Yes John, I am very happy with my latest TT being a Denon DP-80 direct drive sunk into a CLD plinth built by Nigel (vinylspinner) and veneered by Colin Topps (Toppsy). A big improvement over my previous Garrard 401 in a Slatedeck imho. Coupled to an Audiomods Series 6, 10.5 inch carbon fibre arm, which has manual drop and lift, what more could I want? Certainly nothing automated.
Here’s a pic albeit with my previous Audiomods (Rega based) Series 5 arm.
https://www.flickr.com/gp/139667940@N02/283u9e