Royal Ascot HiFi Show

[hard1175]

Did any members attend the show.
I went on Saturday a very low turn out due to the bad weather,
I must say I was very disappointed with the show. The set up of the show in general and the demonstration rooms.
This was the first visit to the Ascot show and the last.

[walpurgis]

Moved from Welcome area to Blank Canvas section.

[Beobloke]

Did any members attend the show.
I went on Saturday a very low turn out due to the bad weather,
I must say I was very disappointed with the show. The set up of the show in general and the demonstration rooms.
This was the first visit to the Ascot show and the last.

Could you expand more on what you didn't like? I'm not trying to stir or anything but as it was the first time a show has been held at a venue like this, I'm interested in any feedback I can pass onto the Hi-Fi News organisation team - good or bad!

[jandl100]

I didn't go but there's a quite positive write up from Hifi Pig webzine.

https://hifipig.com/uk-hifi-show-live-2019-ascot-show-report/

"Overall, this is the best UK hifi show I have ever attended".
Well, I'm not sure you can much more positive than that!

From the photos in that report it certainly looks impressive.

[User211]

Meant to go forgot about it.

That said I've heard nearly all of it before many times... but I do like a show.

[WESTLOWER]

Did any members attend the show.
I went on Saturday a very low turn out due to the bad weather,
I must say I was very disappointed with the show. The set up of the show in general and the demonstration rooms.
This was the first visit to the Ascot show and the last.

A few of us went on Sunday.
A Couple of Guys who came along have basically been to most shows around the world numerous times..

We ALL thought it was very very good.

The Actual Ascot Race course Venue is breath taking and just a privilege to walk around.
People were taking pictures of the building not just the kit!

It was the first time there, so inevitably a few teething issues..
Navigation of the vast stair/escalator system, better signage and more accessible quick fodder could and probably will be improved.

But these are minor and easily amended.

The Rooms overall were very good indeed and far better than the average hotel room.

The selection of Hifi on offer was vast and varied and for me lots of interesting Analogue stuff.
All price points were catered for and really well presented. It felt very professional but also relaxed.

It was well attended and the size of the venue and layout probably gave the impression one was rattling about, but All the rooms we visited were buzzing with people but not so packed it became uncomfortable.

Honestly, the amount of good kit from Large and smaller niche brands was very impressive.
Just check the list out on the website.
Some rooms sounded poor and some were just fantastic (as with ALL these events)

Parking was free and right next to the venue and the venue staff were just amazingly helpful and polite in their Bowler hats!
There were chill out areas, sofas, coffee and Vinyl stalls.

I'd be very interested to know how anyone could find negativity in such a well thought out, well presented event for £22 a day or £30 both days?!!!

A very good day out indeed and something for everyone!
I guess you can't please some folk

[hifinutt]

very much wanted to go as the first one was superb . but at 2.5 hours by train each way i didn`t have time . i have heard lots of positive feedback on forums

[hard1175]

I felt that the show was very disjointed no flow to the rooms.
There also seemed to be a lot of static displays where rooms could have been used to demonstrate the equipment.
Their was a lack of accessories stalls just two record stalls and a Cord cable display.
Compared to what was at the Windsor shows.
Hopefully this will improve for next years show.

[AJSki2fly]

I was considering going with a friend who live only 40 mins away, but other stuff got in the way. I had a look at the pictures and what struck me most was the fact that nearly all the equipment looks to be high end and probably pretty expensive.

It seems that not a lot has changed in 30 years since I last went to a HiFi show in Southampton. All the rooms then were stocked by dealers or manufacturers touting the more expensive end of their equipment and seemed to be trying to outdo each other. All a bit disappointing for your average punter with a low to mid range budget. Maybe I am missing something but I don’t get it, or is it that they are aiming at the older music buff who has too much money from over from pension etc.

[Spectral Morn]

I watched Analogue Planets coverage on you tube and I felt it looked poor compared to the early NAS shows, which I enjoyed a lot. The NAS shows now look to be pale shadows of their former majesty, havent been in five years to any mainland shows as costs had got crazy.

