Me and the 1210 are gunna have us some me time....

[Wakefield Turntables]

Good lord where has the time gone. It's been a while since I updated this! Other AOSer's have been through multiple platter revisions, I stuck with one. With a little luck I may be trialling the new Mike New platter. Could this be the next upgrade for the 1210....?????

[Wakefield Turntables]

DSCN1235.jpg

OOOHHHHH!!!! Looking sexy in black. A new platter on loan from MCRU! Listening to Deep Purple at the mo, too early to tell if it's an improvement over the old lump that I normally use.

[Marco]

What are your thoughts on both MN platters then, Andrew?

Marco.

[Wakefield Turntables]

I'm having great difficulty in making my mind up if the platter is going to be a worthwhile investment. In some respects its better than the old Cu/Al platter that I have sitting on the floor at the moment. I firmly believe it digs out more from the vinyl, that's for sure, microdetail in some records has improved and I've found myself staring at the deck and thinking, "that's new"! Both the Cu/Al and ETP platter lose nothing in bass, I would say the Cu/Al produces a larger more defined bass, but this is only marginal. The ETP seems to have "calmed" some aspects of my system, some recordings could appear strident, whilst this is still evident in some recordings it's not as bad and makes some recordings more enjoyable. I think I need more time to make my mind up. I think a session with the old platter could be a beneficial experiment and hopefully help make my mind up. Just out of interest what did the ETP platter do for your system?

[CageyH]

If it is a difficult decision, is it because the differences are very subtle?
If so, it seems to me that if you have an upgraded platter, then there is very little to be gained by trying a different one?

I'm trying to justify the cost of an upgraded platter in my head, and work out if the Funk would be sufficient for me.
It's cheaper.

[Mike_New]

Hi Folks,
On the subject of Platters, I now basically only produce the ETP Platter. The reason for this is that copper and Alluminium have increased in price recently so the ETP Platter represents better value I believe, although the ETP material I use is expensive.
However I am willing to machine a Copper Bonded Alluminium Platter to special order.
I would also like to remind all those who may be considering one of my Platters: That they are fitted with an independant cetre metal boss which carries the locating taper. And they are fitted with two 8mm threaded holes for lifting the Platter on and off the Bearing.

[Wakefield Turntables]

And the winner of the platter wars is................... The original Mike New AL/CU platter. I have really have tried the new MN ETP in my system and whilst it does indeed slightly edge the original platter in a few areas I still feel the old beast (AL/CU platter) sounds better in my system. I mainly listen to prog and heavy metal/progressive metal in the 1210 system and I dont think the ETP platter reproduces these genre's as well as the heavier AL/CU platter. My second system, the valve system is mainly used for jazz, vocals, classical, and I think that it is in these areas that the newer platter has a slight edge, but there again, not by much. Additionally, the second system is powered by the Garrard 301 so the ETP platter wouldn't work very well on that. In some repects I'm extremely sad because I wanted the new platter to be a marked upgrade to the older platter but this was not to be. If anyone is reading this I WOULD HEARTILY RECOMMEND THE NEW ETP PLATTER! It's an excellent piece of kit for the money should bring significant improvements. On the side of the coin I happy now to have tried the platter and set my mind at rest that I'm happy with how my system sounds.

[MartinT]

That's fair enough, Andy. I never had the Al/Cu bonded platter, mine was an early Al only one. For me, the key improvements in the ETP were exceptional midrange fine detail and a better sense of soundstage compared with the Al's slightly 'shouty' presentation.

[Wakefield Turntables]

That's fair enough, Andy. I never had the Al/Cu bonded platter, mine was an early Al only one. For me, the key improvements in the ETP were exceptional midrange fine detail and a better sense of soundstage compared with the Al's slightly 'shouty' presentation.

Thanks Martin, it's seems like you have a golden pair of ears! My old platter can seem snouty and strident with some recordings, this is quite rare but can sometimes sound quite jarring to the ears. The al/cu platt has fine midrange detail but I think your correct in that the ETP platter slightly edges it. With regards to soundstage, currently, my setup produces a wide soundstage and some recordings it extends beyound the speakers, so I'm not missing out in that respect. I think mike and Dave have a winning platter here, but as mentioned it didn't quite gel in my system.

[Wakefield Turntables]

I really really hate you lot on AOS, you make me spend all my money. I have just ordered the ebony tonearm board for the 1210. Here's hoping it helps the old beast get up the next rung of the sonic ladder.