Wanted: 3-Speed Turntable.-Under $100

[travisgreyfox]

My Christmas present this year has to cost under $100. Anyway, I would like a decent turntable that plays 33s, 45s, and (most importantly) 78s. Added bonus if I can play my big 16 inch records on it! I know its a tall order to get anything decent for that price, but figured I would try here anyway.


-Travis

[PeterF]

This was cheap, but works like a champ, sounds good, and has modern outputs and connectivity.

Record Player, Miric Turntable for 7/10/12 Vinyl Records, Support Bluetooth Connect, with 2 Built-in Speaker, Compatible with Stereo System/USB/SD/AUX https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GPS38VN/re ... Mn9kI8xRH2

[drh]

My Christmas present this year has to cost under $100. Anyway, I would like a decent turntable that plays 33s, 45s, and (most importantly) 78s. Added bonus if I can play my big 16 inch records on it! I know its a tall order to get anything decent for that price, but figured I would try here anyway.


-Travis

Not sure where you live, but if you want a rig that includes speakers and amplification I'd try to scare up one of the old KLH compacts in working order, like this one https://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva ... 03925.html The Garrard turntable in these things is not the last word in sophistication, but it's better than what you'll get a modern "nostalgia" player. The KLH speakers had cloth surrounds, so you don't need to worry about foam rot, and as Henry Kloss designs they sound very good (the weak point here are tweeters, which not infrequently are blown--check before you buy); the electronics are also clean and well implemented. The Pickering cartridges that were standard are the same as Stanton 500, for which 78 styli are readily available. Obviously, all the cautions about buying "vintage" electronic gear apply.

Note that if you plan to play acoustic 78s, you need pitch variability, and this turntable has none. Neither will anything else at your price level, however, unless you get really, really lucky at a garage sale or such.

If you want just a component turntable, I'd say one of the Dual 12xx series would be your best bet. They sold well enough that you should be able to find one without spending a fortune, although sub-$100 may be a stretch. Weak points are the headshell (a "sled" design, prone to poor connections at this late date) and the changer mechanism, which gets gummed up with old grease and starts sticking in an endless on-off cycle. You'll get a little pitch control, around +/- 3%, just enough to get you to "Victor speed" going down and 80 RPM going up if everything is in proper adjustment.

[travisgreyfox]

Thanks for the info Peter, I was hopeing for a non "suitcase" type model though like the one drh brought up. My dad actually has a nice set of speakers he said I can have, I just need a good player for them. If I cant find any before Christmas I will buy that suitcase one though.

Thanks guys

-Travis

[PeterF]

Although we all prefer vintage stuff, mid-range (20 - 40 years old) electronics and hardware can present their own sets of problems, like bad filter capacitors, bad idler wheels, and bad phono cartridges.

The new stuff is cheaply made, for sure, but it works. And being able to Bluetooth the output to a good set of headphones or audio system is a plus. Similarly, the USB output enables easy MP3 conversion and/or audio cleanup.

Either way, have fun.

[gramophone-georg]

Thanks for the info Peter, I was hopeing for a non "suitcase" type model though like the one drh brought up. My dad actually has a nice set of speakers he said I can have, I just need a good player for them. If I cant find any before Christmas I will buy that suitcase one though.

Thanks guys

-Travis

Ah- so you don't need just a turntable- you need a complete system.

[drh]

Thanks for the info Peter, I was hopeing for a non "suitcase" type model though like the one drh brought up. My dad actually has a nice set of speakers he said I can have, I just need a good player for them. If I cant find any before Christmas I will buy that suitcase one though.

Thanks guys

-Travis

If all he has is a set of speakers, unless they are self-powered you'll also need an amplifier and preamplifier (or integrated amp or receiver, either of which combines these components). Make sure the electronics incorporate a phono preamp section. You can't hook a turntable directly to passive speakers.

