Question Suggestions

[Elim Garak]

Hello!

First of all, I'd like to congratulate for this website and forum, I'm getting lots of useful info from them.

Of course, this is the umpteenth request for an advice. What a surprise, uh?

Please let me give you a little background.

I was (actually, still am) the happy owner of a JVC JL-A40. It was my late father-in-law turntable so me and my wife also had some sort of emotional attachment to it.
About two years ago, I've started having problem.

Each time I turned on my Piooner SX-750 (also belonged to my late father-in-law), I heard a huge rumble and all the lights flashed for a few seconds (up to 1 minute). Also, I kept hearing some very low rustle on the left channel.
I called a technician, he took my very heavy amplifier to his lab, brought it back and everything was fine for a week, then it started again.
I have to say that this happened only when I switched to phono.

Since then, the amplifier went back and forth from his lab 5 times. Once he tried to disconnect the internal power and use an external box, but I was told it would change the sound so I asked him to revert to internal power. That wasn't the issue, anyway.

Also, the last 2 times he said that in his lab he noticed no issue (which is something quite common for me with any kind of machine, I have to say).

I've tried to pass the signal from the phono to the amplifier through an external pre-amp, using the AUX input, and it occurred to me that the issue might have been in the turntable, since the rustle was still there (switching to AUX with no input made no noise at all). I forgot to say that the turntable has always been properly grounded.

Anyway, I was there congratulating with myself for the great discovery, when the turntable started accelerating. WAY over 78rpm (which is a speed the turntable didn't have, anyway) and didn't stop accelerating until I switched off the socket. I risked being decapitated by "Saturday Night Fever", what an inglorious end. If I knew it was going to happen, at least I would have put on "Foxtrot" by Genesis.

I don't really think it's worth repairing it, sentimental value aside, so I'd like to know if you can suggest something.

Here's what I'm looking for.

First of all, I live in the East Midlands (near Nottingham) so it should be something that I can buy on physical stores nearby or on Amazon or Ebay.

My budget is about 350 pounds (I know it's not much) and I'm willing to consider either new and used (if in optimal conditions).

I've read nice reviews of Rega Planar 3, but honestly I don't really like the idea of having to lift the platter and manually change the position of the belt each time I want to change speed (and I'm also worried that it's going to stretch after a few times).
Also, I'd like to have at least a semi-automatic record player so I don't risk to force the arm at the end of the record.
I'm open to change arm/pickup/cartridge in the future, but if the player comes with at least a good set it would be better so I could use all my budget for the turntable.

Obviously, because of the aforementioned budget, I don't expect any hi-end. I just need a decent machine to play my collection (mostly classic rock, jazz, some 80s pop and classical).

I'm not interested in USB ports and Bluetooth, I don't need to transfer my records on PC. Also, I don't need an integrated pre-amp.

Thank you so much for your patience reading all of this (I'm sorry if my English isn't good enough, I'm Italian) and for your help.

Best regards,
Fabio

 

[Al ears]

Welcome to the forum.
There aren't a great number of semi automatic turntables available new for you budget.
One of the better ones is the Thorens TD235, also has electronic speed change, but this is almost double your budget at around £589. There is also the Denon DP-400 but I don't know much about this deck. Also the Fluance RT83T might be worth looking at on Amazon.
Failing this the best bet is to keep an eye on eBay.

 

[nopiano]

Worth an appointment at your nearest Richer Sounds store to see what various turntables offer by way of design and operation. In particular some are all manual, others will offer some degree of automation. There is Denon for £279 that is fully automatic that might suit. I’ve not seen one however, so cannot personally recommend other than they’re a long-established and reputable brand.

Denon DP300F (Black)

Shop for Denon DP300 Black Turntable with Richer Sounds for expert advice and lowest prices guaranteed

www.richersounds.com

 

[jjbomber]

Roberts RT200 would be the other one on a very short shortlist.

 

[daytona600]

Relopp turn - semi auto

Turn 3

Reloop is proud to present a hifi turntable that has been especially designed for music enthusiasts and sound purists: TURN 3.

www.reloop-hifi.com

https://www.reloop-hifi.com/media/wysiwyg/reloop_hifi/products/turn3/reloop_hifi_turn3_hi-fi_world_review.pdf

 

[Al ears]

Relopp turn - semi auto

Turn 3

Reloop is proud to present a hifi turntable that has been especially designed for music enthusiasts and sound purists: TURN 3.

www.reloop-hifi.com

https://www.reloop-hifi.com/media/wysiwyg/reloop_hifi/products/turn3/reloop_hifi_turn3_hi-fi_world_review.pdf

He's not interested the USB frippery if you see original post.....

