Hello
I have been into seperate hifi since 1989 and only recently got into setting up my current vinyl system of Goldring GR1.2 TT, Creek 4040 and Celestio Ditton 15XR and I am happy playing around with this system.
I am thinking about buying a Goldring Lenco off ebay.
What I would like to know is that, will the Lenco sound any better than my current GR1.2 TT?
I listen to mainly Bollywood vinyl (1950's, 60's &70's) which are lots of violins, high pitch women vocals, percussion and less bass.
If the sound would be much better then I would consider buying the Lenco or any other classic TT you guys may recommend.
Thanks
I have been into seperate hifi since 1989 and only recently got into setting up my current vinyl system of Goldring GR1.2 TT, Creek 4040 and Celestio Ditton 15XR and I am happy playing around with this system.
I am thinking about buying a Goldring Lenco off ebay.
What I would like to know is that, will the Lenco sound any better than my current GR1.2 TT?
I listen to mainly Bollywood vinyl (1950's, 60's &70's) which are lots of violins, high pitch women vocals, percussion and less bass.
If the sound would be much better then I would consider buying the Lenco or any other classic TT you guys may recommend.
Thanks
completely wrong!
epicyclic is completely wrong. I've been a stalwart "vinyl-phile" for the past 25+ years, sold audio for a living, written reviews and modified turntables in the past (and present too). Even different belt drives have different sounds.
The idlers have a substantially different sound than belt drives in general. There can be pluses and minuses to each type assuming both are well implemented designs. Consider the Goldring GR1.2 as a "cut down" Rega, it is very good considering it a budget table. However the arm is worth what you probably paid for the complete turntable and can be used with the idler drive Goldring/Lenco turntables to good effect. If at all handy, it can be made to outperform arms costing 5-6 times as much.
Even mildly modified Lenco idler drives have the potential to slay most turntables up to about the £1000 (USD$2000) mark pretty easily. There are a couple of things that have to be done with any old Lenco before you start using it. The most significant is to remove the platter and thoroughly clean the bearing well and the platter spindle (the portion that goes into the bearing well). Then use an appropriate oil to refill the bearing well. Many use Mobile 1 SAE-30 weight. The other is to clean the idler shaft (the tapered brass horizontal shaft), the idler wheel, and the area on the plater that is driven by the idler wheel. A new plinth is a must. Most anyone with a jig saw and a drill can make a suitable plinth with just a little care taken. If not comfortable doing carpentary (or you have no tools), a friend, family member, or neighbour can be pressed into service
.
There are sites dedicated to Lenco idler drives, but the most prolific is Lenco Heaven. There are huge amounts of information there. One name to follow is Jean Nantais.
epicyclic is completely wrong. I've been a stalwart "vinyl-phile" for the past 25+ years, sold audio for a living, written reviews and modified turntables in the past (and present too). Even different belt drives have different sounds.
The idlers have a substantially different sound than belt drives in general. There can be pluses and minuses to each type assuming both are well implemented designs. Consider the Goldring GR1.2 as a "cut down" Rega, it is very good considering it a budget table. However the arm is worth what you probably paid for the complete turntable and can be used with the idler drive Goldring/Lenco turntables to good effect. If at all handy, it can be made to outperform arms costing 5-6 times as much.
Even mildly modified Lenco idler drives have the potential to slay most turntables up to about the £1000 (USD$2000) mark pretty easily. There are a couple of things that have to be done with any old Lenco before you start using it. The most significant is to remove the platter and thoroughly clean the bearing well and the platter spindle (the portion that goes into the bearing well). Then use an appropriate oil to refill the bearing well. Many use Mobile 1 SAE-30 weight. The other is to clean the idler shaft (the tapered brass horizontal shaft), the idler wheel, and the area on the plater that is driven by the idler wheel. A new plinth is a must. Most anyone with a jig saw and a drill can make a suitable plinth with just a little care taken. If not comfortable doing carpentary (or you have no tools), a friend, family member, or neighbour can be pressed into service
. There are sites dedicated to Lenco idler drives, but the most prolific is Lenco Heaven. There are huge amounts of information there. One name to follow is Jean Nantais.
The GL75 turntable is potentially as good as anyone could ever wish for....even in standard, cleaned up and re-plinthed form (as per Nanook above) it is far far better than most turntables out there. BUT the GL75 arm is really pretty awful! Almost any other arm is likely to be better. [It is also probable that the rear stub has started to droop below the level of the main arm beam. If so it is not worth repairing.]
