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Thorens TD150

M

mozza

pfm Member
Following on from an earlier post, one of my friends went ahead and got hold of a TD150 mk1. She's loving the sound but I'm pretty sure there are some sensible tweaks which could be done to take it into a different league. Any ideas would be most appreciated...

Her only bugbear is that the lid has no hinges-has anyone retro-fitted hinges, or would this be complete sacriledge?

No idea what the cart is, but is there one with a proven track record with what looks like the original arm?

Thanks chaps.
 
It's for using, not a museum piece. Get some small hinges freom a DIY shop and screw them on.

IME the stock arm is a bit spindly and best suited for MM. No DL103s or other heavy old school MCs please. Standard issue inexpensive Ortofon/AT/Goldring MMs work well.

I have heard great things from stiffening up the plinth, adding bracing and damping (car panel bitumen damping pads from Halfords), even fitting LP12 plinths. Hercules/Geddons/DIY Lingos all work. SH Linn bearings have been fitted, I've even heard tell of an Aro that wasn't out of place on the thing. I truly believe you can take them as far as you like.

I love these decks, they are easy to live with, domestically acceptable and for what they cost they are amazing. I would stack one up against any modern deck up to £500 with confidence.
 
I doubt they'd be cheap second-hand, but the LP12 plinth is a perfect fit..

If the arm has reasonable bearings, then things like the Pickering 625, AT95e or 120e and although I haven't tried it, the ubiquitous DL110 should be fine. The deck used to be sold with the Shure M75-EJ, but I've no idea how this would compare these days. If you can find a cheap one, the baby new Ortofon or Goldring 1006/1012GX (which new costs more than the 150 is worth these days...) should also work.

If you realise the 150 would retail at around £500 these days, the above choices should be appropriate.
 
I had a TD150 with a Basik LVX for quite some time. I upgraded the plinth, fitted Linn springs and grommets, put damping pads onto the top plate and subchassis and fitted a (cut down) Linn LP12 armboard.

A very nice sounding deck. It sounded a bit 'thin' next to an LP12 but maybe thats more that the LP12 is more coloyred than it should be.

My Dad threw his TD150 on the tip a few months back.................! I shouted at him.
 
flatpopely said:
My Dad threw his TD150 on the tip a few months back.................! I shouted at him.
Click to expand...

:( I remember that! I was all set to give you a few quid for it and have it as a project.:( Ah well, it's not as if I don't have other projects. Maybe a Lenco, soonish.
 
Put my mark II 150 into a walnut Henk plinth, expensive but a lovely hand-made solid plinth that looks and sounds good. Don't use a lid.

Like others I found dynamat, new oil, new spings and grommets all improved the sound. Importanht to set it up properly too so that the platter is properly level and has a nice even vertical bounce.

I then decided to change arm to a Nima (which needs a Rega cut armboard - Henk made one that matches the plinth) and though I'm not sure how well the unipivot Nima is suited to the bouncy 150 it does sound good, in fact I prefer it to the Rega 25 I had before.

Despite this, thoughts are crossing my mind about what the Nima may be able to do on other decks.
 
Garrard 401 is in another league. It's another league of expense though, gone are the days when they were £100. :-(
 
stevec67 said:
Garrard 401 is in another league. It's another league of expense though, gone are the days when they were £100. :-(
Click to expand...

Yes they are very tempting but prices have massively inflated and unless expert it strikes me there's a lot to get wrong when selecting a SH one, especially if you can't inspect it first. I'd feel dissapointed if having paid £500or more the most notable feature on playback was idler wheel rumble!
 
When my father bought his TD150 he was tempted by a Garrard 401 but we were put off by the rumble! We did various tweaks over the years, the effective ones - remove lid when playing - it really spoils the sound. Various mats were tried, the best was made from plasticene, rolled out then cut around and covered in cling film, press in the label area, and you have a mat that damps the platter. Plinth is a bit flimsy, we corner braced but a heavier plinth would have been better. The standard arm is pretty poor, just about anything is better, we used an Acos Lustre on a perspex board.
 
In the last few minutes I have just been handed a Thorens TD150 ( looks like a MkI ) fitted with a Rega RB250, the plinth is a home made affair, pretty naff, butt jointed, stained plywood affair, it was a freebie gift from one of my work colleagues. He mentioned last week that he was having a garage clear out under the strict supervision of her that must be obeyed, and asked me if it was of any use to me, " yes please " came the immediate response, an now it has landed.
OK now I have a dilemma, I want to restore this TT to its former glory, that said I woud like to put it in an new plinth, I also have in the loft the old parts from my LP12 Cirkus up-grade, springs, rubber grommets, armboard, inner platter, bearing, sub chassis and belt, so is it worth trying to incorporate these parts into the TD150 rebuild, and if so how do I approach this please, and does anyone have nice plinth they woud like to sell me for this project ?

Paul
 
I'm in the middle of a TD150 project. First was too make a new plinth from solid oak. Looks great so far. Then I replaced the top plate with carbon fibre and relocated the motor (after the funk firm LP12 top plate) and Pink Linnk). Next was a carbon/balsa armboard. A modified Hercules Volterra is in the wings. Am now just awating the Pro-ject 9cc carbon tonearm to turn up. and i'll be away! I have high hopes. I have also made a carbon/Balsa subchassis but don't want to cut the main bearing out of the old pressed steel sub-chassis yet. I decided to damp the sub chassis with cork first while I source a second Thorens bearing to cut and shut.

It will be interesting to see if this gets anywhere near my PT Anni or Lenco 88.
 
Don't go cutting your sub-chassis to remove the bearing - it will press out nicely. You could ahieve this if you have a 4" bench mounted vice and two suitably sized socket spanners. Gently does it and out it will pop cleanly.

John R
 
Wow !! I for one wait with baited breath for some pics of the finished project :D in the meantime please can I oooooooggle over a pic of your PT Anni, and the Oak Plinth ?

I have just tried the Thorens outer platter fitting onto the LP12 sub platter, damn the hole is like 0.5mm too small, has anyone sucessfully ever fitted these 2 components together by removing the small amount of Aluminium needed to make a perfect fit, still wondering what sub-chassis/bearing would be the better choice, Thorens or Linn ??
 
of course but then I'd need to fabricate a flange for it to bolt to the new sub chassis. I don't think I'd get a satisfactory interference fit into the carbon with the bearing true. I could glue it in I suppose. "How tight a fit does it need to be?" I suppose is the right question to ask first.
 
Hi mozza,

I recently bought a Thorens TD150 Mk1 myself, it came with a lovely walnut plinth made by Henk and armboard also. Super quality and really worth the money; check out photo below,

TD_150.jpg


I think this is a good improvement.


macvisual


Visit my new Retro website below;
http://macvisual.webs.com/index.htm
 
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