Picked up a Direct Drive very cheaply..

[goatbreath]

It's called a Kenwood KD 7010,,The lid is smashed,,hey ho...No stylus on the cartridge,,It's a Technics U25...This feels like a substantial bit of kit..But has what seems like a black plastic headshell..Was the turntable good in it's time..Sorry for being clueless..I've never owned a Direct drive before...Any info beyond the manual etc..would be appreciated..

[Dismord]

It's called a Kenwood KD 7010,,The lid is smashed,,hey ho...No stylus on the cartridge,,It's a Technics U25...This feels like a substantial bit of kit..But has what seems like a black plastic headshell..Was the turntable good in it's time..Sorry for being clueless..I've never owned a Direct drive before...Any info beyond the manual etc..would be appreciated..

http://www.vinylengine.com/library/kenw ... 7010.shtml
Theres no reason you should use the original stylus but if you insist on being 'authentic' :-
http://www.stylusplus.co.uk/technics-u2 ... 8182-p.asp
It sold in large numbers in Europe but if memory serves me correctly in the US and Australia it sold under a different model number. Solidly built but you'd need to have the arm and platter bearing checked for damage. I can't remember how they sounded though - sorry.

[goatbreath]

OK some pics coming up..I didn't know if the cartridge was a cheapie or not..I may just whack an AT95e on there for now then..I'm thinking it may not he the original headshell so have photo'd that too..I have cosmetically taken the dirt of the beastie....







THE HEADSHELL,,I DON'T RECKON TO BE ORIGINAL..

[goatbreath]

I now have a Shure M97xe on there..It needs fine tuned /tweaked,,but it aint half bad so far...Not bad for £10.00 plus a £6.00 taxi fare...16 quid all in all..

[Dismord]

Different versions of the KD 7010 came with different headshells and were often sold without any arm at all.
http://www.google.com.au/search?q=Kenwo ... iQeTyJ2dDg
Are those speakers Whatmough P33's? They look familiar.

[Dismord]

I now have a Shure M97xe on there..It needs fine tuned /tweaked,,but it aint half bad so far...Not bad for £10.00 plus a £6.00 taxi fare...16 quid all in all..

If you really want to put smile on your face replace the Shure stylus with a SAS one from JICO.
http://stylus.export-japan.com/sas.php

[goatbreath]

I have a v15 mk 3 with a Jico SAS on it,,yes it's very good...

The speakers are Mission 752 freedoms..

[Dismord]

I have a v15 mk 3 with a Jico SAS on it,,yes it's very good...

The speakers are Mission 752 freedoms..

If they're the model I remember with the mid/woofer above the tweeter that can be top heavy and wobble on carpet or wooden floors. My sister had a pair and we found by placing them on concrete paving slabs the bass really tightened up. Her next house had a concrete floor so the pavers didn't make any difference .

[goatbreath]

I tame mine with a sock partly in each of the back ports..Works really nicely..Sounds a bit of strange way to do it,,but if it works,it works..

[Dismord]

I tame mine with a sock partly in each of the back ports..Works really nicely..Sounds a bit of strange way to do it,,but if it works,it works..

That close to the wall & I imagine you'd need to. Besides, the socks keep mice from crawling inside and making a nest. Don't laugh, it's happened to me.
Still think you should try the concrete slab if your floor is wooden & carpeted. Paint them black if there's any threat of divorce.

[goatbreath]

Never owned a Direct Drive before,,I am liking the sound of this one.The M97xe doesn't sound as dark as it does on other set ups..It seems a good match,,with brush down as I'm sure that's a medium/high mass tonearm..I have a feeling with the wrong cartridge this deck could be very bright,,but I have read that most suspended decks are a touch on the dark side..I am used to Thorens ,,Linn etc...

The turntable is built like a tank,,I read that it has silver tonearm wires on one thread on the net..

[Dismord]

Never owned a Direct Drive before,,I am liking the sound of this one.The M97xe doesn't sound as dark as it does on other set ups..It seems a good match,,with brush down as I'm sure that's a medium/high mass tonearm..I have a feeling with the wrong cartridge this deck could be very bright,,but I have read that most suspended decks are a touch on the dark side..I am used to Thorens ,,Linn etc...

The turntable is built like a tank,,I read that it has silver tonearm wires on one thread on the net..

I've always had my doubts about suspended decks so now that I have a massive stone floor I've defeated the suspension on my VPI 'HRX' to great effect. Tonally I didn't notice anything I'd describe as an increase in brightness but a significant increase in bottom end tunefulness and transient response along with much less ambiguous ambience information. I once ran a Denon direct drive with a Mission 774 arm mounted onto a bracket attached to a solid brick wall. This was another combination the worked like a dream. Your new deck is certainly a very sexy looking beast. Congratulations.

[goatbreath]

ARGHHH !!!! I thought I would try the AT95e,,Some type of over tightening thing must have happened with the Shure..One of the lugs at the side you attach the cartridge with has broke off.. ..Never had that one before...Swings and roundabouts it seems..gain a turntable,lose a cartridge..It's just after 2 in the morning here,so I won't know what it will sound like with the AT95e in my system for a good few hours..ah well..If it's too bright seems I'm going to have a cartridge search on my hands..

It is a nice turntable though..

[Dismord]

ARGHHH !!!! I thought I would try the AT95e,,Some type of over tightening thing must have happened with the Shure..One of the lugs at the side you attach the cartridge with has broke off.. ..Never had that one before...Swings and roundabouts it seems..gain a turntable,lose a cartridge..It's just after 2 in the morning here,so I won't know what it will sound like with the AT95e in my system for a good few hours..ah well..If it's too bright seems I'm going to have a cartridge search on my hands..
posting.php?mode=quote&f=18&p=363550#
It is a nice turntable though..

Bad luck. I wouldn't look past a 2nd hand Shure M97E off eBay and installing a new N97xE SAS stylus from JICO.
To my ears you have to spend silly money to get anything better.