Yeah, I am thinking about the concorde mkii club (DJ cart) or the 2m blue (hi-fi cart). Want it to sound as good as possible (within reason, I am not going to buy a 1k cartridge) but also don’t want to have my workflow compromised by having a too fragile cartridge. Can’t decide yet lol…
…look out for old technics dj players…for sampling u wanna enjoy more than just the two standard speeds like 45 and 33 rpm…u want free pitch speed adjustment…in best case, some offer these even in extra extended ranges…
a 33rpm/lp slowed down to half it’s tempo will show u warm low ends u never heard before…
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I got the 1210gr and it has pitch adjustment so I should be good to go! I was debating whether or not it would be useful and decided to go for it.
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I have the sl1500 that was mentioned a few times. It looks amazing and is built to last 100 years but sound wise it sounds roughly the same as any 200+ euro turntable. I replaced a 200 euro Sony Bluetooth record player with the sl1500, and they sound very much alike. The Sony was a bit more resonant, probably because it has 1/5 of the mass of the technics.
Both of those have a built in pre amp by the way, which is convenient if you have active speakers or want to plug it straight into your octatrack or ipad, like me.
Looking for a second hand player is also a good option. As long as you get a model for which you can still get styluses and needles you’re good to go. Advantage of getting something classic (like a Linn or technics) you can sell it down the line for what you paid for it. You won’t have that with a Sony or project or Rega.
What cart did you go for in the end @HBIII?
Is there such a thing as a turntable with variable speed that can actually go very slow? The other day I was slowing down a sample on the OT and I thought it might be fun to do the same thing from an LP before it actually got into the sampler, soundwise. Might not be very convenient for the arm though…
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I was recently shopping for a new table and there are quite a few that have the option to select how large the scale on the pitch fader goes. Some go as far as 50%.
The one I got , a stanton ST150MKII, has this and it is very interesting to recontexualize possible samples this way. Very cool.
I got a technics 1210gr. Seems great so far, I will have to post a photo of my sampling setup when my new phono preamp and cartridges come in and I get back into the studio and set everything up. Hopefully this week, but spring is here and I’m busy farming again :-).
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Sorry about necro-posting… but I feel I must add another vote to the obvious: my SL1200MK2 is (literally) as old as me and it will probably outlive me. It’s perfect.
Can anyone recommend a reputable US seller of used/serviced 1200s? I am getting a little frustrated with my belt drive Rega and its barely perceptible ground hum.
Or should I just pony up for a new mk7?
I bought a MK7 and I’m really happy with it. The fixed power, rca and ground cables on my old MK2s always bugged me so having the detachable ones is nice…especially if you’re going to move it around a lot. It is a bit lighter so I’d be a little nervous using it for djing where there’s a lot of vibration and dancing. For sampling and listening I think it’s pretty awesome. Of course there are many options for 1/2 the price…people seem to like the Reloop decks.
Also the black version looks pretty amazing with the blue lights😎
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Cool, thanks! Yeah detachable RCA is ideal, I don’t DJ, it’s just for sampling and listening. I’m looking j to cheaper turntables too…will check out the reloops
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Lordy I didn’t realize what total clones those reloops are
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I’ve got the Audio Technia 1240, which is largely the same as the top end Reloops and Pioneers without the Serato buttons. Get the one with the features you care about and a price that won’t break the bank.
If you are listening at home and sampling for production/mangling purposes, being able to speed up and slow down +/-50% is a nice advantage over a real 1200. If you are making archival recordings or building a sound system for a club then it may make sense to spend the extra money on an actual Technics. (or if you are attempting to impress a romantic partner who is a traditionalist when it comes to DJing)
If you happen to be traveling to Japan, new Mk7s go for a little under $800. Shipping may eat up the savings, so don’t fly to Tokyo just to buy a table.
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I have that same AT turntable and use it for listening and sampling. It is great. I don’t use the USB functionality, just old school RCAs to 1/4 into my interface.
I used to have 1200s when I was DJing more, but I can’t justify that cost for what I am doing now.
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Same, I’m using the internal preamp, but I have an ART preamp that might be slightly better. It is convenient to have the built in USB interface and preamp for when you don’t want to drag out the good gear, but also nice to know that you can get directly at the raw phono signal and add on better quality amplification if that matters to you.
Edit: if you MUST have the OG, these were about ¥550 each, or just under USD/EUR 4 at current exchange rates.
Oh. yeah I forgot to mention I use an external preamp too. Probably what you have - the ART DJPreII. I get really clean samples with it and the pre allows me to bump the volume up a bit louder, which is great.
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That’s the one. Good to know you are happy with the results, I should pull it out and hook it up.
And actually listen to my vinyl. 
(life has been busy lately, but in a good way.)
FWIW, back in the late '90s / early '00s, every single bedroom producer had a worse turntable than the AT/Reloop/Pioneer, except for those who dug a Mk1/Mk2 1200 out of a garbage bin and fixed it up.
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Now looking at the ATs, yeah, there are way more options now than when I bought my Rega 20 years ago. I think I’ll move it into the living room for more casual family listening and use this for the studio…
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Check your local craiglist/marketplace. Many times you can find an AT from someone for half price or so. A lot of people bought them.
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