Acquired a Technics SP10 - need suggestions

[Naturelover]

Friends, I have recently obtained a bare Technics SP10 MkII turntable in excellent shape . The plinth has a fixed tonearm mounting hole suitable for 9 inch tonearms. It does not have an armboard.

Taking inspiration from Shafic's recent thread and also some earlier threads by various FMs, I am thinking of getting a new plinth done in birch plywood. The plinth design for this table is, fortunately, pretty straightforward.

Secondly, I need help in deciding on the tonearm and cartridge to get the best out of the table. My records are mostly old Bollywood, Indian classical and Jazz and of varied quality ranging from good to near mint.
Due to the varied record quality, I would like to have a cartridge which tracks well.

Which, if either, needs to be decided first, the arm or the cart?

I have been suggested Jelco 750, Audio Note and Thomas Schick arms and Denon 103, 103R, Audio Technica and even EMT TSD 15 carts by the couple of people that I have consulted.
I do hope to get a wider range of suggestions through this thread. I would like to keep the budget sensible and low but should do justice to the SP10. It would be nice to have arm and cart pairing suggestions since matching is very important.

Many of our vinyl stalwarts including kuruvillajacob and reubensm have stated a preference for MM carts. Any opinions here would be welcome.

I would also like to have advice on a phone pre. I presently have a Lyrita at hand which I could use but possibly it may not be up to the mark for the SP10.
Lehmann Audio Black Cube SE and Graham Slee Era Gold are on the list of possibilities among one or two others. The recently mentioned EAR clone looks interesting as well.

I like a neutral lively sound with just a hint of warmth.

So, friends, please :sos:.

 

[arj]

Fr

Many of our vinyl stalwarts including kuruvillajacob and reubensm have stated a preference for MM carts. Any opinions here would be welcome.

i would agree totally on the cart being MM as the lyrita phono is very good as long as you do not have a Hum. if you go MC you will need a good transformer that exactly matches your Cart OR go for a different phono which at this point is not worth it

 

[tuff]

Cool.Nice looking. Always wanted to get in to vinyl, but seems too messy for someone like me. maybe someday. Good luck with the plinth.

 

[shafic]

Nice acquisition :clapping:

You can consider slate plinth too.

Regards,
shafic

 

[Hiten]

I like Technic EPA Tonearms.
EPA-500
EPA 100
No personal experiemce but I have seen Technics regular tonearms. They are quite good with high quality bearing. EPA Series are even higher quality tonearms. Some Technics are unipivot too I think. Some EPA series are affordable.
Regards.

 

[Naturelover]

i would agree totally on the cart being MM as the lyrita phono is very good as long as you do not have a Hum. if you go MC you will need a good transformer that exactly matches your Cart OR go for a different phono which at this point is not worth it

Thanks, arj. Will need to check the Lyrita for hum. Could you suggest a couple of MM carts and suitable arms?

 

[arj]

Thanks, arj. Will need to check the Lyrita for hum. Could you suggest a couple of MM carts and suitable arms?

What budget are you looking at ? Easiest would be one of the Ortofon 2M series ( maybe Bronze/Blue or black depending on Budget). I have used a Nagaoka MP 50 (older version of MP500) and rather liked that too

My favorite MM is the Decca ones. they are rather moody with LPs and need a really lossy tonearm and hence not sure if they will go with what you have planned.

The Jelco 750D is a Great choice for the future .The rega arms are classics as well. Did you not have a Trigon Advance Phono, or am I mistaken ?

 

[anilva]

I have a SP10 mark 2 with Jelco 750 and denon 103R. My suggestion is that SP10 is a very high quality DD turntable and must be paired with high quality tonearms and definitely high end MC. The cartridge suggestions that you got originally are apt. I wouldn't recommend MM for this high quality TT. SP10 is always rated in the top 10 TTs across.


