There were a couple of Technics decks (I believe they were 1500s) in
the EAR room at CES. Not running while I was there (listened to vinyl
and acetates instead). So I'm sure he has something cooking. If it is
as good as his mag-lev turntable...
Bruce
On Jan 23, 2008, at 5:14 PM, phillip holmes wrote:
> I think Tim de Paravicini has some special electronics coming out for
> the 1500 series. If so, that would be the cat's meow (and the bee's
> knees too). Tim is a first class engineer, not some copier of archaic
> Western Electric circuits (or the Radiotron Designer's Handbook). I
> would bet that the 1500, with Tim's electronics and custom heads,
> would blow the doors off of most stock professional machines.
> Phillip
>
> carlstephen koto wrote:
>> On Jan 22, 2008, at 2:16 PM, phillip holmes wrote:
>>
>>> The Technics (the one Tom mentions) is the way to go. For better
>>> sound, keep the Technics and use nicer/better electronics and maybe
>>> custom heads. That Technics transport is super gentle and it's got
>>> good looks. Also, the Technics turntables are still
>>> state-of-the-art when combined with a good plinth and tonearm.
>>> Matsushita put way more money/time/engineering into those products
>>> than any high-end audio garage outfit will be able to do (or Ampex
>>> for that matter). I'm not saying there aren't other great tape
>>> decks and turntables (or that Ampex engineers sucked). What I am
>>> saying is that if you want a great machine for your home, the
>>> Technics is the way to go.
>>
>> I've had a Technics RS1500US for a number of years. It's one of
>> several decks that I own and while I have very limited experience
>> with ATR 100s, MR70s, Studer A80-812-820s, it still doesn't prevent
>> me from lusting after one. That said, there's very little that I
>> haven't modified on my 1500. The major one has been wiring the heads
>> directly to output and using a custom, tube playback amp..I have Greg
>> Orton from Fux Magnetics, building a pair of custom heads( 1/2 track
>> 15ips and 1/4 track 7.5ips) that he'll be installing in my headblock
>> in a couple of weeks. Personally, I'd love to get an A80 and give it
>> this same sort of treatment. But until I feel satisfied that I've
>> wrung every last bit of performance out of the Technics, I'll wait.
>> The only way that I can "know" that every adjustment or modification
>> is "spot on" is if I do it myself (it certainly helps that I enjoy
>> this kind of self torture). The combination of my deck and the Tape
>> Projects master dubs would be pretty hard to beat. I have a couple of
>> friends that have what would currently be considered among the best
>> sounding digital playback front-ends (EMM Labs transports/Dac) and
>> they are shocked how much better my tapes sound than their SACDs.
>> These comparisons are done with their systems.
>> BTW Bruce, I was glad to see your name here. I still miss your
>> newsletter.
>>
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