Surprised News is allowing anyone other than their own to cover it. Got a very strong sense at the beginning of these that PM wanted to protect and make coverage exclusive to them. I think for myself if I was to put money into covering another show it would be Munich not a UK mainland show.

[WESTLOWER]

I was considering going with a friend who live only 40 mins away, but other stuff got in the way. I had a look at the pictures and what struck me most was the fact that nearly all the equipment looks to be high end and probably pretty expensive.

It seems that not a lot has changed in 30 years since I last went to a HiFi show in Southampton. All the rooms then were stocked by dealers or manufacturers touting the more expensive end of their equipment and seemed to be trying to outdo each other. All a bit disappointing for your average punter with a low to mid range budget. Maybe I am missing something but I don’t get it, or is it that they are aiming at the older music buff who has too much money from over from pension etc.

Personally, I would hesitate putting any negativity on the show if I didn't attend, seems a tad unfair to judge it by a few uploaded pictures.

Sorry, there was plenty of gear at ALL price points.
Obviously the nature of these shows is the show case element, so it's understandable that they prominently show the best.
But as I said, there was plenty of 'affordable' kit.
I'm not particularly old or wealthy so I understand the category you are referring to.

Michael Fremer gave a decent (long) round up of the show and he makes an effort to touch on 'affordable' kit..
But I guess 'affordable' is subjective.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRQ9eurCqp0

[AJSki2fly]

Personally, I would hesitate putting any negativity on the show if I didn't attend, seems a tad unfair to judge it by a few uploaded pictures.

Sorry, there was plenty of gear at ALL price points.
Obviously the nature of these shows is the show case element, so it's understandable that they prominently show the best.
But as I said, there was plenty of 'affordable' kit.
I'm not particularly old or wealthy so I understand the category you are referring to.

Michael Fremer gave a decent (long) round up of the show and he makes an effort to touch on 'affordable' kit..
But I guess 'affordable' is subjective.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRQ9eurCqp0

I was offering an observation on what I saw from not a few but quite a lot of photos, and what was written about the show, and as I said it reminded me of a similar approach at a show 30 years ago. As for affordability it is down to size of pocket and what you as a n individual choose to spend your money on, however comparing prices 35 years ago to now a reasonable hifi system TT, amp and speaker you would expect to pay around £1k, taking inflation into account that would now be around £8-10k, however it does seem to me that a great deal of the hifi components today are now pushing well beyond that level. Which is possibly reflected at the show.

[WESTLOWER]

I was offering an observation on what I saw from not a few but quite a lot of photos, and what was written about the show, and as I said it reminded me of a similar approach at a show 30 years ago. As for affordability it is down to size of pocket and what you as a n individual choose to spend your money on, however comparing prices 35 years ago to now a reasonable hifi system TT, amp and speaker you would expect to pay around £1k, taking inflation into account that would now be around £8-10k, however it does seem to me that a great deal of the hifi components today are now pushing well beyond that level. Which is possibly reflected at the show.

Ok, but I'm very positive there was plenty of kit on show and demonstrated, to build a very decent system for well under £10k...
and of course there was lots of components many times that.

As i say, i thought it was a show that offered a varied price range.
If i'd been in the market for a new System (i'm not!) at under £10k, i'd have been happy with the offerings.

They did run out of sandwiches which slightly pissed me off ;)

[Edward]

I guess it depends on what motivation people have for going to these shows. I went along on Sunday (with Adam) and enjoyed it a great deal. My motivation was not to get ideas on what new kit I could/should buy but to gain an impression on what the 'industry' is putting out these days - invariably my focus landed on speakers - the Magico, Goldmund and Avantgarde speakers were standouts for me. All speakers selling for monies that I would never care to afford. My interest is also on the digital side of things but I've found from previous shows it is quite difficult to get a good handle on that side just looking at stuff. Also usually difficult to get into a worthwhile discussion with the representatives at show. So I largely skipped that. Most of the analog stuff (TTs etc) were wonderful looking (Adam got into a veeeery loooong chat with the SME guy!).

There were quite a few stacks (eg the PS Audio Stella Cell stack) that were aimed at the more 'budget conscious' buyer which certainly competes favorably with the high end stuff.

[WESTLOWER]

Most of the analog stuff (TTs etc) were wonderful looking (Adam got into a veeeery loooong chat with the SME guy!)

