Advice on getting best from battered 1210

[33 1/3]

Hi - newbie looking for advice here.

I've picked up my first proper turntable - a 1210 Mk3D which has been DJ'd, and has a broken arm and wonky stylus. It plays (tested on rubbish vinyl) but I want to use this turntable to rip vinyl to digital format, so am looking for advice on how to get the best capture with what I've got, without spending £1000s.

I planned to replace the arm with another stock Technics arm, but before I do I've read there are better arms out there. Reading through this forum though it seems these better arms are coming in at +£500. Is there anything that will beat a Technics arm but is in the same sort of price range? For convenience I'd prefer one where headshells can just plug in like on the Technics arm.

My earth wire is also missing its lug. Where can I get a good quality replacement lug? Do they need soldering on?

Whilst I have the case apart, are there any other mods I can do that will improve the sound, again, without costing a fortune? I was excited by the Mike New bearing, till I saw the price. Can't justify the cost at the mo. Should I try regreasing the bearing I've got?

I've got load more questions, but don't wanna overwhelm with my first post.

[kininigin]

Hi Donny and welcome to AoS.

If it was me,i would get a new Technics arm (which will have a new ground wire on it!) Replace the stock feet with either some sorbothane feet like these.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Sorbothane...item4d1948ffe1

This is what i use as at the moment.Or you can try some Isonoes,which cost more but are meant to be very good at what they do.I haven't used them though.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ISONOE-ISO...item51b83e9371

I would then get a decent mat.I've only ever used one,so will recommend that one,which is a

Funk Firm Achromat.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Funk-Firm-...item27dd656371

I would probably also get a new bearing!

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TECHNICS-M...item461b0c4044

That is probably the cheapest way to get decent results as far as i know! Add you cart of choice and i think you will have a good sounding deck to record you vinyl from.Hope this helps.

[Andrei]

Carlos
A good place to look around is KAB USA http://www.kabusa.com/frameset.htm?/1200bld.htm
They have all sorts for sale. Many members here have used them.

[Audio Al]

I'm a bit confused with this

Is it worth spending money if you only intention is to rip your music to files ?

[DarrenHW]

Hi Donny,

Welcome aboard . I'm a newb too , joined here November 2013 after buying my first Techie with exactly the same goal as you, to create a vinyl transcriber without spending a fortune.

The first thing I did was to replace the feet with Sorbothane feet as Darren suggests above a very worth while upgrade for the money and time involved.

Next I externalised the power supply and installed a new regulator, there is a DIY thread on here (http://theartofsound.net/forum/showt...-amp-Regulator) in total this cost me about £60.00 but took about 15 hours to complete . Again major bang for buck with this mod if you're comfortable with a soldering iron and multimeter, Ken (Qwin) has manufactured PCB's and put together a BOM (Bill of Materials) so it's really just soldering by numbers. If you're not comfortable with the DIY aspect then take a look at some of the after market PS's, MCRU have their own starting at £195.00 (http://www.mains-cables-r-us.co.uk/a...urntables.html) or if you're after an even cheaper option I have an old Time Step PS I'd be happy to sell you, but I'm only selling this as I think the DIY has better speed stability, so my advice is to go down the DIY route if you can.

Now on to the arm... I went down the same route you're planning on. New stock arm from Juno Records on eBay for £30.99, second hand ADC LMG-1 Headshell £28.00 (as my cart is a AT440MLa and responds best with a lower mass arm), second hand KAB Fluid Damper £50.00, Cardas rewire with Cardas GRCM RCA's £65.69 and stuffed with cotton wool. So all in £174.68 at the cheapest prices I could find. I would recommend all of these mods both individually and as a whole, all made a big improvement however in hindsight I wouldn't go down this route again, but prefer to invest in an after market arm such as the Micro Seiki MA 202 (http://theartofsound.net/forum/showt...AUTY-Some-Pics) as probably the best budget solution or keep an eye out for a second hand Jelco SA-750 both of which are poular choices here, there is also the option of using a Rega arm, all of which will also require an arm board, search on here for Speedy Steve Arm Board they're very well respected and beautiful.