 

[daytona600]

Not many decent semi automatic decks on the market if not required just switch out the phono stage & usb

 

[Elim Garak]

Thank you all for your answers, you gave me some nice suggestion to look into. ^__^

 

[good_enough]

Hello!

First of all, I'd like to congratulate for this website and forum, I'm getting lots of useful info from them.

Of course, this is the umpteenth request for an advice. What a surprise, uh?

Please let me give you a little background.

I was (actually, still am) the happy owner of a JVC JL-A40. It was my late father-in-law turntable so me and my wife also had some sort of emotional attachment to it.
About two years ago, I've started having problem.

Each time I turned on my Piooner SX-750 (also belonged to my late father-in-law), I heard a huge rumble and all the lights flashed for a few seconds (up to 1 minute). Also, I kept hearing some very low rustle on the left channel.
I called a technician, he took my very heavy amplifier to his lab, brought it back and everything was fine for a week, then it started again.
I have to say that this happened only when I switched to phono.

Since then, the amplifier went back and forth from his lab 5 times. Once he tried to disconnect the internal power and use an external box, but I was told it would change the sound so I asked him to revert to internal power. That wasn't the issue, anyway.

Also, the last 2 times he said that in his lab he noticed no issue (which is something quite common for me with any kind of machine, I have to say).

I've tried to pass the signal from the phono to the amplifier through an external pre-amp, using the AUX input, and it occurred to me that the issue might have been in the turntable, since the rustle was still there (switching to AUX with no input made no noise at all). I forgot to say that the turntable has always been properly grounded.

Anyway, I was there congratulating with myself for the great discovery, when the turntable started accelerating. WAY over 78rpm (which is a speed the turntable didn't have, anyway) and didn't stop accelerating until I switched off the socket. I risked being decapitated by "Saturday Night Fever", what an inglorious end. If I knew it was going to happen, at least I would have put on "Foxtrot" by Genesis.

I don't really think it's worth repairing it, sentimental value aside, so I'd like to know if you can suggest something.

Here's what I'm looking for.

First of all, I live in the East Midlands (near Nottingham) so it should be something that I can buy on physical stores nearby or on Amazon or Ebay.

My budget is about 350 pounds (I know it's not much) and I'm willing to consider either new and used (if in optimal conditions).

I've read nice reviews of Rega Planar 3, but honestly I don't really like the idea of having to lift the platter and manually change the position of the belt each time I want to change speed (and I'm also worried that it's going to stretch after a few times).
Also, I'd like to have at least a semi-automatic record player so I don't risk to force the arm at the end of the record.
I'm open to change arm/pickup/cartridge in the future, but if the player comes with at least a good set it would be better so I could use all my budget for the turntable.

Obviously, because of the aforementioned budget, I don't expect any hi-end. I just need a decent machine to play my collection (mostly classic rock, jazz, some 80s pop and classical).

I'm not interested in USB ports and Bluetooth, I don't need to transfer my records on PC. Also, I don't need an integrated pre-amp.

Thank you so much for your patience reading all of this (I'm sorry if my English isn't good enough, I'm Italian) and for your help.

Best regards,
Fabio

You'll find your choices infinitely expanded if you forget about the semi-auto bit. It's really not a hassle to use that little lever to lif the arm at the end of the side!

At 350 you'd be in at a reasonable level in the Pro-ject or Rega range or could get a second hand Linn Axis or the like.

But all of them would require you to get up and lift the needle.

Then again you'd be wanting to change sides anyway, right?

Your suggestion that you might change the cartridge etc is a bit odd. My Hana SH cost 600 of the your earth 'pounds' - that would make your budget a grand if taken to extremes.

Of all the choices I woudl suggest something in the Pro-ject range with an OM red/bronze type cartridge as there is considerable upgrade-ability in that range of cartridges around swapping styli.

But you'd have to resign yourself to the idea that if you want to swap sides on an LP, you're goint to have to get up and walk over there anyway.

Hello!

