Other Technics alternatives to 1200/1210

[StanleyB]

The SL-110 speed is stabilised electronically. I don't think it had quartz lock.

[chris@panteg]

Here is the Sl 1100 which is virtually the same deck but with integrated arm
it appears not to have quartz lock!

± 5% by variable resistor

http://www.thevintageknob.org/TECHNI.../SL1100A.html#

[Dave Cawley]

Not true, all early DD did not have quartz lock, almost every model in fact.

Dave

[Marco]

Interesting. I was under the impression that Quartz locking was an integral part of all high quality Technics D/D motor mechanisms. I guess that the addition of Quartz locking is what gives the SL-1200 and 1210 the advantage in terms of speed accuracy over the older units.

So what does that say then about the SP-10 - does its lack of Quartz locking make it in some ways inferior? I suppose that it makes up for it in other areas of its design...

Dave,

Your above post is a bit confusing. Do you mean almost every model didn't have Quartz locking or the opposite? It's you saying "Not true" to the statement Chris made here:

it appears not to have quartz lock!

that's a bit confusing...

Marco.

[chris@panteg]

Early sp10 did not have quartz lock i think SP10 mk 2 had it and so on

BTW Dave i just had citylink turn up with timestep ,thanks its a cute little thing very nicely made.

[Clive]

I believe the SP10 mk I does not have quartz lock.

The mk II does have quartz lock and a higher torque motor.

The mk III is supposed to be the best (Japan only).

Some say they prefer the mk I, don't know why.

[StanleyB]

I guess that the addition of Quartz locking is what gives the SL-1200 and 1210 the advantage in terms of speed accuracy over the older units.

Nope. When the 1200MK2 and 1210 came out a lot of people soon started complaining that the Quartz lock was affecting the sound. Since then many have done mods to disable it.

[Marco]

Interesting, Stan. I wouldn't know any different as I've only ever used models with Quartz locking.

I guess that ignorance is bliss because I've compared my modded 1210 with Quartz locking to Mark I SP-10s without it and not found my deck to be wanting much in any area

Marco.

(The 'piss-poor Quartz-locking 1210' owner)

[Dave Cawley]

What I said was correct, all early DD's from anyone, none had quartz lock. The SP-10 did not either, but the SP-10MKII always has. Finding a MKI SP-10 is virtually impossible. It was a technology quickly adopted, no one had thought of it earlier, it wasn't a technology thing, just a 'why not' thing.

But there is a general misconception about DD that I have talked about before. They are not digital, they are analogue and controlled by a phase locked loop. One input is the crystal (the reference), the other is the frequency generator which is a set of speed lines on the platter which tells the PLL what speed the platter is rotating. The output of the PLL is the error which is filtered by an RC network, and here is the analogue part, more or less current is given to the motor to make the error around zero. But the PLL can be adjusted, as we do on our SL-1200 mod, to perform like a poor jittery DJ deck (which the SL-1200 isn't) and at the other extreme like a bad belt drive.

I'll answer any sensible questions.

Regards

Dave

[Marco]

What I said was correct, all early DD's from anyone, none had quartz lock.

Thanks for clearing that up. I didn't realise that your previous reply was aimed at me and not Chris, whose post appeared immediately above yours.

Just a small tip - to make discussions easier to follow it's always best if when not replying to the person whose post appears immediately above yours to quote the person's text you're replying (or making reference to) before adding your reply on a post

So in your opinion then, Dave, is the Quartz locking Technics introduced later a good or bad thing in terms of greater speed accuracy, and thus one would hope, improved sonic performance?

Marco.