I'm looking for a cheap decent TT just to be able to access my large amount of 70's 80's and 90's vinyl (having sold on my prized hi-end TT) I've seen a few of these Pioneer's PL 152's around for about £50 ....worth a punt at least as a short term "fix" for my vinyl obsession until more funds are available?
Pioneer PL-512 Turntable worth a punt?
- Thread starter jet1
- Start date
John
Rack’em Up!
Well it's belt drive so it's got that going for it.
http://www.vinylengine.com/library/pioneer/pl-512.shtml
http://www.vinylengine.com/library/pioneer/pl-512.shtml
Robert
Tapehead
It looks like a decent deck in all areas and actually has a sturdy wooden plinth. Decent weight to it. Put a nice clean cartridge on that and it should sound very nice. Japanese TTs of this period were not as bad as often painted. The ones which came along a few years later using plastic plinths and shitty straight arms are when the real problems began.
Keep it well away from the loudspeakers and ensure the perspex cover is removed when in use.
Dont be tempted to cheap-out on the cartridge just because the deck cost £50.
Firstly it isn't a £50 TT in todays currency and secondly, really cheap cartridges sound crap IME.
Minimum standard fit a Shure M97Xe at about £70 for a warm, smooth sound, AT120E for something with a more zing and bite, or perhaps the Ortofon 2M Red at £80 which I've not heard but has lots of good reviews.
The AT and Ortofon can both be upgraded with a better stylus if/when you upgrade the TT.
If you are feeling flush and fancy something really nice that TT should just about let a Denon DL110 at £140 do most of it's stuff.
Keep it well away from the loudspeakers and ensure the perspex cover is removed when in use.
Dont be tempted to cheap-out on the cartridge just because the deck cost £50.
Firstly it isn't a £50 TT in todays currency and secondly, really cheap cartridges sound crap IME.
Minimum standard fit a Shure M97Xe at about £70 for a warm, smooth sound, AT120E for something with a more zing and bite, or perhaps the Ortofon 2M Red at £80 which I've not heard but has lots of good reviews.
The AT and Ortofon can both be upgraded with a better stylus if/when you upgrade the TT.
If you are feeling flush and fancy something really nice that TT should just about let a Denon DL110 at £140 do most of it's stuff.
The 512 really isn't very good. A PL-12 is a better proposition as is a Sansui SR-222 and the aforementioned Dual 505. The latter is the best of these.
If Pioneer is what you're after I managed to get a PL-600X for £25 the other day. This is direct drive (but well implemented), has a very good suspension, a lovely arm and weighs a ton. It's a bit of a dark horse but well worth looking out for.
If Pioneer is what you're after I managed to get a PL-600X for £25 the other day. This is direct drive (but well implemented), has a very good suspension, a lovely arm and weighs a ton. It's a bit of a dark horse but well worth looking out for.
Robert
Tapehead
Depends what you like.
I've never rated Dual TTs.
Too resonant and too many flimsy parts, especially in the arms.
I'd go for Pioneer 500 series over the budget Duals. There are others in the range including some DDs.
I was listening to a needledrop from a 518 the other day. Sounded more than ok.
Pioneer 12d has a better buiild quality than the Dual and I would think a better arm for fiddling with and will IMO have gone off less than the dual
The contemporary Pioneer DD's seemed to be totally missed at the time but were also well built.
The cartridge mount on the Dual is a slide in tray isnt it? Never got the arm design seemed like plastic
The contemporary Pioneer DD's seemed to be totally missed at the time but were also well built.
The cartridge mount on the Dual is a slide in tray isnt it? Never got the arm design seemed like plastic
The Pioneer PL-600X is a reallly nice deck. David Price wrote a brief piece about one he had - comparing it very favourably with the SL-1200 and suggesting it had build quality approaching that of the SL-10. I purchased it for a friend who now has a Denon 160 on it and he's very pleased with the result.
I've got a Pioneer PL-570 DD deck myself - it's a lovely looking 'retro' deck and I don't think I'd ever sell it. Sounds nice too but they go for a fair bit more than the 600X.
I've got a Pioneer PL-570 DD deck myself - it's a lovely looking 'retro' deck and I don't think I'd ever sell it. Sounds nice too but they go for a fair bit more than the 600X.
Mignun
pfm Member
It's important not to confuse Pioneer's entry level offerings from the late '70s onwards (which were mostly pretty awful) with their earlier decks like the PL-12D, which is lovely. The rot started with the PL-112D but even that is a paragon of build and quality compared to say the PL-200X of '79. It just got worse from thereon.
The higher end offerings are something else entirely and I'd definitely make room for something like a PL-590. However, my favourite Pioneer was the PL-61, whether just as the stand-alone drive unit or complete with plinth and tonearm. Very well engineered piece of kit and, with a better mat, one of the nicest sounding of all the Pioneers.
The higher end offerings are something else entirely and I'd definitely make room for something like a PL-590. However, my favourite Pioneer was the PL-61, whether just as the stand-alone drive unit or complete with plinth and tonearm. Very well engineered piece of kit and, with a better mat, one of the nicest sounding of all the Pioneers.