Oracle Turntable Appreciation Forum
Sep 28, 2017 at 2:00 AM Post #16 of 37
Great stuff, Oracle's are awesome, I hope you enjoy your "new" turntable.
What kind of tonearm and cartridge do you have?

Magnepan Unitrac and Sumiko Talisman S (came on the deck), I'm gonna try my Denon DL110 on the magnepan and if it doesn't work I'll try to scoop a rega arm to match it with. Apparently Denon cartridges defy logic and work well with Unitracs
 
Sep 28, 2017 at 8:24 AM Post #17 of 37
I would think both those changes would be downgrades, if the Talisman S diamond has some life left in it. Many think they are well worth retipping. Do you have a LOMC phono stage?
 
Sep 28, 2017 at 11:47 PM Post #18 of 37
I would think both those changes would be downgrades, if the Talisman S diamond has some life left in it. Many think they are well worth retipping. Do you have a LOMC phono stage?

I don't have a step up transformer, that maybe part of the reason that I don't like the Talisman right now.
Why do you think that the talis man is a better cart than the DL110?
Why do you think the Unitrack is better than a rega arm?
 
Sep 29, 2017 at 7:57 AM Post #19 of 37
I don't have a step up transformer, that maybe part of the reason that I don't like the Talisman right now.
Why do you think that the talis man is a better cart than the DL110?
Why do you think the Unitrack is better than a rega arm?
The talisman is just a higher quality design and since you said it is a Talisman S, it has a sapphire cantilever, which would be lighter and stiffer than the aluminum one on the Dennon.
Schiit makes e pretty good phono stage for $129. It's not a step-up, so you connect it to a line input.
http://www.schiit.com/products/mani
For a little more the Emotiva XPS-1 is a gem! https://www.amazon.com/Emotiva-Audio-XPS-1-Phono-Preamp/dp/B00PMCIYK4
Either one is less than a new DL-110, now that they've raised the price so shamelessly. You may be able to get a DL-103 for less!
Examine the diamond and cantilever for wear and alignment of the talisman as best you can, so you can predict if it's worth the new approach.

The Unitrack? I am mostle basing that on ratings on Vinyl Engine and list price. An unmodified Rega arm is a good, reliable piece; but they have limitations. That's why you see so many mods for them. the Unitrack should perform better right out of the box. Give it a chance. If you find it lacking, I'd look at a Jelco before a Rega. Just my opinions based on what I've read and listened to.

Good luck, good listening, and don't sweat the small stuff. You already have a great tonearm. Sort out the cartridge and listen. If it sounds good, sit down and enjoy.
 
Sep 30, 2017 at 1:49 AM Post #20 of 37
The talisman is just a higher quality design and since you said it is a Talisman S, it has a sapphire cantilever, which would be lighter and stiffer than the aluminum one on the Dennon.
Schiit makes e pretty good phono stage for $129. It's not a step-up, so you connect it to a line input.
http://www.schiit.com/products/mani
For a little more the Emotiva XPS-1 is a gem! https://www.amazon.com/Emotiva-Audio-XPS-1-Phono-Preamp/dp/B00PMCIYK4
Either one is less than a new DL-110, now that they've raised the price so shamelessly. You may be able to get a DL-103 for less!
Examine the diamond and cantilever for wear and alignment of the talisman as best you can, so you can predict if it's worth the new approach.

The Unitrack? I am mostle basing that on ratings on Vinyl Engine and list price. An unmodified Rega arm is a good, reliable piece; but they have limitations. That's why you see so many mods for them. the Unitrack should perform better right out of the box. Give it a chance. If you find it lacking, I'd look at a Jelco before a Rega. Just my opinions based on what I've read and listened to.

Good luck, good listening, and don't sweat the small stuff. You already have a great tonearm. Sort out the cartridge and listen. If it sounds good, sit down and enjoy.

Any links with more information on the Talisman? I'd love to read about it and figure out more.
For the Rega arm I'd be looking to pick up either an RB600 or RB700 and getting it modded. Also, looking on vinylengine the RB700 hundred is rated equally with the same amount of reviews (2); however, the RB300 is rated a halfstar less than both but has 19 reviews.

Anyways, I have been completely and totally foiled in putting the DL110 on the Unitrac. I'm now going to attempt returning the sumiko to its home.
 
Sep 30, 2017 at 11:19 PM Post #22 of 37
I read that thread while I was trying to figure out what it was, but that's not official stats; when I first bought my DL110 it was $150USD or about $175CAD now its up to $350USD or about $436CAD, which would put it at current price as roughly equal to what people "claim" or "recall" paying for the sumiko. They also resale on Canuck and US audiomarts for roughly the same price over the past few years. Basically I want someone to prove or have experience comparing the two to prove that what you say is beyond a shadow of a doubt true.

That's not to say there isn't certain merit to your statement it's just that I want to be sure.
 
Oct 26, 2017 at 1:36 AM Post #23 of 37
Resized_20171025_150124.jpeg


Just brought home, pictured with Design Build Listen- the Wand+ and denon dl110
(i promise olschl I'll put the Sumiko back on after I try my DL301 and DL103)
 
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Jan 24, 2018 at 11:58 PM Post #26 of 37
So which cartridge is that? Looks like a DL-110 that was scared white. Did you ever try the Talisman? Just wondering what your opinion was?

Haha its a DL-301, it was a direct swap so i didnt have to spend to much time redoing VTA or anything. This cartridge is also basically NOS; I'll probably get the Talisman in after this one burns in
 
Jan 25, 2018 at 4:50 PM Post #29 of 37
I do, too. I have a DL-301 mk II that I love. It looks a lot different than the original 301.
So how do you like the Wand+. I'm looking at tonearm upgrades.
Does anyone have any suggestions for an Oracle Alexandria MK III?


The 301mk2 is basically a 301 in a dl304 body, that body is a trickle down of the dl1000a and dl-s1 bodies.

The wand+ is awesome, really gets out of the way of the cart and let's it express what's on the record perfectly. On my Delphi its a pretty transparent and faithfull combo.

I saw a lot of suggestions for sme arms on Oracle tables and I'm pretty sure the new Delphi is shipped with a modded sme arm; also pro-ject arms are stock on the Alexandria
 
Jan 25, 2018 at 5:29 PM Post #30 of 37
I wouldn't think a Pro-Ject would be an upgrade over the MMT. The SME V or 345 are too dear at this time and probably overkill for an Alexandria. The Wand+ may be a great option.
 

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