Mark Levinson № 515 Turntable Preview

[gene]

Looking for a high end turntable to spin your vinyl? Look no further than the new № 515 Turntable from Mark Levinson. With help from VPI Industries this ultra precise turntable incorporates a 3D printed tonearm, precision-machined pulley and triple belt drive, and a a highly damped vinyl-wrapped composite and aluminum sandwich main chassis. If money is no object and you have the $10,000 to spend on a really fancy record player then this might be the unit for you.

Read: Mark Levinson № 515 Turntable Preview

 

[mtrycrafts]

Nice. Need to save my loose change.


Oh, wait, I got rid of all my vinyls, even the nice direct to disc cuts.

 

[matteos]

If they wanted to make the best of the best they'd have started with an idler system.

I wouldn't buy this if I could afford it.

 

[everettT]

Nice. Need to save my loose change.


Oh, wait, I got rid of all my vinyls, even the nice direct to disc cuts.

We are assuming you made digital copies of those Direct to Disc pressings. I have all my Sheffield Labs preserved. Still love the Thelma Houston and Pressure Cooker I've got the Music in Me

 

[Pyrrho]

Nice. Need to save my loose change.


Oh, wait, I got rid of all my vinyls, even the nice direct to disc cuts.

Obviously, you should buy two of them, so that you leave one on 33&1/3 rpm, and the other on 45 rpm. Poor people only buy one of them and switch back and forth.

 

[mtrycrafts]

We are assuming you made digital copies of those Direct to Disc pressings. I have all my Sheffield Labs preserved. Still love the Thelma Houston and Pressure Cooker I've got the Music in Me

I gave up on vinyl not long after cd came out.
Yep had a few Sheffields; all gone. Don't regret the change.

 

[mtrycrafts]

Obviously, you should buy two of them, so that you leave one on 33&1/3 rpm, and the other on 45 rpm. Poor people only buy one of them and switch back and forth.

My long time friend, you have been absent for so long. Good to have you return.

 

[KEW]

At this price point, stellar performance is a given. If I was in the market, I'd be looking for a mechanical work of art to display (and spin records on occasionally).
Sorry, Mr. Levinson, I'm not feeling it!
While this TT elicits an "Ooooh!" from me, but there are other designs that summon a profound "Wow, OMG, that's gorgeous!"

 

[mtrycrafts]

...
While this TT elicits an "Ooooh!" from me, but there are other designs that summon a profound "Wow, OMG, that's gorgeous!"

Yes, but they may have a higher price tag on them.

 

[KEW]

Yes, but they may have a higher price tag on them.

In for a penny, in for a pound...

 

[Ponzio]

won't those pulley belts between the motor and platter wear out in time? affecting the platter speed? wouldn't a direct drive make more sense? keep in mind I know nothing of TT engineering.

 

[Pyrrho]

My long time friend, you have been absent for so long. Good to have you return.

I might not post very often, as I recently purchased a house, and am spending a lot of time fixing it up.

My brother, who has owned several houses over the years, told me I should make my best estimate of how much projects will cost, and how long they will take to do, and then double both.

Surprisingly, I tend to come in about on budget for the cost of my projects, but am taking about three times as long to do them as I had guessed. I keep running into new problems when working on one (like inspecting a plumbing vent pipe in the attic got me to notice a problem with a bathroom exhaust fan installation, which got me to inspect another one that also turned out to be horribly improperly installed). So, by working on the house, I tend to get an ever increasing number of projects to do, instead of decreasing them by getting some things done. Inspecting the vent pipe got me two more projects to do (which have since been completed, but there are other things to do, which, if things go on them as they have gone in the past, will reveal yet more things that should be done).

Anyway, it keeps me pretty busy, so I am unlikely to do a lot of posting here any time soon.

If you want more details, you can send me an email and ask. Or if you want to volunteer to come over and help, you can do that as well.

 

[Pyrrho]

won't those pulley belts between the motor and platter wear out in time? affecting the platter speed? wouldn't a direct drive make more sense? keep in mind I know nothing of TT engineering.

