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I am currently looking to upgrade my turntable with a price range of roughly $600-$700 but to be honest would like to spend a little less for the time being if the difference between a $500 table up to $700 won't be too significant. Unfortunately where I live, record shops are incredibly far away, so I can't just go to listen. :(

 

Right now I have the ATLP120 and have been looking into U Turn players, the Rega 1 with performance pack, or Rega 2 basic package. Obviously I am completely open to other suggestions as well.

 

I've been browsing the internet for weeks now, and every website tells me something different, so I'm hoping I can get some more solid advice from people who aren't getting paid to tell me that one table is better than the other so that they get more money.

 

I would really appreciate some solid advice on this! Thanks in advance!

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13 hours ago, youspinmeround said:

This is my recommendation

http://www.needledoctor.com/Pro-Ject-Debut-Carbon-Esprit-DC-Black

 

You can also buy it with a 2m blue for 763...The upgrade to blue from red is worthwhile but right now with your budget might not be neccessary

 

So you think the carbon is comparable to those?

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6 hours ago, allenh said:

If you like the Rega and Project style then my recommendation would be buy a used Rega P3 / Planer 3 and a better cartridge

Where can I find a reliable used turntable online? I'm a little hesitant to do that. I won't be able to find any around where I live; I can guarantee that.

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1 minute ago, fatelarso said:

Where can I find a reliable used turntable online? I'm a little hesitant to do that. I won't be able to find any around where I live; I can guarantee that.

Obviously it does depend where in the world you are but assuming you're in the US my first stop would be http://www.usaudiomart.com/ or for Canada http://www.canuckaudiomart.com/ or even ebay as the buyer is very well protected there or as a last resort if you're a bit braver then Craigslist.

 

Also I suspect if you dig on google about there are other HiFi classified sites.

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I would avoid the Debut Carbon. For the $700 you have in your budget, you can do much better. I'd buy a U-Turn long before I bought a Debut Carbon. U -Turn is made in USA, makes a great product, and has fantastic customer service.

If you are comfortable going used, I'd look for a Rega P3, or a Music Hall MMF-5.1

If you keep your eyes peeled, you can probably find a nice deal on a Clearaudio in that price range also.

Edited by vinyl addict
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18 minutes ago, allenh said:

Obviously it does depend where in the world you are but assuming you're in the US my first stop would be http://www.usaudiomart.com/ or for Canada http://www.canuckaudiomart.com/ or even ebay as the buyer is very well protected there or as a last resort if you're a bit braver then Craigslist.

 

Also I suspect if you dig on google about there are other HiFi classified sites.

I am indeed in the US and am not in a rush so I suppose I will just keep watching and looking around. Thank you much!

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17 minutes ago, vinyl addict said:

I would avoid the Debut Carbon. For the $700 you have in your budget, you can do much better. I'd buy a U-Turn long before I bought a Debut Carbon. U -Turn is made in USA, makes a great product, and has fantastic customer service.

If you are comfortable going used, I'd look for a Rega P3, or a Music Hall MMF-5.1

If you keep your eyes peeled, you can probably find a nice deal on a Clearaudio in that price range also.

Awesome thank you for the advice! I'll definitely keep my eyes peeled and look around. 

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21 minutes ago, allenh said:

 

Found this on eBay

http://www.ebay.com/itm/152449934048

The cart alone sells for over $500 currently. I have the same turntable and it's a tank. Everything just works as it's supposed to.  No humming or vibrating motor, no skipping records, speed issues.

Sorry, it wouldn't let me reply outside this stupid friggin quote box. Can't believe they still haven't fixed this.

 

Edited by vinyl addict
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As a bit of background the Project and Music hall tables tables are basically facsimiles of or inspired by the Rega tables and the Rega tables have not really changed in any real sense since the 80's when the RB300 and 250 arms were introduced, basically if you take an original Planer 3 from the late 70's and fit an RB300 on it you pretty much have the current table.

There's nothing wrong in that, they pretty much got it right for what they were trying to achieve 40 years ago so why change it, it's why so many have copied it and why it's arm and mechanics are used on so many higher end tables.

 

Also the basic Rega has to be the most upgradeable table on earth and the RP1 is just a very dumbed down Rega to compete with the lower range Projects and Music halls on price so you need a good few upgrades to make it sound like a Rega should.

 

Don't get me wrong the basic Rega is by no means a high end table but it is a very simple design that works very very well so if you are in the market for a mid range table a used Rega RP3 or Planer 3 takes some beating both sonically and in value for money. Obviously you can do better for your money but you will need to be lucky to do so.

