool: What HR bearing?

chris@panteg
22-07-2010, 07:44
On the Soundhifi site , it appears the MN bearing is no longer listed but states a timestep HR bearing to be shortly available at the same price ! perhaps its one and the same thing only Dave and Mike have merged together maybe ?

REM
22-07-2010, 11:27
On the Soundhifi site , it appears the MN bearing is no longer listed but states a timestep HR bearing to be shortly available at the same price ! perhaps its one and the same thing only Dave and Mike have merged together maybe ?


You mean Dave's eaten Mike.....OMG:eek::eek:

DSJR
22-07-2010, 11:42
Maybe it means that Timestep now have exclusive legal rights to it, thus preventing the bearing being distributed elsewhere - i.e. Timestep HR bearing designed by Mike New (???????)

Tarzan
22-07-2010, 19:23
Hi chaps, maybe l should have stated that l really do not want to be without the 1200- even though l have two, one has isonoe feet, Sumiko headshell/Stanton 520 and a Stanton 681EEE, which feeds a Cambridge 640P phono stage also l have the same deck with the Helikon, this time feeding a TE Groove, all sound superb in their own ways, also l have a SME V, which will at some point sit on the second 1200, l had the SME V on the 1200 briefly previously, but l was not entirely happy with the set-up, but odviously sounded good, so the PSU will definately be the last upgrade, as l am going to stay with the deck rather than go for an SP10, so l suppose, l will need some bearing advice!

Light Capture
22-07-2010, 23:03
Hi chaps, maybe l should have stated that l really do not want to be without the 1200- even though l have two, one has isonoe feet, Sumiko headshell/Stanton 520 and a Stanton 681EEE, which feeds a Cambridge 640P phono stage

I'm not sure I understood all the gear you listed, but wouldn't a better phono stage than the CA 640P be a more prudent upgrade?

Tarzan
23-07-2010, 10:13
I also have Tom Evans the Groove as well- this feeds the Helikon.

DSJR
23-07-2010, 20:51
I'm not sure I understood all the gear you listed, but wouldn't a better phono stage than the CA 640P be a more prudent upgrade?

Do please bear in mind that the CA 640P is as cheap as it is because it's made in the far east (with decent bits) and sold without a middle man. Had it been marketed by the big distributors, it would sell for £300 ($400 approx).. Oh yes, it might have a nicer looking case too..

Light Capture
25-07-2010, 00:07
Do please bear in mind that the CA 640P is as cheap as it is because it's made in the far east (with decent bits) and sold without a middle man. Had it been marketed by the big distributors, it would sell for £300 ($400 approx).. Oh yes, it might have a nicer looking case too..

This is true, but when I thought it was Tarzan's only phono stage, it seemed like upgrading it vs. new bearings, PS, and tonearm wire for the sl1200 made more sense to me.