Micro Seiki Solid 5

Van_Isle

Van_Isle

AK Subscriber
Subscriber
I've been keeping my eye open for a belt-drive turntable that 'excites' me ... without breaking the bank.

Today I wandered into my favorite record store. The owner sometimes gets turntables along with record collection purchases. And he had just gotten this Solid 5.

I think I got it at a fair price ($175 CAD = $130 USD). It's in pretty pristine condition. Apparently hasn't been used in a long time. Speed pots definitely need cleaning and the cueing needs adjusting ... and perhaps the cueing silicone oil replaced.

Doesn't appear to be a lot of info out there on these. Seems they weren't made for very long and use a variant of the MA-303 tonearm.

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I'm not a big fan of Grado carts ... but I have a variety of other cartridges I could mount ... Ortofon, Shure, Audio Technica, Stanton, Pickering, etc.

Course my Yamaha YP-D8 is Micro Seiki built ... so perhaps this one would feel at home.

I'll clean it up and have a good listen ... any comments / thoughts? This a keeper?
 
I really like it. I have wanted a Micro Seiki forever and they just dont ever show up around here. I think you made a score there. Clean it up and enjoy!
 
She's got pretty good specs and features:

Wow and flutter: less than 0.035%
Signal to noise ratio: more than 58dB

Nifty bubble level in the plinth for leveling
VTA on the tonearm
2-part counterweight (with also an auxiliary weight that I don't have)
Azimuth adjustment
The platter is pretty massive ... more reminiscent of a DD platter than a belt-drive
9.3kg (20.5lbs)
 
I cleaned up the turntable.

Pulled the spindle, cleaned the bearing out and re-oiled:

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Cleaned the pitch controls and trimpots and adjusted the speed. Here's a couple 'nudies'. Spindle isn't installed in the 1st shot and I didn't take the plate covering the tonearm base off all the way to take a picture as there's a ground wire soldered to the plate ... I think it just clips around the tonearm base though:

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I mounted an Ortofon VMS20 MkII (pretty-much new original stylus) in the headshell and had a listen:

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Very impressed so far. Although I haven't used this cartridge in a long time so maybe I'm hearing things I like from it too. I'm pathetic at describing how something sounds, however .... but I would say very detailed. Solid deep bass. Turntable seems to be running fine, Motor and bearing are silent. Although I might have to have another go at the pitch controls ... needs adjustment each time it's turned on but then seems steady after that.
 
Thats a gorgeous deck. There was one for sale on BT some time ago - I resisted at the time but was sorely tested. If memory serves correctly, it was alot more than $130.
 
I've had a Micro Seiki before, but it was a lowly MB-14. This is miles better.

Years ago, when I was in the realm of $40 Technics SL-1401's and $60 Sony PS-60s (and $20 MB-14s), I passed on a mint one-owner Micro DD (DD-33?) at something like $120 as I thought it was was too expensive! Oh well!
 
It's nice when the pretty ones also have good performance indicators. My belt drive Sony PS-2400 does that too. :)
 
Its a beauty. I believe if you go out on Fleabay and check the prices on just the headshell you will find that they are going for more than you paid for the turntable. I am waiting on a Tannoy/Micro tm55dd that is a direct drive twin of the Solid 5. I am not going to say what I paid, but I had to have the table after seeing it and doing a little research here on AK and other places. Mine has the original headshell and a Shure V15 type iii cartridge. It was a storage locker auction find that someone scored on. I can't wait to get it and fire it up. Congrats!
 
The TM55DD looks like a nice turntable! Bit different tonearm.

I think the DD-5 is pretty close too.

I wonder what the rationale was for moving the anti-skate from the outside to the inside?

I'm thinking I might try my V15III on the Solid 5 too. And/or, since I'm going to pack away my Yamaha YP-D8 for a bit, perhaps the NOS V15IV I have mounted on it right now. Maybe a Pickering XV-15?
 
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