Yes, he was explaining at greeeeat length the process of how he tracked down the absoloute correct Rivets for the face plates on the 'new' Garrard 301..
all very ..... errrrr.. Riveting!!! :eyebrows:

These things are extremely important don't you know..;)

[Edward]

Yes, he was explaining at greeeeat length the process of how he tracked down the absoloute correct Rivets for the face plates on the 'new' Garrard 301..
all very ..... errrrr.. Riveting!!! :eyebrows:

These things are extremely important don't you know..;)

I know I know Adam - you keep telling me. :lol:

[Clive197]

I don’t know what show the nay sayers went to but it was not the show I attended on the Saturday. I was with a friend who was actually reporting and also photographed the show for HiFi Pig. There was plenty of kit at all price points, nicely laid out and In bigger rooms. The way the organisers had used the available space was very good as sound from other rooms rarely intruded. Demo’s seemed to sound better than hotel rooms. All in all we both felt that with a bit of tweaking the show will grow to be massive, beating Bristol and even and with support from trade and public possibly rivalling Munich in the years to come.

[AJSki2fly]

I don’t know what show the nay sayers went to but it was not the show I attended on the Saturday. I was with a friend who was actually reporting and also photographed the show for HiFi Pig. There was plenty of kit at all price points, nicely laid out and In bigger rooms. The way the organisers had used the available space was very good as sound from other rooms rarely intruded. Demo’s seemed to sound better than hotel rooms. All in all we both felt that with a bit of tweaking the show will grow to be massive, beating Bristol and even and with support from trade and public possibly rivalling Munich in the years to come.

Ok sounds better than the impression the pictures give. So maybe I will get there next year.


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[jandl100]

I've been impressed by what folks have said and by the pics, it will certainly be in my diary for next year.

[montesquieu]

Well I certainly hope it continues. It's 15min away from me so very handy (though to be fair Beaumont wasn't that much further). I had to be at a wedding in Scotland though last weekend.

The positive reports have been very encouraging.

[montesquieu]

Yes, he was explaining at greeeeat length the process of how he tracked down the absoloute correct Rivets for the face plates on the 'new' Garrard 301..
all very ..... errrrr.. Riveting!!! :eyebrows:

These things are extremely important don't you know..;)

I wonder if that was a grand of the stupidly inflated price they are selling it for? :)

[Barry]

I wonder if that was a grand of the stupidly inflated price they are selling it for? :)

How much are SME asking for the new 301? If it's anything like the unreasonable price hike of an SME V arm, it will be silly money.

[montesquieu]

How much are SME asking for the new 301? If it's anything like the unreasonable price hike of an SME V arm, it will be silly money.

Something over ten grand https://parttimeaudiophile.com/2019/05/24/garrard-sme-and-the-resurrection-of-a-dream-high-end-2019/

[southall-1998_mk2]

Bah! I'll stick with my Crosley.

S.

[Barry]

Something over ten grand https://parttimeaudiophile.com/2019/05/24/garrard-sme-and-the-resurrection-of-a-dream-high-end-2019/

:eek: I'll stick with my Thorens 124/IIs.

[Edward]

Something over ten grand https://parttimeaudiophile.com/2019/05/24/garrard-sme-and-the-resurrection-of-a-dream-high-end-2019/18k



§

[montesquieu]

Seriously? £18k pounds? Who on earth is going to pay that for one!

[Lawrence001]

Something over ten grand https://parttimeaudiophile.com/2019/05/24/garrard-sme-and-the-resurrection-of-a-dream-high-end-2019/The article suggests $12,500

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[Pigmy Pony]

The article suggests $12,500

Sent from my POT-LX1 using Tapatalk

Well that's not so bad then - should leave enough money for a new Russ Andrews noise cancelling woolly hat

[WESTLOWER]

The article suggests $12,500

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Nope!
I had a very long chat about the SME / Garrad 301 with the chap who's project it was to get it up and running.
It's actually £18,800...

I was trying too ascertain where the dough is in the TT.

Basically, it's a Stock oil bearing 301, No bearing change, No platter change, No power Supply.