Yes, belts do wear out. And yes, when they are worn out, it will affect wow and flutter and other variations in turntable speed. But the reason many audiophiles love belt turntables is that, in theory, the belt isolates the platter from vibrations from the motor. Whether that is an actual problem with a particular turntable should be determined by testing it, but audiophiles tend to fall in love with a type of thing, and then don't bother with actual testing to see if something else might be better in a particular instance. So many audiophiles would never consider a direct drive turntable, regardless of its actual performance.

 

[Ponzio]

Yes, belts do wear out. And yes, when they are worn out, it will affect wow and flutter and other variations in turntable speed. But the reason many audiophiles love belt turntables is that, in theory, the belt isolates the platter from vibrations from the motor. Whether that is an actual problem with a particular turntable should be determined by testing it, but audiophiles tend to fall in love with a type of thing, and then don't bother with actual testing to see if something else might be better in a particular instance. So many audiophiles would never consider a direct drive turntable, regardless of its actual performance.

got 'ya.

 

[3db]

Yes, belts do wear out. And yes, when they are worn out, it will affect wow and flutter and other variations in turntable speed. But the reason many audiophiles love belt turntables is that, in theory, the belt isolates the platter from vibrations from the motor. Whether that is an actual problem with a particular turntable should be determined by testing it, but audiophiles tend to fall in love with a type of thing, and then don't bother with actual testing to see if something else might be better in a particular instance. So many audiophiles would never consider a direct drive turntable, regardless of its actual performance.

Every design be it belt drive or direct drive have pros snd cons and agueing which is better is profoundly circular. Neither holds an advantage over the other. Both offer stellar performance when done right.

 

[3db]

If they wanted to make the best of the best they'd have started with an idler system.

I wouldn't buy this if I could afford it.

I dont know of any manufacturers that still produce idler systems.

 

[matteos]

I dont know of any manufacturers that still produce idler systems.

That's because most manufacturers these days are on a budget as they are boutique. Belt drive systems are their primary choice due to budget considerations and the extra profit.. and also because many think belt is superior.

Someone like Mark Levinson with this $10k turntable can afford to put whatever they want in this.

This isn't to say belt drives or direct drives are bad. I have examples of both and love them. It is just an idler drive is inherently superior once you have overcome the rumble they can produce in the system (Which you can do with a big and very heavy plinth). You are right in that I don't think anyone today is making new idler systems and that is a real shame. But there are small companies out there making statement pieces out of things like rebuilt Garrard 301's. The price on these though is even higher than the Levinson.

 

[3db]

That's because most manufacturers these days are on a budget as they are boutique. Belt drive systems are their primary choice due to budget considerations and the extra profit.. and also because many think belt is superior.

Someone like Mark Levinson with this $10k turntable can afford to put whatever they want in this.

This isn't to say belt drives or direct drives are bad. I have examples of both and love them. It is just an idler drive is inherently superior once you have overcome the rumble they can produce in the system (Which you can do with a big and very heavy plinth). You are right in that I don't think anyone today is making new idler systems and that is a real shame. But there are small companies out there making statement pieces out of things like rebuilt Garrard 301's. The price on these though is even higher than the Levinson.

IHO, I think idler configurations are inherently flawed and are prone to more rumble than belt or direct drive. As a result, more work is required to get them down to the rumble levels in belt or direct drive. Boutique brands can easily afford to produce idlers but there is no advantage to them.

 

[matteos]

IHO, I think idler configurations are inherently flawed and are prone to more rumble than belt or direct drive. As a result, more work is required to get them down to the rumble levels in belt or direct drive. Boutique brands can easily afford to produce idlers but there is no advantage to them.

There's definitely some work to keep the rumble down. Although I think it's a problem that has been way overblown. But in a $10k record player you can easily get rumble to absolutely nothing. There are other bigger advantages that idlers have. They don't have the wow and flutter of belts (neither do DD's though) and they have bigger, tighter bass, better speed accuracy, they are more dynamic and they have better imaging/soundstage... They're really better in every way than the other systems IMHO. I wish a big name company with resources behind their name who aren't afraid of putting out a statement piece would consider an idler system. We've got statement Direct Drives like the Technics SP10, but now most manufacturers only put out belt drives (so many statement belt drives - who cares?) which is a real shame.

 

[mtrycrafts]

... and they have bigger, tighter bass, better speed accuracy, they are more dynamic and they have better imaging/soundstage... ....

What? other than the speed control the rest is highly suspicious if not total nonsense.