Can one turntable sound better than another?

Member
Joined 2014
Paid Member
Many turntables do not keep the same speed over a whole revolution. Regas don't even spin at the right speed. There are plenty of things that will cause unwanted artifacts that some people will be sensitive to.


In terms of doing it's primary job well, the SL-1200 takes some beating on that front.
 
Member
Joined 2011
Paid Member
Certainly they do sound different! Among the other reasons already discussed, the pre-amp circuitry (if included), general circuitry, power supply, drive type and quality, plinth suspension (or lack thereof), age of internal components...

You get the point.
 
I think the presenter is making some good points, but beware of all the caveats that he is including and somewhat glossing over. Some examples:

1) Constant and accurate speed - I have a vintage Rega Planar 2 and it ran a little fast at one point. Rega's do this. I could definitely hear the difference (mainly in pitch) between it and a different table. Replacing the old belt helped (in a measurable way) but there is no way to really adjust this without resorting to tweaks not listed in the Users Manual (eg. tape on the sub-platter rim, building an SG4 ;) ).

2) The playback effects introduced by different cartridges (these I can definitely hear and they can be measured). Also the interaction between tonearm mass and cartridge compliance.

3) He doesn't bring up electrical noise like what could be encountered when trying to get a Grado cartridge working with the above mentioned Rega (hum from the motor being picked up by an unshielded cartridge).

So he paints with a very broad and overly simplistic brush and ignores a lot of the small details that can cause noticeable/audible differences.

But the devil is in the details in a lot of cases.

To use one of his metaphors: he mentions that shaving in a different bathroom will not give you a better quality result. But what if one of the bathrooms has poor lighting or a broken mirror? Again, these are details and they can have an effect.

He ultimately goes down the road with the standard criticisms of the Audiophile/phool, which I do agree with in general. But there is a middle ground and I think he has actually swung too far in the opposite direction. He make sweeping generalizations and seems to discount what I would consider reasonable critical/skeptical discussion. I think that he started out with good and reasonable intentions, but by his own admission it quickly degraded into a standard rant.

All IMNSHO, of course. :D

-b
 
Last edited:
Ok, so if I have two different turntables equipped with the same cartridge and I use the same Phono Preamp and I rule out wow& flutter and any speed imbalance along with say cartridge lead capacitance one will sound better than another.

Now I take two identical turntables with identical cartridges, Phono Preamps, wiring and such and one will sound better than another?
 

6L6

Moderator
Joined 2010
Paid Member
In that example, they should sound the same because you have no variables except manufacturing tolerances....

Bill Rankin's post above makes a very good point - the devil is in the details, and small changes have outsized effects in LP reproduction.
 
I had a thread where I asked about the quality of AR turntables. What I was able to gather was that once you threw away all the OEM parts and replaced them with better parts and a different tone arm you ended up with something that was listenable. I then convenced myself that I'll buy an older Thorens since they are supposed to be good and then I'll have something worthwhile. However the more I read the more I am convenced that I really need to spend about 20K to have something that's top notch or close.

Its kinda like putting a scope on a rifle. You start out with a $1500.00 rifle and now you need a decent scope. You could spend $200 and something that works and functions or you could spend $2000.00 for a scope that you can see your bullet holes in a target at 200 yards away.

How do you arrive at a happy medium? I started out years ago with a cheap turntable with a Stanton 681EEE calibration standard cartridge. I could hear rumble and noise and was never satistied. So, I assume the decent turntable will cure the wow & flutter noises and the speed problems. I'm older now and cannot hear above say 12K so what am I going to gain?

The opinion here is I will hear a difference and the guy on the youtube channel saying the turntables sound the same is well um full of horse hockey. Well, so much for progress the stereo shops are all but gone and if you can find someone with a audituon room there is usually an 18 year old snot nose kid pushing a product he doesn't know a thing about. Unfortunately I have no stereo shops anywhere near me where I could audition a turntable if I could find one I was interested in. I guess I am longing for the times past where you could drive to one of the shops in town and listen to three or four different turntables and cartridge combinations.
 
Absolutely they will. Aside from speed variations the platter material, suspension, belt or direct drive, even the type of feet make a difference. I recently revived my vinyl collection and purchased a modern TT that was well advertised and highly praised by the HiFi guru's. Hmm I thought is this what vinyl used to sound like? OK back in the box and listen to the CDs. I then acquired a vintage TT made in the 70s and needing some restoration. No contest the old girl plays music like it was meant to be played.

I even swapped the cartridge from the new to the old. Totally different sound, it produced bass and clarity that was lacking when on the new. I guess that is why there are so many TTs out there to choose from.
 
Account Closed
Joined 2018
The bottom line is playing a record at the proper speed, rotating it as silently as possible, and extracting music from the grooves with a stylus as accurately as possible, with a suitable tonearm/cartridge combination.


That doesn't have to be hard to do, IF the mechanicals are finely machined/manufactured and properly designed.
 
Comparing, let's say, my old Rotel RP855 to a VPI Aries 1 was an eye opener. The latter had less flutter, mechanical background noise, and less of a "washy" effect on the music. Just a difference in mechanics, motor, platter weight, tonearm control, etc.

It's like saying that reel-to-reels are all the same since they both just spin the magnetic tape around and play it.
 
Last edited:
music soothes the savage beast
Joined 2004
Paid Member
Ok, so if I have two different turntables equipped with the same cartridge and I use the same Phono Preamp and I rule out wow& flutter and any speed imbalance along with say cartridge lead capacitance one will sound better than another.

Now I take two identical turntables with identical cartridges, Phono Preamps, wiring and such and one will sound better than another?

can you guarantee that you align cartridge exactly the same? really? I'd like to see that