[NightWoundsTime]

Wow, I put up a thread looking for a "cheap" older turntable, budgeted around $100. Agile_one had a coworker who'd been thinking of selling his Denon DP-59L for quite a while, and offered to sell it to me for $200 (double my budget but WHAT A DEAL). Just picked it up from Bob (Gene's coworker) today. WOW. That's the word that just keeps going around my head over and over again. Along with the table Bob threw in 2 1/2 crates of vinyl. Some amazing selections in there and I can't wait to really delve in.

For now I'm listening to Genesis' Selling England By the Pound, and despite it being a mediocre condition vinyl it sounds amazing. Pictures and impressions will follow over the next few days.

 

[joelongwood]

Congratulations! After you get a chance to do some serious listening, you might want to investigate the various record cleaning methods available. Many clicks and pops that I thought were due to wear and scratches miraculously vanished with a thorough cleaning.
I recently acquired about 1000 classical albums that are about 40-50 years old, and after cleaning about 100 on a VPI 16.5 vacuum cleaner, the sound is stunning. I'm listening to Vladimir Horowitz on the piano, and the background is pretty much dead silent. I never would have thought a really clean record could sound this good.
Enjoy your new toy, and keep us updated on your experiences.

 

[Jahn]

That is a GORGEOUS old table! Hmmm...

 

[joelongwood]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jahn That is a GORGEOUS old table! Hmmm...

It most certainly is! Nice wood and metal..........no plastic in sight.

 

[NightWoundsTime]

Yeah this thing is MASSIVE, and heavy. So romantic. I think I've finally got everything adjusted about right (going on trial and error for the AT160ML cartridge, since i can't find tracking force online. 2.5g seems to be the sweet spot, and is pretty close to where it was set when I got it. Also the weights are a bit tricky, even the bigger one has to go way back on the arm to get a balance.) Listening to Thick as a Brick right now, lovely sound.

 

[joelongwood]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NightWoundsTime Yeah this thing is MASSIVE, and heavy. So romantic. I think I've finally got everything adjusted about right (going on trial and error for the AT160ML cartridge, since i can't find tracking force online. 2.5g seems to be the sweet spot, and is pretty close to where it was set when I got it. Also the weights are a bit tricky, even the bigger one has to go way back on the arm to get a balance.) Listening to Thick as a Brick right now, lovely sound.

Since the MSRP of the AT160ML was $400, I would hazard a guess that it should be tracking under 2 g, closer to 1 1/2. You should pick up a tracking force gauge such as the Shure gauge to double check.....the springs or whatever that control the weight when you dial it in on the TT may be shot.
Just a thought, but 2 1/2 grams sounds a bit excessive to me...........could be wrong, though. Just ask my wife.

 

[NightWoundsTime]

Yeah i thought so to, but under 2 grams it tracks horribly. Would be nice to find the "official" tracking force on this cart. The tracking force adjustment doesn't feel like anything's broken, a little stiff but very smooth movement to it. Plus like I said the "Q-damping" and "Anti-skate" controls were around 2.5 before.

Also I'd like to know when this table was produced. Calling it vintage may be a bit dumb if it's early 90's or something

Found a Japanese(?) "Denon Museum" page. Says 1984 at the top. I guess I can call that vintage

.

http://denon.jp/museum/products/dp59l.html

 

[Jahn]

1984 was a very good year. My STAX is from that year too! Ah, the golden age of audio!

 

[joelongwood]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jahn 1984 was a very good year. My STAX is from that year too! Ah, the golden age of audio!

Actually, I think 1974 was a better year for audio, just before the wattage wars. But you're way too young to remember.

 

[Jahn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by joelongwood Actually, I think 1974 was a better year for audio, just before the wattage wars. But you're way too young to remember.

Should I date myself and say I was still being fed strained carrots back then?

 

[Mr.Radar]

Congrats on that score! I wish I had one (I have a Technics SL-1600 MKII which is pretty good, but I'd trade it any day for a decent Denon DD).

Quote:

Originally Posted by NightWoundsTime Yeah i thought so to, but under 2 grams it tracks horribly. Would be nice to find the "official" tracking force on this cart.

According to the Cartridge Database (search for 160 under Audio Technica) the VTF is 0.75 - 1.75. If the stylus isn't new then it may be that the suspension is dried up (though I've only heard of this being a problem with some Grado models), or the VTF control could be broken (as joelongwood suggested).

 

[tyrion]

Matt, congrats on the new tt and all that vinyl that came with it. It is definitely a looker. I am looking forward to hearing it at the meet.

 

[MrJoshua]

That is a beautiful turntable!!

It looks absolutely solid!

 

[NightWoundsTime]

Thanks for the info Mr. Radar. I did put the new stylus on and set it to 1.5 and it works great.

 

[NightWoundsTime]

Ok a few listening impressions. I'm using this table running into a Marantz 1060B, tape outs to MPX3, to HD650. It has a new stylus installed (NOS, bought with the table originally and never used).

Sounds very good at this point. Definitely an improvement over my Technics

. The sound is a bit dark but that could have to do with the entire signal chain. At this point the features of the sound are great bass and mids, and an absolutely wonderful soundstage (which is odd considering the lack of brightness. Maybe I'm just too used to digital.)

Due to vigilant adjustment I've got it tracking very well and there's very little distortion. Still just a tiny bit of sibilance. This table definitely makes the jump though into an extremely low noise floor and minimal pops & clicks. This is THE way to listen to all those early 80's recordings that still haven't gotten decent digital remasters. Listening to Tears for Fears' "Songs from the Big Chair" right now, stunning.

Any of you vinyl experts care to comment on the effectiveness of my Marantz especially in relation to the cartridge. How far would I have to go to get a real upgrade in a phono stage?

Edit: OOH just plugged the HD-650's directly into the Marantz. Little bump on the treble and the sound opens up even more. The noise floor is a bit higher though.

Pictures: