How much did your TT(s) cost?

[Scribemole]

Evening all! 1988 I think it was, 5pm on a Saturday, just finished the shopping, popped into the local junk shop on the way to the car. Sandwiched between a couple of SP25s or similar, on a shelf in the corner, some nice looking wood. Could it be, no of course not... but as I looked closer, yes it was, a Linn LP12! OK, swallow hard, look relaxed: now this was a REAL junk shop, so, nonchalantly, "How much for this one then?" Hold breath, don't tremble... "Oh" he said, "I think that's supposed to be a good one, how about fifty quid". I emptied my pockets and showed him £38, "That's all I've got I'm afraid" "OK then" he said. So I took home the (Valhalla'd) deck, and three hours later after a quick set-up, including taking my Shure V15 out of the pre-existing GL75 arm (on a Connoisseur BD1) and fitting it into the Basik arm that was already in the Linn, fired it up through my old Quad 11/22 and B&W speakers, and me and the Mrs's jaws hit the floor as Neil Diamond and Barbra Streisand apparently walked into the room and started giving us a private show! We spent the rest of the month surviving on cheap mince and tins from the back of the cupboard but it was worth it!

[superb60ce]

May 2009, I was at a friends house, and he was spinning some vinyl, and my wife gave me "THAT" look. Whatever..I started shopping...now i grew up listening to old Beatles and Stones records on my Dad's DUAL...so natuarally I started my search there....but I stumbled across a pristine Sanyo TP 1030 fitted with an old Pickering cart....picked it up for $38.00. Now it is no Marantz or Technics 1200 but it runs true has a wonderfully counter balanced arm, and was dirt cheap. To date here are the costs.

TT- Sanyo TP-1030 Direct Drive $38.00 US
Cart- Ortofone 2M Red @99.00 US
1 Can of 1-1-1 Trichlorethane $Free (dont ask)

I cleaned the pitch controls (and everthing else electronic) with the Trich and replaced the original output cables with some Monster Cable Audio Connects I had laying around, and hooked it up to my Yamaha Amp...sounds beautiful...let the collecting begin

PS. still looking to get a Marantz 6360Q...just cause I want one...

[Gaviatrix]

Wasn't it Henry Royce who said "The quality remains long after the price is forgotten"?

I can't remember now what I paid for my Manticore Mantra TT when I bought it new in 1987, but I do remember that I couldn't really afford it (I'd been looking at a Dual or Rega originally) and so compromised on the speakers. I bought the TT fitted with an Alphason Opal arm and an Ortofon MM cartridge, along with an NVA AP20 amp and Castle Durham speakers on Heybrook HBS1 stands. After a couple of years I upgraded the speakers to the ones I'd wanted originally, which were Ruark Acoustics Sabre, and a bit later again upgraded the cartridge to an Audio Technica AT-F5OCC MC - and that was it.

The Manticore went into a box in 1992 when I emigrated to Australia and didn't see the light of day again until - wait for it - last week, when I bought a second hand Graham Slee Bridge and hooked it up to my current (mostly Cyrus) system. Plugged it in, pressed the green button and off it went, and it sounds great even after long storage. I need to have a fiddle with the tracking on the arm; but I think I'm about to carry on with a long-delayed vinyl journey that was always supposed to lead to an LP12 ....

This is my first post here, by the way - I found the site when looking for instructions for the Alphason arm so I could make the adjustments needed. So "Hello" to all of you vinyl afficionados out there!

[paul_rogers77]

My turntable has cost so far about £182

Ebay; local pick up AKAI AP100 turntable



This was stripped down to remove auto return mechanism, speed change arm mechanish, arm removed, new wiring, new on-off switch. New gromets for motor.

£5 = cost of turntable
all new wires and bits came from my spres box.



Veneer coverings were added, bearing cleaned and lubricated and the whole base and feet were removed to it to be mounted on vibrapods inside a custom made Rega plinth bought from ebay for £30.

Then a sound box was created from MDF and black covering. tunning holes were made and the box was lined with thin foam. Three old large rubber feet were fixed using bolts isolated with rubber gromets and tap washers. Finally some new but unused gold equipment spike were slide inside the feet.

Cost of these parts £40


Ebay supplied Rega RB-250 £87

New Shure MX97xe cartridge and stylus from the USA was £50



The plinth was filled and then a new armboard area cut-out, lined and isolated using acoustic foam.


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I wish that my ears were made by Linn!