Greetings,
I'm very new to all of this, and I'm looking for any help I can get. I've done a bit of research, but this is what I'm looking to do.
Set-up is for a record player (not tv):
1) First off, I'm looking to buy a record player. I've looked at the "rega p1," "Sumiko Pro-Ject Debut III,""Music Hall mmf 2.1," or should I look at buying a vintage turntable (if so, what vintage tt?)
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3) I literally know nothing about pre-amps, but I found this one seems suitable, "Pro-Ject Phono Box II Phono Preamp."
4) And if there is anything else I may need (such as a receiver or cables) I literally know nothing of the sort, and any help would be much appreciated.
All in all, what I want to do is set up a decent record player that isn't limited by the speakers. I hope there is the appropriate information here so that someone can help me. Thanks again.
I think you are on a good track, with a sensible attitude towards a budget, something we all have to live with.
First of all, apologies for the length of this post. Hopefully it's worth the effort for you ... this is all based on my own experience and some is just my opinion. Don't take it as gospel; read everyone's advice in this thread.
I think the first thing I would suggest is that, with the level of gear you can afford, you're not gong to be going for that last degree of refinement. This is not necessarily a bad thing ... it means you don't have to be too fussy, when it all comes down to it. That opens up your options considerably.
I would consider the Rega P1, Debut III and mmf2.1 to be roughly equivalent tables. The differences between them will not be that great. Let your wallet be your guide.
However, at the price point for these tables, you can also consider a decent used unit.
As for direct drive tables, such as the SL 1200 MKII, they can also be great starter units. You can also consider some of the less popular Technics tables, like the 1300, 1400 and especially the all-manual 1500 or, even better, the somewhat rare 1100.
These are all double-isolated tables that are very good at resisting vibration and skipping if for some reason they are not on a sturdy shelf or if your floor bounces.
The original units are servo-controlled, the Mk II's are quartz servo controlled. There is a difference, but it's not huge and I wouldn't worry about it, especially if a bargain "mark I" pops in front of you (there really is no "mark I", but there are Mark II's; I'm just giving them that name for clarity sake).
Hifi nuts don't like the 1300 because it's an "automatic" table ... it moves the arm to the start groove with the push of a button, and picks it up at the end and returns it to the rest.
There is a mechanism that works via the TT motor to do this work, and they can have some mechanical noises as it's going on. A "semi-automatic" table, like the 1400 picks up the arm at the end, but won't place it on the lead in groove at the beginning. Both tables can be operated manually if you want.
If it's working normally, the automatic or semi-automatic mechanism is not contacting the motor when the record is actually playing music. If you really want to, you can remove the automatic mechanism entirely, making it essentially identical to an 1100, 1200 or 1500, sonically.
These tables can sometimes be found for half, or even much less, than the very popular SL 1200 Mk II. I've seen 1500's go for $100, and there is really no difference between a Mk II 1500 and a Mk II 1200.
Personally, I would favor belt drive tables over the DC motor tables, but to be honest, although there are sonic differences between the two systems, with the units you are looking at within your budget, they are more similar than different.
However if you can find any vintage of Rega 2 or 3, provided it has an RB 250 or RB 300 arm, I personally would not hesitate to take that over a Technics or even one of the new belt drives you are looking at.
The phono preamp you mentioned would be fine, or similar quality units to that. Avoid anything selling for less than about $100; they are usually not very good at all.
You could also consider scrounging garage sales or perhaps even your parent's basement for a preamp, receiver or integrated amp made before about 1990. They will probably have a phono input, and quality-wise, it might be pretty decent, or at least adequate.
You might be able to pick up such a unit for nothing, or a few dollars. In the modern world, any components that are "big" and "old" and "stereo" have little resale value unless it's well known to be something special.
You could then run the table to that unit, and another cable from the tape out (which will be line level) to an aux input of whatever you end up with for your system. Instant inexpensive phono preamp.
You never know; maybe the unit could work as your main amplifier as well.
When it comes to setting up an entry level system, the source (turntable, CD player) and speakers are areas that disproportionately affect the sound quality. If you can save on amplification you will get good bang-for-your-buck spending your budget on the other stuff.
