New!!! GL99 on e-bay

[Allen]

Originally Posted by Scottmoose

At that price, I'm tempted. Oh yes indeed, I'm tempted. Since my Pink went thanks to the attentions of the light-fingered brigade (I while away my idle hours dreaming of new and interesting torture) I've been without any vinyl playback. Beats a Rega!

If you go for a 99 in a substantial plinth there's no way some scumbag is going to shin over your garden fence with it at least.

[Greg.]

£181.70. That's a good price for an unused GL99 TT. Knowing what others have payed for a used unit, I'm surprised this has gone to the States and has not been bought up here. The seller now has all the hassle of postage to the USA. Shame, this is a very worthwhile opportunity lost.

Best wishes,

Greg

[Allen]

Originally Posted by Greg.

The seller now has all the hassle of postage to the USA. Shame, this is a very worthwhile opportunity lost.

Best wishes,

Greg

Not to mention the hassle of a US spec motor shaft, I wonder if he knows?

[Richard]

Beats a Rega!

I had 2 and 3, was it just me or was that the most over-rated deck ever

[James D]

The LP12 is the most over-rated deck ever...

As ever the Rega's are running at the back of the field

OK - that's just me

JAmes

[The Shadow]

I wasted 15 years and pots of money fighting with an LP12.
I don't own one now.

Nuff said

Steve

[Paul Barker]

Its' relative I auditioned the Linn Sondek record deck against the £12,000 (at that time) Linn Sondek CD spinner. They sounded about as good as each other, but the cd player didn't have the bloom or the scratches (I suspect Hamish's records are deliberately scrathced to make the cd range more appealing) A newly cleaned record is quiet enough... the conserted commercial effort to trash records was still ongoing at that time. But we kept on stating how analogue is best and at last we have a following.

[colin.hepburn]

Hi All
I have never owned the LP 12 or the rega Whats so wrong with these turntables I have My AR EB101 which I'm rebuilding too a solid plinth and arm rewire

[petercom]

They suffer from 'overexcitedness' from the hi-fi buying public and media, that's all. The LP12 is a fine example of belt drive where the compromises in engineering vs sound are understood and are managed in the design to achieve a certain style of musical performance. It may not be to everyone's taste but we would all do well to remember that the LP12 stood head and shoulders above most turntables at the time it was introduced.

The Rega was touted as a 'poor man's LP12' but was nothing of the sort. As a cheap and cheerful turntable it worked pretty well - a different set of compromises but the result was similar in that it made vinyl enjoyable to listen to. Unfortunately the compromises included poor feedback resistance and a certain level of speed instability which varied from one production unit to another.

That we now know that the Goldrings and Garrards can perform better is down to our understanding of how to mount them - a knowledge that seemed to have been 'lost' by the hi-fi stores in the '60s and '70s. The horrendous rumble that resulted from mounting them on flimsy motor boards in resonant cabinets meant that idler drive was considered inferior to belt drive during the '70s. With the benefit of hindsight we can now poke fun at the belt drives.

As with all things hi-fi the 'promise' of better sound led to a tranche of 'upgrades' for the LP12, some of which, for example electronic motor drive systems, worked reasonably well and others that didn't. For me the best LP12 was the original fitted with Grace G707 arm and Supex SD900E cartridge - it was a superb balance of the compromises involved in turntable design. Everything else I did to my LP12 just upset that balance.

[Richard]

Yes, looking back over the same period and decks, I agree with Peter. I had one of the first LP12s with ac motor and SME fixed with V15 cart. OK it was a sound of the time but it was about the best available at the point moving coils were making a comeback. It was a high quality copy of the Thorens which had started to go down a cheapening route after the first TD160. I later had a late 80's dc Linn/Ittok but it was no more enjoyable.

Better than the Linns for me was Thorens 160 Formula IV and MC20FLS. Regas just sounded heavy and lacked detail, pleasant enough but a simple and ultimately boring sound. With hindsight much of this was hifi business politics; establishing an upgrade route with "approved" products for each price point along the way. I would still be careful though as many old decks are just antiques.

Rich