I also installed a new stock bearing for £21.99 from eBay, this was an improvement over the existing worn bearing that I had, however I was lucky enough to pick up a second hand modded SL 1210 on here with a Mike New Bearing and honestly wouldn't go back. The NM Bearing is just so much more musical, again Ken has come up with a DIY mod for this so well worth persuing if you're happy to do a bit of metal work (http://theartofsound.net/forum/showt...t=1200+bearing).

As Andrei suggests above, it's well worth checking out the KAB site. I could have rewired the tonearm for half the price if I'd had the patience to wait for delivery from the states (bear in mind you will have to pay customs charges on anything you order), if keeping or modding the stock bearing you might want to invest in some Thrust Plate Wax, some members on here have tried Neoprene instead with good results, I gave the Neoprene a go but for me it over dampened the bearing, well worth a try though for a couple of quid.

How are you planning to digitise your vinyl? The choice of ADC is something I'm researching at the moment but there are so many choices !

The only warning I would give you is to prepared to get hooked on this, like I said I joined with exactly the same intention as you, in 6 months I've spent £1500.00 on Techies alone (although I do have 2 and will recoup some of this selling the parts I'm not keeping), not to mention Phono stage, CDP's, amps, speakers, racks etc... So beware the slippery slope, it is fun though !

Enjoy the journey.

[AlexM]

Donny,

Agree with most of the above advice

Sorbothane feet - yes, definately,
Acromat - yes
New Arm - get a new technics arm from Juno records, as above to start with - your next arm choice will be influenced by cartridge choices, and this will get you going and allow you to think through your next moves. Replace the arm cable immediately with a good quality one - lots to choose from without spending much.

New Technics bearing - yes, definately. If your deck has seen some abuse, this is what will have suffered (as well as the arm, but that is already being replaced). The deck should perform as well as a new item if you do the arm and bearing, although do check that the platter doesn't wobble as it rotates.

DIY PSU - I built one, and love it to bits. I think it makes a huge difference, and is fantastic value for money as an improvement if you can manage a soldering iron.

Next thing to think about is the phono stage and the ADC you want to use to rip with. Assuming you have a decent phono stage available, I would look at the the HRT Linestreamer II+ as an ADC - I use one and think that it is fantastic. I would also reecommend the EMU 0404USB if you can find one second hand - it is cheap and has good ADCs and line input buffers.

In general terms, don't go mad with modifications (yet) - get the deck working properly (bearing and arm), mod it mildly (feet, mat and maybe DIY PSU) and then see what else you might benefit from doing to meet your needs.

Good luck,
Alex

[33 1/3]

Thanks for all the suggestions so far. There's so much info to take in, which is frustrating coz I'm dying to get started.

Regarding the feet... I assume what the deck is sitting on may affect the sound too? (regardless of feet). eg... it's currently on a wooden sideboard. and my house has suspended wooden floors, there's really nowhere 'solid' to house the deck. Any suggestions for better siting, or will just using the suggested feet sort me out?

I had considered moving the PSU outside, but it's a real big decision for me as I much prefer the practicality of everything sitting together in one unit. Are there any mods that isolate the existing onboard PSU better? (lead casing, lol ) Anyone know of any before and after (recorded/waveform) examples of the difference it makes by taking the PSU outside?

Again, for convenience I'd like to put a hinged lid on the deck, do I run any risk of attracting unwanted noise by fitting a lid?
Also I've seen mods for routing the earth wire to one of the phonos. Good idea or not?


When it comes to the actual ripping, my current facility stands at going through a Cambridge Audio P25 Mk2 amp, and into my MacBook Pro/Audacity. I'm sure there's much better options?? I'm a bit suspicious of using USB for audio, just seems more processing, less direct?

[chelsea]

I'm a bit confused with this

Is it worth spending money if you only intention is to rip your music to files ?

I agree.
I'd just buy a working 1210,rip your vinyl then flog it.

[Stratmangler]

I'm a bit confused with this

Is it worth spending money if you only intention is to rip your music to files ?

I agree.
I'd just buy a working 1210,rip your vinyl then flog it.

I completely disagree.
The modifications will (and do) make quite audible improvements to the recordings.
GIGO very much applies.

[Marco]

+1 (with bells on)!!



Marco.