TURNTABLES
EAT FORTE 2009 £12,500
Lavishly finished two box, two motor turntable with
gorgeous Ikeda 407 tonearm bundled. Exceptionally
stable and unfussy performer with a relaxed but
highly enjoyable gait.FUNK FIRM VECTOR II 2009 £860
Innovative engineering gives a nimble, pacey and
musical sound that’s one of the best at the price.REGA P2 2008 £300
Excellent value for money engineering, easy set up
and fine sound.MCINTOSH MT10 2008 £8,995
Big, expensive, controversially styled and glows
more than some might consider necessary, but an
astonishingly good performer.REGA P3-24 2008 £405
Seminal affordable audiophile deck with fine
bundled tonearm. Tweakable, and really sings with
optional £150 outboard power supply.ACOUSTIC SOLID ONE 2007 £4,050
Huge turntable, both in terms of sheer mass and
sonic dynamics. Fit up to three arms and enjoy, just
don’t damage your back moving it...AVID VOLVERE SEQUEL 2007 £4,600
Stylish high end vinyl spinner with industrial
strength build quality and a sound to match. Sound
is edge-of-the-seat stuff.MICHELL GYRODEC SE 2005 £1,115
Design icon with superlative build. Sound is beauti-
fully smooth, effortless and exceptionally expansive.MARANTZ TT-15S1 2005 £1,299
Cracking all in one deck/arm/cartridge combination,
this must surely be the best sound‘plug and play
package at this price point.MICHELL TECNODEC 2003 £579
Superb introduction to Michell turntables - on a
budget. Top quality build and elegant design mean
it’s still the class of the mid-price field.MICHELL ORBE 1995 £2,500
The top Michell disc spinner remains a superbly
capable all rounder with powerful, spacious sound
that’s delicate and beguiling.SME MODEL 10A 1995 £4,700
Exquisitely engineered deck and SME V tonearm
combo that’s an extremely accomplished performer
with classical music.LINN AXIS 1987 £253
Cut-price version of the Sondek with LVX arm.
Elegant and decently performing package. Later
version with Akito tonearm better.ROKSAN XERXES 1984 £550
Super tight and clean sound, with excellent tran-
sients. Less musical than the Sondek, but more
neutral. Sagging plinth top-plates make them a
dubious used buy.DUAL CS505 1982 £75
Simple high quality engineering and a respectable
low mass tonearm made for a brilliant budget buy.
Polished, smooth and slightly bland sound.MICHELL GYRODEC 1981 £599
Thanks to its stunning visuals, this bold design
wasn’t accorded the respect it deserved. Clean,
solid and architectural sound.TOWNSHEND ROCK 1979 £ N/A
Novel machine has extremely clean and fluid
sound. Substantially modified through the years,
and capable of superb results even today.MARANTZ TT1000 1978 £ N/A
Beautiful seventies high end belt drive with sweet
and clean sound. Rare in Europe, but big in Japan.REGA PLANAR 3 1978 £79
Brilliantly simple but clean and musical performer,
complete with Acos-derived S-shaped tonearm. 1983
saw the arrival of the RB300, which added detail at
the expense of warmth. Superb budget buy.SONY PS-B80 1978 £ 800
First outing for Sony's impressive 'Biotracer' elec-
tronic tonearm. Built like a tank with a clean and tidy
sound, albeit lacking involvement. Scarily compli-
cated and with no spares support - buy with caution!TRIO LO-7D 1978 £600
The best ‘all-in-one’ turntable package ever made,
Clean, powerful and three-dimensional sound, ulti-
mately limited by the tonearm.ADC ACCUTRAC 4000 1976 £300
Bonkers 1970s direct drive that uses an infra red
beam to allow track selection and programming.
More of a visual and operational delight than a
sonic stunner.PIONEER PLC-590 1976 £600
Sturdy and competent motor unit that performs
well with a wide range of tonearms. Check very
thoroughly before buying due to electronic com-
plexity and use of some now-obsolete ICs.PIONEER PL12D 1973 £36
When vinyl was the leading source, this bought
new standards of noise performance and stability
to the class, plus a low friction S-shaped tonearm.
Later PL112D was off the pace compared to rivals.TECHNICS SP10 1973 £400
Seminal Japanese engineering. Sonics depend on
plinths, but a well mounted SP10/II will give any
modern a hard time, especially in respect of bass
power and midband accuracy.
LINN SONDEK LP12 1973 £86
For many, the Brit superdeck; constant mods meant
that early ones sound warmer and more lyrical than
modern versions. Recent 'SE' mods have brought it
into the 21st century, albeit at a priceARISTON RD11S 1972 £94
Modern evolution of Thorens’ original belt drive
paradigm, Scotland’s original super-deck was
warm and musical, albeit soft. Still capable of fine
results today.GOLDRING LENCO GL75 1970 £15.6S
Simple, well engineered motor unit with soft, sweet
sound and reasonable tonearm. Good spares and
servicing support even today.GARRARD 301/401 1953 £19
Tremendously strong and articulate with only a
veiled treble to let it down.THORENS TD124 1959 £ N/A
The template for virtually every 1970s ‘superdeck’,
this iconic design was the only real competition for
Garrard’s 301. It was sweeter and more lyrical, yet
lighter and less impactful in the bassHere is our list of the great and good from audio’s glorious past, products that have earned
their place in hi-fi history. You’ll also see some oddities which aren’t classic as such, but are
great used buys. The year of introduction is given, alongside the original UK launch price.WORLD CLASSICS
We do not sell these products. It is for your information only.CLASSICS
56 HI-FI WORLD SEPTEMBER 2019 http://www.hi-fiworld.co.uk