So they have taken a stock 301, stripped it, polished it, sourced the correct paint (apparently has lots to do with the sound :rolleyes: stripped the linkage, recoated in less harmful stuff, new face plates held in place by the very very correct rivets which were very very hard to source, eventually they manufactured their own as all others were inferior (!!) :lol:.

They have also recut the platter strobe markings on the platter.
They spent an age recreating the exact Garrad mat with the correct rubber compound which he said is also absolutely sound critical... So thats the 301.

The plinth: a 3 way isolation solid Walnut plinth, made by Spendor. (based on the Loricraft approach)
The 3 isolation ways seem to be the feet, the metal arm pod within the plinth
(no options other than an SME cut, although he did say it was a straight drop in for other 3rd party pods)
and the inner top board which has some kind of isolation material (air-filled decouplers) between the main frame... Is that a posh name for a snazzy tweaked Squash ball...?! :scratch:

The arm, is the stock SME current production SME M2-12R (very nice arm btw)

There are no deviations from this combo, no 2 arm options etc.

Yours for just £18,800 guv! 4 month wait, guv.

https://i.imgur.com/pqfhKGk.jpg

[jandl100]

I dare say they are looking Far East for most of their sales.
I bet they'll sell as many as they can make!

[WESTLOWER]

I dare say they are looking Far East for most of their sales.
I bet they'll sell as many as they can make!


indeed.

[montesquieu]

Astonishing Adam. I wonder if they'll actually sell any?

[Slawts]

I went on Sunday and thought it was fantastic.

The venue is superb as were the staff and because the rooms were spread out there was plenty of room.

I thought the sound in the rooms was much better than other shows I have visited and the exhibitors I found very friendly.

Some have commented that it looked empty but the stand is quarter of a mile long and on 6 levels. Ascot has a capacity of 70,000 so no wonder it looked quiet.

Stand outs for me were KEF room, Gato, Monitor Audio, Henley with Klipsch speakers and the Chord Co speaker cable presentation. I enjoyed the new Cambridge Audio high end kit and Elite showing Manley amps.

The vintage gear was good but a bit tucked away and Absolute Sounds was high class porn.

I saw a bit of Fremer but it was easy to lose some sections. They may improve on signposting and central locations next year. I would also have liked a few show specials on kit as buying stuff at a show is always tempting.

[Barry]

Nope!
I had a very long chat about the SME / Garrad 301 with the chap who's project it was to get it up and running.
It's actually £18,800...

I was trying too ascertain where the dough is in the TT.

Basically, it's a Stock oil bearing 301, No bearing change, No platter change, No power Supply.

So they have taken a stock 301, stripped it, polished it, sourced the correct paint (apparently has lots to do with the sound :rolleyes: stripped the linkage, recoated in less harmful stuff, new face plates held in place by the very very correct rivets which were very very hard to source, eventually they manufactured their own as all others were inferior (!!) :lol:.

They have also recut the platter strobe markings on the platter.
They spent an age recreating the exact Garrad mat with the correct rubber compound which he said is also absolutely sound critical... So thats the 301.

The plinth: a 3 way isolation solid Walnut plinth, made by Spendor. (based on the Loricraft approach)
The 3 isolation ways seem to be the feet, the metal arm pod within the plinth
(no options other than an SME cut, although he did say it was a straight drop in for other 3rd party pods)
and the inner top board which has some kind of isolation material (air-filled decouplers) between the main frame... Is that a posh name for a snazzy tweaked Squash ball...?! :scratch:

The arm, is the stock SME current production SME M2-12R (very nice arm btw)

There are no deviations from this combo, no 2 arm options etc.

Yours for just £18,800 guv! 4 month wait, guv.

https://i.imgur.com/pqfhKGk.jpg


So they are just 'tarting up'/refurbishing existing Garrard 301s? What will they do when the supply of used 301s is exhausted - make new ones: and at what price?

There is a well known refurbisher of 301s, who advertises here but auctions his work on eBay. I doubt if any of them sell for anything like a fraction of the asking price of the SME effort.

[montesquieu]

So they are just 'tarting up'/refurbishing existing Garrard 301s? What will they do when the supply of used 301s is exhausted - make new ones: and at what price?