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17 minutes ago, allenh said:

As a bit of background the Project and Music hall tables tables are basically facsimiles of or inspired by the Rega tables and the Rega tables have not really changed in any real sense since the 80's when the RB300 and 250 arms were introduced, basically if you take an original Planer 3 from the late 70's and fit an RB300 on it you pretty much have the current table.

There's nothing wrong in that, they pretty much got it right for what they were trying to achieve 40 years ago so why change it, it's why so many have copied it and why it's arm and mechanics are used on so many higher end tables.

 

Also the basic Rega has to be the most upgradeable table on earth and the RP1 is just a very dumbed down Rega to compete with the lower range Projects and Music halls on price so you need a good few upgrades to make it sound like a Rega should.

 

Don't get me wrong the basic Rega is by no means a high end table but it is a very simple design that works very very well so if you are in the market for a mid range table a used Rega RP3 or Planer 3 takes some beating both sonically and in value for money. Obviously you can do better for your money but you will need to be lucky to do so.

So let's say I'm going for a new table rather than used with a $500-$700 budget. Would a Rega be the best option or is there something else you would recommend? I suppose what I mean is: is a basic Rega satisfactory, or would, say, an upgraded U-turn table be better than a basic RP2 or performance pack RP1? And when I ask if it's "better" I mean is the difference going to be significant? Will a slight $100-$200 price tag make a significant difference on this basic level?

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Just now, fatelarso said:

So let's say I'm going for a new table rather than used with a $500-$700 budget. Would a Rega be the best option or is there something else you would recommend? I suppose what I mean is: is a basic Rega satisfactory, or would, say, an upgraded U-turn table be better than a basic RP2 or performance pack RP1? And when I ask if it's "better" I mean is the difference going to be significant? Will a slight $100-$200 price tag make a significant difference on this basic level?

Can't say on that one as I haven't heard the Uturn as they are not sold here in the UK, you'll need to ask that as a separate post or possibly someone else will be able to answer here.

For what it's worth my instincts are that the Uturn with an acrylic platter will be good value for money and probably where my money would go but that's probably because I haven't tried one and want to, I'm not a fan of Projects in that price range and I've had more Rega's than I can shake a stick at.

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The design of a Music Hall MMF-5,7,9,11 is a different animal from the Pro-ject and Rega with the multiple plinths. Not saying one is better than the other, but I wouldn't call it a facsimile of a Regards.

The Rega is definitely the most customizable without a doubt.

If the OP honestly wants to spend $700 on a turntable, I would not even consider the U-Turn, it's half his budget. He can get so much more for his $700. With that cash, he can stay away from the base models of Rega, MH, Pro-ject, all U-Turns etc.

Edited by vinyl addict
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9 minutes ago, vinyl addict said:

The design of a Music Hall MMF-5,7,9,11 is a different animal from the Pro-ject and Rega with the multiple plinths. Not saying one is better than the other, but I wouldn't call it a facsimile of a Regards.

The Rega is definitely the most customizable without a doubt.

If the OP honestly wants to spend $700 on a turntable, I would not even consider the U-Turn, it's half his budget. He can get so much more for his $700. With that cash, he can stay away from the base models of Rega, MH, Pro-ject, all U-Turns etc.

Well this is just saying $700 is my max. If I'm being honest, less would be preferred which is why I say $500-700. So let's say given that information and say I'm looking for a new table rather than used (I'm hesitant for eBay especially when they say returns are not accepted). I suppose when I say that I'm mostly wondering if the difference between a $500 table and a $700 table is significant enough for it to be worth the extra money in this case, ya feel me?

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2 hours ago, vinyl addict said:

Yeah, I get where you are coming from. What about CL, did you check? You could always return it (as long as you talked with the seller about it first).

Where in USA?

A really small town in the middle of nowhere in South Carolina lol. The closest anything is is over an hour and with my job it's tough to go out so far cause I work almost every single day all day.

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31 minutes ago, Thomas³ said:

https://www.musicdirect.com/turntables/music-hall-mmf-51-turntable-amhttmmf51wht

 

MMF 5.1 for $699. They used to have the RP3 on sale for the same amount, but it went back up to $900 for some reason (odd with the Planar 3 being out).

Oh wow that is a gorgeous table. I'm going to look into that one for sure.

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  • 2 weeks later...

As a Pro-Ject owner, I'd say Rega over Pro-Ject any day. Seems there were a lot of corners cut on the Debut Carbons, like they thought giving you that carbon fiber tonearm would be more than enough to compensate for the sub-par power supply and platter. Once you upgrade the platter, get the SpeedBox, add a clamp, etc, you've blown the budget.

 

I'm with VA and Thomas. That MMF-5.1 would be a solid choice

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