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[Deleted member 38504]

I use a nagaoka mp 110 with my technics 1200mk5. I like the sound of the nagaoka better than the shure m44/jico stylus I was using earlier.

 

[Naturelover]

What budget are you looking at ?

Did you not have a Trigon Advance Phono, or am I mistaken ?

Not sure about the budget. Right now looking for advice on what would best suit the table.

I do have the Trigon which I am currently using with the Scheu Cello.

 

[reubensm]

The SP10 Mk2 is definitely one of the greatest turntables of all time, if arguably, not the greatest. My view on the MC/MM debate has been more in line with my record collection. As most of my record collection is pre-used and old, MM works very well for me. I have used MC once or twice in the past and noticed a lot of extra noise picked up from the records. Again if you are looking at a studio quality setup and have brand new or Ex+ graded records to play, then MC with a professional phonostage is definitely the way to go.

 

[jls001]

Plinth idea: http://www.lencoheaven.net/forum/index.php?topic=19818.0

Cartridge idea: difficult to go wrong with Denon DL 103/103R, with high mass arm.

 

[arj]

Not sure about the budget. Right now looking for advice on what would best suit the table.

I do have the Trigon which I am currently using with the Scheu Cello.

use the DL103 ( not the R) with the Trigon..it is a fantastic combo. you can put the Mm on the Scheu with the Lyrita

 

[Naturelover]

use the DL103 ( not the R) with the Trigon..it is a fantastic combo. you can put the Mm on the Scheu with the Lyrita

Thanks once again. What arm would you suggest for the DL103?
And what MM for the Cello? Would a Shure M-97 XE be good enough? I ask as have one with me.
Presently I have the Scheu Classic Mk2 10" tonearm and Scheu MC S cartridge on the Cello.

 

[arj]

Thanks once again. What arm would you suggest for the DL103?

And what MM for the Cello? Would a Shure M-97 XE be good enough? I ask as have one with me.

Presently I have the Scheu Classic Mk2 10" tonearm and Scheu MC S cartridge on the Cello.

Any heavy arm is good with the denon
This sk a very nice online calculator or for that

http://www.resfreq.com/resonancecalculator.html

As long g as it is 9 or above you are good . Try this for the 750d . This is scientific but not 100% true as the cart can still work despite what this says but is a good logical check

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[arj]

Actually the scheu classic being. Unipivot might be very good on the SP10 . Would you be able to try it ?


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[kuruvilajacob]

While I have advocated that MM carts especially the vintage Shure carts are excellent, I fully agree with FMs regarding Denon DL 103. In fact I am using 3 of them on heavier arms like Thomas Shick and SME 3012. If you can have new arm board which can take any 12" arms, Denon 103 will be ideal provided the condition of Indian records you listen are good. If not, any good 9" arm with Shure 44-7 should be good to listen to Hindi records because I believe that the quality of the Indian pressed records are not as good as the those pressed abroad. But since you have such a good TT, some of the Audio Technica carts like AT 150 E are supposed to be neutral sounding and may suit your listening taste.

 

[reubensm]

Though not the "guru's choice", I am using the SME 3009, 2nd edition improved with my SP10 mk2. The "guru's choice" for the SP10 mk2 has always been the Technics EPA100. The plinth which you have has hard-mount holes drilled for the Sedco S220 9 inch tonearm.

 

[Rajiv]

Hi,

The Sedco/Syntec S220 arm with the Denon 103 is an excellent combination. The Sedco is a real sleeper has not been discovered by the "gurus".

The SME 3009 improved was designed to work with the low compliance cartridges that were popular back in the day.
Use it with a Shure V15/III or ADC XLM and you will see what it is capable of.

Regards
Rajiv

 

[Naturelover]

Actually the scheu classic being. Unipivot might be very good on the SP10 . Would you be able to try it ?

I have seen unipivots being frequently recommended for the SP 10. Do plan to try it out whenever I can. But may not be possible until I get a new plinth.