There is a well known refurbisher of 301s, who advertises here but auctions his work on eBay. I doubt if any of them sell for anything like a fraction of the asking price of the SME effort.

I'm sure he does a better job too.

[Spectral Morn]

Nope!
I had a very long chat about the SME / Garrad 301 with the chap who's project it was to get it up and running.
It's actually £18,800...

I was trying too ascertain where the dough is in the TT.

Basically, it's a Stock oil bearing 301, No bearing change, No platter change, No power Supply.

So they have taken a stock 301, stripped it, polished it, sourced the correct paint (apparently has lots to do with the sound :rolleyes: stripped the linkage, recoated in less harmful stuff, new face plates held in place by the very very correct rivets which were very very hard to source, eventually they manufactured their own as all others were inferior (!!) :lol:.

They have also recut the platter strobe markings on the platter.
They spent an age recreating the exact Garrad mat with the correct rubber compound which he said is also absolutely sound critical... So thats the 301.

The plinth: a 3 way isolation solid Walnut plinth, made by Spendor. (based on the Loricraft approach)
The 3 isolation ways seem to be the feet, the metal arm pod within the plinth
(no options other than an SME cut, although he did say it was a straight drop in for other 3rd party pods)
and the inner top board which has some kind of isolation material (air-filled decouplers) between the main frame... Is that a posh name for a snazzy tweaked Squash ball...?! :scratch:

The arm, is the stock SME current production SME M2-12R (very nice arm btw)

There are no deviations from this combo, no 2 arm options etc.

Yours for just £18,800 guv! 4 month wait, guv.

https://i.imgur.com/pqfhKGk.jpg

And ladies and gentleman what we have is a rip off. One of Audio Grails decks and a Bob C plinth and a nice arm will cost less and be better at a guess. SME are taking the piss.

[montesquieu]

And ladies and gentleman what we have is a rip off. One of Audio Grails decks and a Bob C plinth and a nice arm will cost less and be better at a guess. SME are taking the piss.

Having said that it's probably a better effort than Thorens's reborn TD124 - I snapped this at Munich, though nothing's been heard of it since.

Essentially they have taken the design of the TD124 and built a relatively lightweight direct drive deck (my guess would be using their new 799 Euro direct drive TT announced earlier this year - their first DD for decades) around the shape. It has nothing in common with the original at all apart from the shape. Even the material is plastic rather than metal - only the two speeds (33 and 45), the on-off is a lightweight switch (not satisfying clunk), I didn't get to hear it but from brief encounter, disappointing. Though I doubt it'll be £18k!

https://i.imgur.com/kljcseP.jpg


EDIT a bit more research and found this, it's 12,000 Swiss Francs - about £9.5k. https://nzzas.nzz.ch/wissen/thorens-td-124-dieser-plattenspieler-laeuft-und-laeuft-und-laeuft-ld.1489187?reduced=true

[WESTLOWER]

Blimey !!
It seems they all want to cash in on the history of these great old girls.
Shame.

Btw something strange happening on the Image I posted of the SME Garrard 301 ...
it’s Basically been deleted (not by me !) from Imgur ! Wtf!?
Did someone’s cage get rattled!

[montesquieu]

Blimey !!
It seems they all want to cash in on the history of these great old girls.
Shame.

Btw something strange happening on the Image I posted of the SME Garrard 301 ...
it’s Basically been deleted (not by me !) from Imgur ! Wtf!?
Did someone’s cage get rattled!

Strange! There is a video of it on youtube from Munich


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aszFbOaIkCg

[Pharos]

I have never really understood the fanatic following for the 301.

These expensive decks have to be related to the vinyl supposed rebirth, nostalgia for those of a certain age, combined with a cynical intention to exploit with what may well be foo.

[Barry]

I have never really understood the fanatic following for the 301.

These expensive decks have to be related to the vinyl supposed rebirth, nostalgia for those of a certain age, combined with a cynical intention to exploit with what may well be foo.

At the time there was nothing made in the UK that was as well made. There were decks made by Connoisseur and by Collaro which were good multi-speed idler drive TTs, but they didn't have any fine speed adjustment and were not a serious competitor to the Garrard.

