Upgrade Path Decided. Turntable Is First. Suggestions Welcome

[Johnny Vinyl]

The Thorens tables seem to making somewhat of a comeback, and they certainly have been around for a long time with a decent rep as well. They have a whole line of TT's from entry-level to serious high-end, so maybe a look at one of their offerings could be an interesting excursion. I believe AcousticSounds have most of their models available. Just a thought.

I always thought the MusicHall 9.1 was a nice table, and one I looked at as well, but I didn't research that model in great depth. It may be another option for you.

I've heard of Zu speakers and seem to remember reading an article or two on them as well. From memory it appeared they had some good things to say about their lineup.

Regarding Power Amps, and specifically tubes, you may want to give Rogue Audio a look. If everything goes well in 2010, I am seriously considering their Perseus tube preamp. Their stuff gets consistent good reviews.

[FreddieFerric]

Originally Posted by John72953

...I always thought the MusicHall 9.1 was a nice table, and one I looked at as well, but I didn't research that model in great depth. It may be another option for you...

John,

I've been researching the Music Hall MMF 9.1 half the evening. It looks like a real contender here. I'm particularly curious with its Project 9cc tonearm. Stereophile has this table rated as Class B. For just a tick under $2,000 it seems like something I need to give serious consideration to. If any members here own this table please let me know your impressions.

Anyway, many thanks for bringing this table to the fore.

[FreddieFerric]

Hey John,

I found this article on the MMF 9.1 from StereoMojo. You should read it, there's something in it that you would clearly find interesting.

http://www.stereomojo.com/MusicHallM...ableReview.htm

[Johnny Vinyl]

Originally Posted by BluRayFred

Hey John,

I found this article on the MMF 9.1 from StereoMojo. You should read it, there's something in it that you would clearly find interesting.

http://www.stereomojo.com/MusicHallM...ableReview.htm

Great article Fred! Roy Hall certainly is quite the colourful character isn't he?

I was aware of his association with Revolver, and if you look at some of his earlier designs, you can quite easily see the design similarities between the Revolver and his MusicHall tables.

And as I said in my thread, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for ya buddy!

John

[FreddieFerric]

O.K., so the list is thinning now. It's either of the following 3 I think:

The Marantz TT 15S1
The Music Hall MMF 9.1
The JA Michell TecnoDec with upgraded TecnoArm

I've been in discussions with the JA Michell North American Distributor since last Friday. He is willing to offer a 15% discount and sell direct to me with free shipping and no sales tax. I've read many positive reviews about the quality of the Michell TT's and am giving a very heavy lean to this table. It would come without a cartridge, so I would still be looking at around another thousand for a really good MC cart.

The Michell TT is clearly the more expensive table of the lot with the upgraded arm. It contains 99.999% pure silver Litz wiring from the arm pins through the RCA connectors and has been reviewed as one of the better arms on the market regardless of price.

Anybody have any experience with Michell TT's? I'd like your input on this as I'm only going to get the chance to get it right one time.

[CasualKiller]

Make sure you PM me when you're ready to sell that Technics

[Hammie]

Originally Posted by BluRayFred

O.K., so the list is thinning now. It's either of the following 3 I think:

The Marantz TT 15S1
The Music Hall MMF 9.1
The JA Michell TecnoDec with upgraded TecnoArm

I've been in discussions with the JA Michell North American Distributor since last Friday. He is willing to offer a 15% discount and sell direct to me with free shipping and no sales tax. I've read many positive reviews about the quality of the Michell TT's and am giving a very heavy lean to this table. It would come without a cartridge, so I would still be looking at around another thousand for a really good MC cart.

The Michell TT is clearly the more expensive table of the lot with the upgraded arm. It contains 99.999% pure silver Litz wiring from the arm pins through the RCA connectors and has been reviewed as one of the better arms on the market regardless of price.

Anybody have any experience with Michell TT's? I'd like your input on this as I'm only going to get the chance to get it right one time.

Damn! That is one sexy TT.

[FreddieFerric]

Originally Posted by CasualKiller

Make sure you PM me when you're ready to sell that Technics

You guys have busted my chops all year about my lowly Technics! It'll be moving into the main living room where it will play host to the less discerning party crowd on those odd weekends when I actually agree to have people over.

Originally Posted by louhamilton

Damn! That is one sexy TT.

thanks Lou! I don't own it yet, but will probably send the money up to the distributor in Vermont by weeks end. I'm intrigued about the upgraded arm that the Dec will come with. By all accounts its top flight.