Before you build a system around them, make sure the speakers are fully functional. The most likely source of trouble, if they have age on them, is the woofer surrounds, the flexible material supporting the woofer cones. If it's a foam material, it may have torn or disintegrated, a common failing in older speakers. That's not necessarily fatal, but it does mean service will be obligatory, either a do-it-yourself resurround job (kits are available for the purpose for many speakers) or else a service call. Either way, extra expense, more or less. To check the surrounds, gently flex them with a finger--if they crack or break, they're done.

Assuming you need extra electronics, the preamp should incorporate a mono setting and tone controls. Neither is a given these days. Playing 78s (or mono LPs) in stereo greatly, sometimes unbearably, increases the surface noise.

I don't want to sound like the "audiophile snob" or appear to be dismissing Peter F, who has a good point about the pitfalls of "vintage" electronics, but you say you want to play LPs on this machine, and honestly I wouldn't inflict a cheapie nostalgia type turntable on any LP I cared about. Leaving aside that more than one review of the one under discussion called it out for unstable speed performance, the primitive arms and cartridges on those things are very likely to cause needless record wear, which will become all too evident when you finally do get a "good" turntable. If all you intend to play is shellac 78s, that's a different matter; they are robust enough to survive steel needles fitted to heavy steel reproducers, for crying out loud, and no modern turntable, no matter how modest an example of the breed, will be able to cause them harm. The cheapie arm may not track them well when they are not entirely flat or centered, but it won't hurt them.

If you do intend to go with a nostalgia player, make sure it has a magnetic cartridge, not ceramic. A ceramic cartridge in a bottom-end, un-counterbalanced arm constitutes what a college buddy used to call a "chisler," unsafe for your LP records. (I was about to say "unsafe at any speed," but actually it isn't at 78, as noted above.) Double check, too, to be sure a "78" stylus is available for the cartridge. It won't be included, so don't forget to budget for it as part of your purchase.

[/snob mode]

Good luck! Let us know what you end up getting.

[MTPhono]

My Christmas present this year has to cost under $100. Anyway, I would like a decent turntable that plays 33s, 45s, and (most importantly) 78s. Added bonus if I can play my big 16 inch records on it! I know its a tall order to get anything decent for that price, but figured I would try here anyway.


-Travis

Not sure where you live, but if you want a rig that includes speakers and amplification I'd try to scare up one of the old KLH compacts in working order, like this one https://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva ... 03925.html The Garrard turntable in these things is not the last word in sophistication, but it's better than what you'll get a modern "nostalgia" player. The KLH speakers had cloth surrounds, so you don't need to worry about foam rot, and as Henry Kloss designs they sound very good (the weak point here are tweeters, which not infrequently are blown--check before you buy); the electronics are also clean and well implemented. The Pickering cartridges that were standard are the same as Stanton 500, for which 78 styli are readily available. Obviously, all the cautions about buying "vintage" electronic gear apply.

Note that if you plan to play acoustic 78s, you need pitch variability, and this turntable has none. Neither will anything else at your price level, however, unless you get really, really lucky at a garage sale or such.

If you want just a component turntable, I'd say one of the Dual 12xx series would be your best bet. They sold well enough that you should be able to find one without spending a fortune, although sub-$100 may be a stretch. Weak points are the headshell (a "sled" design, prone to poor connections at this late date) and the changer mechanism, which gets gummed up with old grease and starts sticking in an endless on-off cycle. You'll get a little pitch control, around +/- 3%, just enough to get you to "Victor speed" going down and 80 RPM going up if everything is in proper adjustment.

I will second the recommendation of a Dual 12xx series. I have a Dual 1019 which unfortunately does not include a pitch control like the 12xx series. Still a great TT for a reasonable price. I had it completely restored and re-capped for less than $100. Vintage TTs are awesome (I have 10) - all 30-60 years old and all play perfectly. I'd buy that KLH in a heartbeat.

For shellac 78s I have a vintage Califone that plays 4 speeds. You can find these for around $100. I wouldn't play valuable vinyl records on this but it sounds great with older 78s.

[Henry]

I inherited two KLH model 20 loudspeakers, and I can recommend them highly. Too bad the TT/FM radio didn't come with.

[travisgreyfox]

Wow thanks for all of this knowledge. I will attach a pic of what my dad is giving me. He says they work good (or did?).