First of all, I'd like to congratulate for this website and forum, I'm getting lots of useful info from them.

Of course, this is the umpteenth request for an advice. What a surprise, uh?

Please let me give you a little background.

I was (actually, still am) the happy owner of a JVC JL-A40. It was my late father-in-law turntable so me and my wife also had some sort of emotional attachment to it.
About two years ago, I've started having problem.

Each time I turned on my Piooner SX-750 (also belonged to my late father-in-law), I heard a huge rumble and all the lights flashed for a few seconds (up to 1 minute). Also, I kept hearing some very low rustle on the left channel.
I called a technician, he took my very heavy amplifier to his lab, brought it back and everything was fine for a week, then it started again.
I have to say that this happened only when I switched to phono.

Since then, the amplifier went back and forth from his lab 5 times. Once he tried to disconnect the internal power and use an external box, but I was told it would change the sound so I asked him to revert to internal power. That wasn't the issue, anyway.

Also, the last 2 times he said that in his lab he noticed no issue (which is something quite common for me with any kind of machine, I have to say).

I've tried to pass the signal from the phono to the amplifier through an external pre-amp, using the AUX input, and it occurred to me that the issue might have been in the turntable, since the rustle was still there (switching to AUX with no input made no noise at all). I forgot to say that the turntable has always been properly grounded.

Anyway, I was there congratulating with myself for the great discovery, when the turntable started accelerating. WAY over 78rpm (which is a speed the turntable didn't have, anyway) and didn't stop accelerating until I switched off the socket. I risked being decapitated by "Saturday Night Fever", what an inglorious end. If I knew it was going to happen, at least I would have put on "Foxtrot" by Genesis.

I don't really think it's worth repairing it, sentimental value aside, so I'd like to know if you can suggest something.

Here's what I'm looking for.

First of all, I live in the East Midlands (near Nottingham) so it should be something that I can buy on physical stores nearby or on Amazon or Ebay.

My budget is about 350 pounds (I know it's not much) and I'm willing to consider either new and used (if in optimal conditions).

I've read nice reviews of Rega Planar 3, but honestly I don't really like the idea of having to lift the platter and manually change the position of the belt each time I want to change speed (and I'm also worried that it's going to stretch after a few times).
Also, I'd like to have at least a semi-automatic record player so I don't risk to force the arm at the end of the record.
I'm open to change arm/pickup/cartridge in the future, but if the player comes with at least a good set it would be better so I could use all my budget for the turntable.

Obviously, because of the aforementioned budget, I don't expect any hi-end. I just need a decent machine to play my collection (mostly classic rock, jazz, some 80s pop and classical).

I'm not interested in USB ports and Bluetooth, I don't need to transfer my records on PC. Also, I don't need an integrated pre-amp.

Thank you so much for your patience reading all of this (I'm sorry if my English isn't good enough, I'm Italian) and for your help.

Best regards,
Fabio

Hello!

First of all, I'd like to congratulate for this website and forum, I'm getting lots of useful info from them.

Of course, this is the umpteenth request for an advice. What a surprise, uh?

Please let me give you a little background.

I was (actually, still am) the happy owner of a JVC JL-A40. It was my late father-in-law turntable so me and my wife also had some sort of emotional attachment to it.
About two years ago, I've started having problem.

Each time I turned on my Piooner SX-750 (also belonged to my late father-in-law), I heard a huge rumble and all the lights flashed for a few seconds (up to 1 minute). Also, I kept hearing some very low rustle on the left channel.
I called a technician, he took my very heavy amplifier to his lab, brought it back and everything was fine for a week, then it started again.
I have to say that this happened only when I switched to phono.

Since then, the amplifier went back and forth from his lab 5 times. Once he tried to disconnect the internal power and use an external box, but I was told it would change the sound so I asked him to revert to internal power. That wasn't the issue, anyway.

Also, the last 2 times he said that in his lab he noticed no issue (which is something quite common for me with any kind of machine, I have to say).

I've tried to pass the signal from the phono to the amplifier through an external pre-amp, using the AUX input, and it occurred to me that the issue might have been in the turntable, since the rustle was still there (switching to AUX with no input made no noise at all). I forgot to say that the turntable has always been properly grounded.