Apart from the Gates and QRK Russco turntables from America, the TT chosen by the BBC was the Garrard 301; later followed by the 401, the Thorens TD124/II and later still by the EMT 928 and 950 designs.

[Ammonite Audio]

I'm astonished to read that the 'new' Garrard is not 'new' at all! I'd assumed that SME were machining the whole thing from scratch and incorporating sensible improvements where it's good to do so. Maybe that is indeed what they intend to do and this 'restored' show example was rolled out because they needed something to show to the press? I wish them well, but the pricing is maybe a tad hopeful.

Interesting to read Tom's comments about the 'new' TD-124. I don't mind them recreating the look and feel of the old thing, since it's still one of the neatest, smallest and most usable turntables ever made. Nor do I mind it being direct drive. But, the pricing is again 'hopeful'.

[Pharos]

Yes, the 301 was standard at Bush, but the suspension was disabled and they rested on foam pads, this probably to do with the start needs. I also used the 124 when working as a sound recordist, a lovely looking deck, but perhaps with a questionable drive chain.

[Lawrence001]

Anyway I thought the show was great, agree about the catering but I really enjoyed the rooms and also the live entertainment while I had a tea break

Even when I didn't like the sound of a room much, it made me more positive about my system, so in some ways a ticket to the show is excellent value as it saves you buying new kit for a few weeks [emoji23]

The rooms were definitely variable eg. I did think the Monitor Audio guy was more interested in listening to his fave techno tunes than selling speakers.

Really enjoyed Ken Kessler's talk on R2R tapes, pity I didn't know about his other talk until afterwards. A list of talks and times on one page in the guide would have been handy.

Enjoyed the headphone zone too as I'm increasingly getting into that side of things. Picked up a bargain pair of planars too, £100 for some modded Fostex. Another saving there, although I didn't really need them [emoji38]

Wish I'd arranged a demo of the Avantgarde horns, I've wanted to hear a pair for years.

I'll try to find time to give some personal impressions of some rooms at some point.



Sent from my POT-LX1 using Tapatalk

[WESTLOWER]

I'm astonished to read that the 'new' Garrard is not 'new' at all! I'd assumed that SME were machining the whole thing from scratch and incorporating sensible improvements where it's good to do so. Maybe that is indeed what they intend to do and this 'restored' show example was rolled out because they needed something to show to the press?

Nope ! They are intending to do this ‘overhaul’ polish to all the stock 301s they can.
No new machining (rivets exempt!)
So far I think the chap said they have produced 4.
No.1 was on demo with the big Horns in the main room..

[Spectral Morn]

I'm astonished to read that the 'new' Garrard is not 'new' at all! I'd assumed that SME were machining the whole thing from scratch and incorporating sensible improvements where it's good to do so. Maybe that is indeed what they intend to do and this 'restored' show example was rolled out because they needed something to show to the press? I wish them well, but the pricing is maybe a tad hopeful.

Interesting to read Tom's comments about the 'new' TD-124. I don't mind them recreating the look and feel of the old thing, since it's still one of the neatest, smallest and most usable turntables ever made. Nor do I mind it being direct drive. But, the pricing is again 'hopeful'.

Audio Grail 301 maybe about £2000 ish.
Bob C plinth maybe around £2000 ish (think thats about right for his start of point)
Add any arm and cart you like, so say an SME 5 £5200 (crazy price) I would maybe go with a Graham Phantom £4200
and say a £1000 for say a Benz cart. Thats about £8000 less than what SME want for a deck that is likely no better or worse than an Audio Grail one, thats assuming you want a Garrard 301 in the first place. An AG 401 is what about £1600 ish (used to be about £1250ish if I recall right. I regret not buying one of the 401 Sables back then)

So to say SME pricing is hopeful is being way too kind. The plinth SME is using better not be using squash balls, as Loricraft did, because they collapse over time, with the deck going off level. So what if theirs is made from walnut etc, its not £8000 worth.

Got to say, in my view, SMEs new owners are extremly greedy.

[Barry]

Got to say, in my view, SMEs new owners are extremly greedy.