I really would use Nanook's link to Lenco Heaven and use the information there BEFORE you start on a new plinth and also reda about arm recommendations on the same site. You may also wish to google 'Hi-endaudio.com-Lenco' and see what Arthur Salvatori has to say about these TTs (in modified form)!!!
If I were looking for a top level TT I would buy one to modify and probably have to spend say £500 to get a new bearing, motor re-build and solid slate plinth...but I already have two of them. They are superb.
Your existing TT is a cheaper consumer item of no great merit. Put that on ebay just as soon as you find a GL75.
I really would use Nanook's link to Lenco Heaven and use the information there BEFORE you start on a new plinth and also reda about arm recommendations on the same site. You may also wish to google 'Hi-endaudio.com-Lenco' and see what Arthur Salvatori has to say about these TTs (in modified form)!!!
If I were looking for a top level TT I would buy one to modify and probably have to spend say £500 to get a new bearing, motor re-build and solid slate plinth...but I already have two of them. They are superb.
Your existing TT is a cheaper consumer item of no great merit. Put that on ebay just as soon as you find a GL75.
Last edited:
tonearm...
epicyclic:
So sorry. I thought I already had, but my comp has a few "unique" features that allows it to do whatever it wants, even when instructed to do otherwise.
Go have a look over at the linked page at Lenco Heaven and do a search for the GL75 tonearm. I know some have got the thing sounding acceptable, but I would strongly suggest a more modern arm (or at least a superior old arm) for any doing a Lenco project. The OEM arm on the Goldring GR1.2 is a Rega. It can be improved to near "super arm" levels of performance.
If I offended you, please accept my apology. The way your comment read (for me at least) was questioning both the arm and the table.
epicyclic:
So sorry. I thought I already had, but my comp has a few "unique" features that allows it to do whatever it wants, even when instructed to do otherwise.
Go have a look over at the linked page at Lenco Heaven and do a search for the GL75 tonearm. I know some have got the thing sounding acceptable, but I would strongly suggest a more modern arm (or at least a superior old arm) for any doing a Lenco project. The OEM arm on the Goldring GR1.2 is a Rega. It can be improved to near "super arm" levels of performance.
If I offended you, please accept my apology. The way your comment read (for me at least) was questioning both the arm and the table.
Its gonna be hard to get anything that makes that genre sound "good" in audiophile terms.
I can second the Lenco. I hav eone is constant use and its up there with the best. However, you need to scrap the arm and fit something better - go make a linear tracker, or maybe a schroder clone. You will need to strip and regrease the motor, relube the main bearing, and fit the thing to a heavy damped plinth. Slate seems to in vogue at the moment, but also look at the "PTP" Peters top plate when over at lencoheaven. I have a second L75 here and it will someday get a PTP.
Fran
Hi,
Simply put, no it won't for your sort of music taste in totally stock form.
In fact I'd say you have pretty much the ideal sort of simple turntable
for the music genre and period you describe, audiophile stuff it isn't.
Your cartridge, the Elektra, is also very well suited to the job at hand.
If you don't have a solid floor, wall mounting the GR1.2 on a wall
shelf to a solid brick wall will make a big difference. Doesn't have
to be complicated, a piece of ply and a couple of brackets.
rgds, sreten.
Nanook
I will in future try and leave less room for misunderstanding......thankyou
Well that will take a lot of the fun out of things!!!!
well suited to the genre...
Hi guys.
sreten: for the money I know it is difficult to beat a Goldring GR1.2. It is very inexpensive in the UK, and has errors of omission rather than addition, so no harm, no foul.
The question posed was whether there would be an improvement going to a Goldring-Lenco (idler I assume). The answer is of course "yes". As the idlers become more difficult to find the price increases at a ridiculous rate. If a good idler is available at a reasonable price then girishkukadia
should get one, as the prices will no doubt continue to rise at an accelerated rate until the reasonable supply has run out. And at least then he could have the basis for a "super table" for a reasonable cost.
This is why I do not own a Lenco. The pricing is getting out of hand in North America. In fact the pricing is increasing so much so that I am looking at making one from scratch. I've developed most of the parts and have sourced an induction motor as per the original (not the original Lenco motor but a modern equivalent). Except the bearing. The bearing may be able to machined, but there are a few aftermarket sources that could prove to be more affordable than custom machining.
So although at this point in time an idler Lenco may be over-kill it is a logical choice and to the point of the original poster. I cannot believe that any type of music would be ill served by an idler Lenco.
