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Technics 50th Anni SL-1200 Mk7

Got this email yesterday:
DJ Kit said:
Technics SL1200M7 Special Edition order update.

Thank you for your valued order and for waiting so patiently.

We apologise for the continued delay in fulfilling your order but unfortunately Technics have experienced some production and shipping delays since their first estimate of July deliveries.

Technics have confirmed that there is a small delivery due before the end of the month and two larger ones in September and that all current back orders will be fulfilled by then.

We will of course be in touch as soon as we get some stock to fulfil your order or have any further information.

All pretty shoddy for something pre-ordered several months ago which costs £900.
 
My yellow one arrived yesterday from Djkit. The box is rightly wrapped in cellophane. No evidence of any damage to the box. Decision to be made, do I just bung it in the loft unopened or inspect it?
 
My yellow one arrived yesterday from Djkit. The box is rightly wrapped in cellophane. No evidence of any damage to the box. Decision to be made, do I just bung it in the loft unopened or inspect it?

I really don’t think the loft is the best idea? Pretty huge temperature variations around the year.
 
My yellow one arrived yesterday from Djkit. The box is rightly wrapped in cellophane. No evidence of any damage to the box. Decision to be made, do I just bung it in the loft unopened or inspect it?
Mine arrives today. I will check it out mainly because I want to see the yellow.
 
You will not be disappointed by how yellow it is. They did not short-change there.

PS please post limited edition numbers. I’ll be close to hopping mad if anyone gets anything above 12k!
 
You will not be disappointed by how yellow it is. They did not short-change there.

PS please post limited edition numbers. I’ll be close to hopping mad if anyone gets anything above 12k!

Is it 12k per colour or across the whole range?
 
Going slightly off topic a bit, I once heard an unverified rumour that Terry O'Sullivan of Loricraft fame retired and bought himself a Technics 1200G as a present to himself so he must rate it as good.

I currently run a Garrard 401 with a Loricraft plinth, Naim Aro, Loricraft PSU 80 and a Naim Prefix. To be fair this set up borders on the excellent and I sort of intend to keep it until I drop dead. However a brand new machine with a reputation of being a slogger does appeal somewhat.

Would anyone here have a view on whether dumping the Garrard and replacing it with a 1200G is a wise idea or should I carry on with the Garrard?
 
I actually bought a 1200G new when they came out, partly through curiosity, partly because I was at the time frustrated by my progress restoring my TD-124. It lasted maybe two hours in the system. To say I preferred the TD-124 is a huge understatement.

The 1200G is very good, arguably “perfect” as it is totally silent, the speed stability is perfect etc, but it just sounded so dead to my ears. It is a thing I hear with most really heavy and damped turntables to be honest. It just isn’t for me. I remember playing Dexter Gordon’s One Flight Up, as I always do, and the Technics just sucked the life and magic from it to my ears. Nothing was ‘wrong’, but something I really care about was missing. The TD-124 stuck him right in the room and made it sound like he was having fun. Sure, the 124 will never be as deathly silent as the 1200, but it taught me I don’t care about that. The 1200G is a great turntable for folk with no mechanical aptitude who just want something that works perfectly out of the box. It does, it is a beautifully made and remarkably heavy thing. No way would I swap a decent condition restored vintage idler (124, Garrard, EMT, Lenco etc) for one though even if they will never be as quiet and take a little warming up to hit their stride. Idlers are fun. They really groove.

PS I hated the bright blue lights too. Ugh. Cost me £150 to hear it (what I lost selling it on), but I learned quite a bit. Certainly that it was worth continuing and getting the 124 as good as it is right now.
 
Alex

I only want one TT, I am more of a listener than a collector.

Tony

I was hoping someone would come in saying what you have just written. I have heard quite a few TTs but not a Technic, so I had no idea of what it is like. I like the old 404 because it just seems to get into the groove of the music, particularly Jazz which is my thing music wise.

It was just the fact that Terry bought one for his own use that triggered the urge to investigate buying one.

Regards

Mick
 
I actually bought a 1200G new when they came out, partly through curiosity, partly because I was at the time frustrated by my progress restoring my TD-124. It lasted maybe two hours in the system. To say I preferred the TD-124 is a huge understatement.

