Hi Svend, sounds like you’ve got a good’un there! I’m not going to make any specific recommendations for arms or cartridges as so much depends on personal taste, and I haven’t listened to most of the options available today anyway. Having said that, there are certain combinations that are known to work well, particularly arms. from new, about 70% of TT2s left the factory fitted with Linn arm boards, 20% Rega and the rest either SME or blank, and by far the most popular arm was the Linn Basic+, but this is more a reflection of the fact that most Heybrook dealers were also Linn and Rega dealers and it was the path of least resistance! I was never fond of the Linn arms, and whilst the cast alloy Regas were an astonishing engineering achievement, they always sounded slightly flat and dull, although many love them. In recent years the world has begun to adopt a more balanced view as regards flat earth products v the rest, and the arms that now seem to be favourite choices for the TT2 are the Mission 774 (the John Bicht one, not the cheap Japanese one), the Alphasons, particularly the HR100s, various flavours of Jelco and the Formula IV unipivot. Zetas, Mission Mechanics and Heyook arms made by Zeta are brilliant but rare as hens teeth and expensive. If you come across a Heybrook arm made by Helius, avoid! It was dreadful.
Any others? The original S-shaped Rega R200 is a lovely thing. Most have suffered from degeneration of the bias belt and replacement is challenging, but it can be done and they’re cheap as a result. Ant on Audio-Talk has just composed a very well written thread on repairing one. I’d also love to see an Ortofon 212 on a TT2 but new ones cost thousands and old ones just don’t seem to come up for sale.
The TPS and the alloy chassis were the only significant developments in the life of the TT2. The TPS is rare and contains a chip which is prone to failure and unobtainable. Conversion back to non-TPS spec is reasonably simple if you can get a standard pulley (I may have one knocking around in the shed somewhere), but it would be a shame to lose the undoubted benefits. Similar units such as the Heed do the same job just as well, or you could DIY one. Forums like Audio-Talk or diyaudio will have suggestions.
I’ve deliberately avoided mentioning cartridges, as I’m simply not familiar with any of the modern contenders. Suffice it to say I’m a big Denon fan.
For myself, I ran an ally chassis TT2 with a Rega RB300 and Denon 103D through the 80s. The 103D then gave way to a 304, and the Rega to a Mayware Formula IV, both big improvements. I then got involved with idlers and gave my TT2 to my Nephew, but then a few years ago an immaculate steel chassis version from the very first batch of 100 turntables popped up on eBay with a Mission 774. How could a resist? The ally chassis is a bit more refined and tonally accurate, but the steel chassis version zips and bounces through the Music delightfully. I’ve gone back to a Denon 103, and I love it. Those earliest TT2s are closest to what I was trying to achieve when I started fooling around with bits of steel and old motors in my bedroom in 1976.