Hi guys.
sreten: for the money I know it is difficult to beat a Goldring GR1.2. It is very inexpensive in the UK, and has errors of omission rather than addition, so no harm, no foul.
The question posed was whether there would be an improvement going to a Goldring-Lenco (idler I assume). The answer is of course "yes". As the idlers become more difficult to find the price increases at a ridiculous rate. If a good idler is available at a reasonable price then girishkukadia
should get one, as the prices will no doubt continue to rise at an accelerated rate until the reasonable supply has run out. And at least then he could have the basis for a "super table" for a reasonable cost.
This is why I do not own a Lenco. The pricing is getting out of hand in North America. In fact the pricing is increasing so much so that I am looking at making one from scratch. I've developed most of the parts and have sourced an induction motor as per the original (not the original Lenco motor but a modern equivalent). Except the bearing. The bearing may be able to machined, but there are a few aftermarket sources that could prove to be more affordable than custom machining.
So although at this point in time an idler Lenco may be over-kill it is a logical choice and to the point of the original poster. I cannot believe that any type of music would be ill served by an idler Lenco.
Hi,
I don't think so versus a stock Lenco. The Rega arm is in a different league
and generally there nothing much about a Lenco's top-plate to write home
about - that is until you firmly couple it to a very solid plinth properly.
Wear and tear problems etc ... Unless one is serious about fully
refurbishing a Lenco and building the requisite plinth and chucking
more money at the arm, well .... the writings on the wall.
I had a Lenco, I updated the arm, but it was replaced with a rebuilt
Sonab suspended turntable that walked all over it it every respect.
True I didn't rebuild the Lenco as is now recommended, but in my
experience the one I had was good, other options a lot better.
"Your existing TT is a cheaper consumer item of no great merit."
Is just a snobbish attitude to a high value Rega based approach.
Bass may not be a Rega type turntables forte, (and is allegedly
the best aspect of idler drives), everywhere else Rega's take
most vintage turntables to the cleaners with far more dynamic
and controlled upper bass right through to the treble end.
Doesn't beat a good subchassis design though, with a well
designed subchassis, (most aren't IMO). YMMV but I still
wouldn't recommend "upgrading" the GR1.2 with vintage.
rgds, sreten.
Thanks for your reply.
I will do the upgrades you have mentioned and will have to settle that I will not be able to get much more better sound from the kind of music I listen to.
Could I make a plinth for my GR1.2, i like the idea of having a unique TT which my family and friends will admire?
make a plinth....
If you are willing to make a plinth, just get a Lenco idler. The end result will be something that over time can evolve into a world class turntable. All the points sreten has made are still valid, it's just if you are willing to do a plinth for a GR1.2, you could definitely do one for a Lenco idler.
As sreten points out, the top plate is not great. If filled with epoxy or similar and allows good contact to the top of the plinth, then you will be a long way towards a high end Lenco build. A solid steel or aluminum top plate is available from a fellow in Holland. It is called a "PNP top plate". Do a search on Lenco Heaven for details.
Thanks for your reply.
I will do the upgrades you have mentioned and will have to settle that I will not be able to get much more better sound from the kind of music I listen to.
Could I make a plinth for my GR1.2, i like the idea of having a unique TT which my family and friends will admire?
If you are willing to make a plinth, just get a Lenco idler. The end result will be something that over time can evolve into a world class turntable. All the points sreten has made are still valid, it's just if you are willing to do a plinth for a GR1.2, you could definitely do one for a Lenco idler.
As sreten points out, the top plate is not great. If filled with epoxy or similar and allows good contact to the top of the plinth, then you will be a long way towards a high end Lenco build. A solid steel or aluminum top plate is available from a fellow in Holland. It is called a "PNP top plate". Do a search on Lenco Heaven for details.
Firstly I must apologise for having assumed that your existing TT was one of the lower quality Goldrings. However I have to re-echo Nanook's advice regarding the GL75. The arm you have should work well with that TT too. You can as said improve it stage by stage and gain a lot of knowledge in doing so. Most of all you will have the knowledge that you have turned that cheap elderly TT into something which is a joy to own.
I had given up on idler wheel tables so long ago that when the whole Lenco thing which started 3 - 4 yrs ago just seems like nuts to me, especially when seeing people pass on good tables for an idler ....
I still don't see how they are overcoming the physics of it all... ?
Last edited:
- Status
- This old topic is closed. If you want to reopen this topic, contact a moderator using the "Report Post" button.