Anyway, I was there congratulating with myself for the great discovery, when the turntable started accelerating. WAY over 78rpm (which is a speed the turntable didn't have, anyway) and didn't stop accelerating until I switched off the socket. I risked being decapitated by "Saturday Night Fever", what an inglorious end. If I knew it was going to happen, at least I would have put on "Foxtrot" by Genesis.

I don't really think it's worth repairing it, sentimental value aside, so I'd like to know if you can suggest something.

Here's what I'm looking for.

First of all, I live in the East Midlands (near Nottingham) so it should be something that I can buy on physical stores nearby or on Amazon or Ebay.

My budget is about 350 pounds (I know it's not much) and I'm willing to consider either new and used (if in optimal conditions).

I've read nice reviews of Rega Planar 3, but honestly I don't really like the idea of having to lift the platter and manually change the position of the belt each time I want to change speed (and I'm also worried that it's going to stretch after a few times).
Also, I'd like to have at least a semi-automatic record player so I don't risk to force the arm at the end of the record.
I'm open to change arm/pickup/cartridge in the future, but if the player comes with at least a good set it would be better so I could use all my budget for the turntable.

Obviously, because of the aforementioned budget, I don't expect any hi-end. I just need a decent machine to play my collection (mostly classic rock, jazz, some 80s pop and classical).

I'm not interested in USB ports and Bluetooth, I don't need to transfer my records on PC. Also, I don't need an integrated pre-amp.

Thank you so much for your patience reading all of this (I'm sorry if my English isn't good enough, I'm Italian) and for your help.

Best regards,
Fabio

You'll find your choices infinitely expanded if you forget about the semi-auto bit. It's really not a hassle to use that little lever to lift the arm at the end of the side!

At 350 you'd be in at a reasonable level in the Pro-ject or Rega range or could get a second hand Linn Axis or the like.

But all of them would require you to get up and lift the needle.

Then again you'd be wanting to change sides anyway, right?

Your suggestion that you might change the cartridge etc is a bit odd. My Hana SH costs £600 - that would make your budget a grand if taken to extremes. And more - check out the real high-end stuff.

Of all the choices I wouldl suggest something in the Pro-ject range with an OM red/bronze type cartridge fitted as there is considerable upgrade-ability in that range of cartridges around swapping styli.

But you'd have to resign yourself to the idea that if you want to swap sides on an LP, you're going to have to get up and walk over there anyway.

 

[good_enough]

You'll find your choices infinitely expanded if you forget about the semi-auto bit. It's really not a hassle to use that little lever to lif the arm at the end of the side!

At 350 you'd be in at a reasonable level in the Pro-ject or Rega range or could get a second hand Linn Axis or the like.

But all of them would require you to get up and lift the needle.

Then again you'd be wanting to change sides anyway, right?

Your suggestion that you might change the cartridge etc is a bit odd. My Hana SH cost 600 of the your earth 'pounds' - that would make your budget a grand if taken to extremes.

Of all the choices I woudl suggest something in the Pro-ject range with an OM red/bronze type cartridge as there is considerable upgrade-ability in that range of cartridges around swapping styli.

But you'd have to resign yourself to the idea that if you want to swap sides on an LP, you're goint to have to get up and walk over there anyway.


You'll find your choices infinitely expanded if you forget about the semi-auto bit. It's really not a hassle to use that little lever to lift the arm at the end of the side!

At 350 you'd be in at a reasonable level in the Pro-ject or Rega range or could get a second hand Linn Axis or the like.

But all of them would require you to get up and lift the needle.

Then again you'd be wanting to change sides anyway, right?

Your suggestion that you might change the cartridge etc is a bit odd. My Hana SH costs £600 - that would make your budget a grand if taken to extremes. And more - check out the real high-end stuff.

Of all the choices I wouldl suggest something in the Pro-ject range with an OM red/bronze type cartridge fitted as there is considerable upgrade-ability in that range of cartridges around swapping styli.

But you'd have to resign yourself to the idea that if you want to swap sides on an LP, you're going to have to get up and walk over there anyway.

Sorry weird bulletin board behaviour! Put in uncorrected version as well as corrected! No harangue intended...

 

[majex45]

It may seem obvious but have you checked the earth on your existing turntable? A faulty or intermittent earth can lead to a loud hum or rumble.
Also check that the screen of the phono leads makes a good contact at the amp. I had this problem when the screen clip was distorted and made a poor and intermittent connection.