bens109 Posted October 22, 2008 Posted October 22, 2008 Hi - just after some advice for my entry into the world of vinyl! After the reading I've done and talking to people who seem to know a few things about turntables I have been looking out for a secondhand Thorens TT, around the $400 - $700 mark, rather than buying something new. I was in a hi-fi shop yesterday and saw a TD160 that (to the best of my knowledge) seemed very well looked after. The price was $600. Is this a fair price? It has the original arm and from what I can find out the TD160 was a mid to high level deck though the arm wasn't amazing. I get the feeling $600 is slightly on the high side for this deck but I would prefer to buy from a shop rather than ebay considering how old it is in case there is anything wrong. My second question is what phono stage should I buy to match the Thorens? It will be playing through a NAD c370 and Dynaudio 52s. I don't have a huge budget (<$300) so I was looking at either the NAD PP3, Thornes MM001, Pro-ject Phono Box 2, Thorens MM005 or Azur 640p. Reading some other threads it seems some people don't like the Azur while most people seem happy with the NAD for it's price.
2sheds Posted October 22, 2008 Posted October 22, 2008 bens109 said: Hi - just after some advice for my entry into the world of vinyl!After the reading I've done and talking to people who seem to know a few things about turntables I have been looking out for a secondhand Thorens TT, around the $400 - $700 mark, rather than buying something new. I was in a hi-fi shop yesterday and saw a TD160 that (to the best of my knowledge) seemed very well looked after. The price was $600. Is this a fair price? It has the original arm and from what I can find out the TD160 was a mid to high level deck though the arm wasn't amazing. I get the feeling $600 is slightly on the high side for this deck but I would prefer to buy from a shop rather than ebay considering how old it is in case there is anything wrong. My second question is what phono stage should I buy to match the Thorens? It will be playing through a NAD c370 and Dynaudio 52s. I don't have a huge budget (<$300) so I was looking at either the NAD PP3, Thornes MM001, Pro-ject Phono Box 2, Thorens MM005 or Azur 640p. Reading some other threads it seems some people don't like the Azur while most people seem happy with the NAD for it's price. Ben, $600 for a Thorens TD160 setup properly (suspension tuned and arm adjusted) and in good working condition is good value. There are a number of versions of the Thorens TD160 - TD160, TD160 Super, TD160 II, TD160 S Mk IV and TD160 S Mk V. The Super came without an arm, and most others used the TP16. Not the greatest arm in the world, but good enough to handle some of the very good moving coil cartridges available. There is some good info on Thorens decks at The Analog Dept. Does it come with a cartridge? Cartridge choice may dictate your choice of phono preamp (or vice versa). cheers 2sheds
Andythiing Posted October 22, 2008 Posted October 22, 2008 bens109 - sheds gave me some great advice on my first serious 2nd hand TT purchase and im loving it!
4heckssake Posted October 22, 2008 Posted October 22, 2008 Hey Andy, that second-hand shop I referred you to on Unley Road had a Thorens TD160 with a couple of arms for about $400 wasn't it? I didn't check it out much but it looked ok on the shelf. Did you suss it or was that post Luxman purchase? Could check it out for you on the weekend if you want bens....not sure I coudl tell much though from just a look.
tigertim Posted October 22, 2008 Posted October 22, 2008 Depends upon which version of TD160, as we don't know exactly what you are looking at . $600 for the early series one or two is a bit steep..I would have thought $400 - $450 was more appropriate , and it is these decks I see for sale most commonly, but if condition was excellent.. then maybe justified. good luck.. great decks either way.
Andythiing Posted October 22, 2008 Posted October 22, 2008 Hey TT long time no read your post! $hks it was post the Luxman but I do remember seeing a thorens - cant remember any detail - all I could focus on was the Krix monitors but the bugger woulod not move on the price!!!! Must go back there and see if the market downturn has softened the hard bastard!
Phil G Posted October 22, 2008 Posted October 22, 2008 andythiing said: Must go back there and see if the market downturn has softened the hard bastard! Hi Andy, that made me laugh .
Andythiing Posted October 22, 2008 Posted October 22, 2008 You would thing a friggen pawn shop would haggle a little - or perhaps i just had sucker written on my forehead but the price he was asking was ridiculous - for a friggen pawn shop! Laugh - I almost choked!
Zaphod Beeblebrox Posted October 22, 2008 Posted October 22, 2008 bens109 said: Hi - just after some advice for my entry into the world of vinyl!After the reading I've done and talking to people who seem to know a few things about turntables I have been looking out for a secondhand Thorens TT, around the $400 - $700 mark, rather than buying something new. I was in a hi-fi shop yesterday and saw a TD160 that (to the best of my knowledge) seemed very well looked after. The price was $600. Is this a fair price? It has the original arm and from what I can find out the TD160 was a mid to high level deck though the arm wasn't amazing. I get the feeling $600 is slightly on the high side for this deck but I would prefer to buy from a shop rather than ebay considering how old it is in case there is anything wrong. My second question is what phono stage should I buy to match the Thorens? It will be playing through a NAD c370 and Dynaudio 52s. I don't have a huge budget (<$300) so I was looking at either the NAD PP3, Thornes MM001, Pro-ject Phono Box 2, Thorens MM005 or Azur 640p. Reading some other threads it seems some people don't like the Azur while most people seem happy with the NAD for it's price. Seems expensive to me, given the original price of the unit. It's still a reasonable TT, if it's in good nic though. Be aware that the arm is completely unsuited for MC carts. As for phono preamps, steer clear of the over-priced Thorens unit and buy the NAD, the Pro-ject or the Azur. Personally, I prefer the TD320 series Thorens TTs. They're a little newer, they look nicer and offer very good performance.
tigertim Posted October 23, 2008 Posted October 23, 2008 andythiing said: Hey TT long time no read your post!$hks it was post the Luxman but I do remember seeing a thorens - cant remember any detail - all I could focus on was the Krix monitors but the bugger woulod not move on the price!!!! Must go back there and see if the market downturn has softened the hard bastard! Hi Andy, Yep, out of circulation whilst returning to NZ.... Good luck on the krix monitors.. never heard of them myself .. and take a meat tenderiser with you .. a good negotiating tool:p cheers TT
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