Agree with all your points, but especially with the last paragraph, quoted above. It's clear SME are no longer interested in the European market and are aiming for Veblen status to tempt Far Eastern plutocrats, for whom money is of no object. :rolleyes:

I can just imagine one of them paying £18,000 for a new SME 301, then have it completely altered with Shindo 'upgrades' and a different plinth and arm! :doh:

[Wakefield Turntables]

I feel rather smug. My 301 was a £150 garage find purchase! £18K?????

[Patrick Dixon]

Yes, my grease bearing one was £271 on ebay and I sold the bits it came with for over £100.

[walpurgis]

My white one was £25 complete with SME 3009, V15, Leak Varislope, Leak Stereofetic and Leak Stereo 20. All mint and mounted in a fifties Hi-Fi cabinet.

(Mind you, this was in the late seventies :D)

[southall-1998_mk2]

My white one was £25 complete with SME 3009, V15, Leak Varislope, Leak Stereofetic and Leak Stereo 20. All mint and mounted in a fifties Hi-Fi cabinet.

(Mind you, this was in the late seventies :D)


I wish we had a time travel machine!

S.

[Barry]

My white one was £25 complete with SME 3009, V15, Leak Varislope, Leak Stereofetic and Leak Stereo 20. All mint and mounted in a fifties Hi-Fi cabinet.

(Mind you, this was in the late seventies :D)

And have you sold it all?

[Beobloke]

I feel rather smug. My 301 was a £150 garage find purchase! £18K?????

Then I should feel REALLY smug - both of my 301s were free! :D

[walpurgis]

And have you sold it all?

Yes. All gone, long ago. Although I did use the Stereo 20 for a couple of years.

[graham67]

I went to the Ascot show and enjoyed it, good selection of kit from the affordable to stratospheric. As mentioned the venue was impressive with good selection of room.sizes. By far the best new UK hi-fi show i have attended. As with any new event, there were a few teething troubles, signposting needs to be improved and I am glad I took my own lunch! ��

Highlights included the Falcon Acoustics LS3/5A playing Rammstein, and a good long listen to the reborn JBL L100 Classic, which just confirmed my own prejudicial views on what speakers should sound like..... All that was missing was Tannoy and I would have completed the trifecta! And an honourable mention to Henley Sounds for their excellent free pod coffee. Given the lamentable catering, it is no surprise it ran out in the afternoon....

The biggest disappointment was Absolute Sounds which artfully displayed rows of very expensive kit, but little in the way of working systems, so was very sterile in the manner of a luxury car showroom. The few demos areas were ticketed only and rammed.

I also had a good chat with the SME/Garrard manager and the rebuilt 301 is essentially a very low volume halo product, no doubt to drum up interest in the brand and, judging by this thread, it seems to be succeeding!

My take was the level of work in the 301 was fairly painstaking with new parts being manufactured or old parts refurbished as required. I have no doubt that the rework is above and beyond a typical 301 refurb. And I can confirm the rather attractive plinth doesn't use squash balls! Unfortunately it seems there is no plan to make these redevelopments available to existing owners.

IMO, the job of the 301 is to pave the way for the WHOLLY new Garrard which wont be released for some time yet. In answer to the obvious question, SME would not confirm if it will be an idler, but my bet is that it will be. I understand it will be priced below the SME range.

Personally I wish SME every success with this venture, it would be amazing to see a new UK-made idler deck being released. And who knows, much as we buy quality kit from the 60/70s, our kids may be buying used 2020 Garrards in the future.

[Beobloke]

IMO, the job of the 301 is to pave the way for the WHOLLY new Garrard which wont be released for some time yet. In answer to the obvious question, SME would not confirm if it will be an idler, but my bet is that it will be. I understand it will be priced below the SME range.


They also refused to confirm to me whether there is a £99 SP25 Mk7 in the pipeline or not... ;)

[Lawrence001]

They also refused to confirm to me whether there is a £99 SP25 Mk7 in the pipeline or not... ;)Stick a zero on and you might be right [emoji38]

I mean the number not the deck [emoji23]

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[jahsavage]

The venue was superb, my only complaint was finding my way about since the show was so spread out. I'm sure a more logical grouping of rooms would help?

I did enjoy the Avant-garde/SME/Garrad/Nagra room and could have spent all day listening to it and the wonderful presenter.