The 1200G is very good, arguably “perfect” as it is totally silent, the speed stability is perfect etc, but it just sounded so dead to my ears. It is a thing I hear with most really heavy and damped turntables to be honest. It just isn’t for me. I remember playing Dexter Gordon’s One Flight Up, as I always do, and the Technics just sucked the life and magic from it to my ears. Nothing was ‘wrong’, but something I really care about was missing. The TD-124 stuck him right in the room and made it sound like he was having fun. Sure, the 124 will never be as deathly silent as the 1200, but it taught me I don’t care about that. The 1200G is a great turntable for folk with no mechanical aptitude who just want something that works perfectly out of the box. It does, it is a beautifully made and remarkably heavy thing. No way would I swap a decent condition restored vintage idler (124, Garrard, EMT, Lenco etc) for one though even if they will never be as quiet and take a little warming up to hit their stride. Idlers are fun. They really groove.

PS I hated the bright blue lights too. Ugh. Cost me £150 to hear it (what I lost selling it on), but I learned quite a bit. Certainly that it was worth continuing and getting the 124 as good as it is right now.
You didn’t consider tweaking it a little? I guess not much you can do with these short of changing the arm, just the mat really, but I’ve found a mat can make the difference between live and dead-sounding.
 
You didn’t consider tweaking it a little? I guess not much you can do with these short of changing the arm, just the mat really, but I’ve found a mat can make the difference between live and dead-sounding.

Tony left this to me :) , it now has a Jelco TK950S fitted . To my ears it sounds superb and is all the turntable I'll ever need . Goes to show though how we all hear/like different things .
 
You didn’t consider tweaking it a little? I guess not much you can do with these short of changing the arm, just the mat really, but I’ve found a mat can make the difference between live and dead-sounding.

I did very briefly try it with an old felt mat, can’t remember if it was from an LP12 or Planar 3, and that did close the gap a little, but not enough.

It was a dumb purchase. I was at a point of being really frustrated with bad third-party belts going noisy real fast on the 124 and I’d not got the motor oil weight right at that point. I also wanted to try a “high-end” benchmark just to see how much progress I’d made. Once you start restoring stuff to the level I did with the 124 it is easy to lose perspective and not understand where it lies in the grand scheme of things. My old Linns, P9, Spacedeck etc are all a very long time ago and audio memory is short. I wanted to try a current reference that was highly regarded fresh out of the box, my figuring being if the 124 was behind I’d sell it and keep the Technics, at least for a while. I wasn’t expecting to massively prefer the 124 at all, that was a real surprise and has meant I’ve pushed on and it is currently far better than it was then (much better belt, the right oil, Retrotone top-patter etc). It is my final deck now. I’m done. The yellow 1200Mk7L is (hopefully!) an investment and emergency spare.

To be honest I think I prefer the classic 1200 Mk2 to the G as it was a totally unpretentious rock-solid performer that was superb at its price point. It is a deserved classic. The G seems to have shot up in price, I think I paid £2.4k, Richer (where I bought it) are advertising it for £3.5k! That puts it up against some serious competition.

PS I’ve still got the now armless (SME mount) SL-120 MkI knocking around if anyone is interested. Would need to collect as I have no box.
 
Tony left this to me :) , it now has a Jelco TK950S fitted . To my ears it sounds superb and is all the turntable I'll ever need . Goes to show though how we all hear/like different things .
Cheers. Is the Jelco a big improvement over the standard arm?
 
I actually bought a 1200G new when they came out, partly through curiosity, partly because I was at the time frustrated by my progress restoring my TD-124. It lasted maybe two hours in the system. To say I preferred the TD-124 is a huge understatement.

The 1200G is very good, arguably “perfect” as it is totally silent, the speed stability is perfect etc, but it just sounded so dead to my ears. It is a thing I hear with most really heavy and damped turntables to be honest. It just isn’t for me. I remember playing Dexter Gordon’s One Flight Up, as I always do, and the Technics just sucked the life and magic from it to my ears. Nothing was ‘wrong’, but something I really care about was missing. The TD-124 stuck him right in the room and made it sound like he was having fun. Sure, the 124 will never be as deathly silent as the 1200, but it taught me I don’t care about that. The 1200G is a great turntable for folk with no mechanical aptitude who just want something that works perfectly out of the box. It does, it is a beautifully made and remarkably heavy thing. No way would I swap a decent condition restored vintage idler (124, Garrard, EMT, Lenco etc) for one though even if they will never be as quiet and take a little warming up to hit their stride. Idlers are fun. They really groove.

PS I hated the bright blue lights too. Ugh. Cost me £150 to hear it (what I lost selling it on), but I learned quite a bit. Certainly that it was worth continuing and getting the 124 as good as it is right now.

I understand where you’re coming from, my GR with SME 309 comes over as you describe your G, however it’s a sound I like and it’s very CD like in its presentation.
 


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