Thoughts on Technics SL D2?

Roivas

Roivas

Well-Known Member
I am helping a friend set up his sound system. His dad has a Technics SL D2 that SEEMS to be in good condition, though he lives far away and it would be a bit of a pain to ship. Is it worth the trouble? Are there modern equivalent tables that are of similar (or better) quality for a reasonable price? I'm just wondering what are people's thoughts on this. I know the 1200 is well-revered, but I haven't heard of the D2 until this week.
 
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Shipping a turn table is very risky.

There may be similar units on the Craigslist close to your location. :scratch2:
 
I personally like the table. Certainly not the "cadillac" of turntables, but by far a decent lil table that performs well.
 
I had one of those once. It is a strong performer in it's price range. For lack of a better description, I will even go so far as to say it has a very pleasing sonic personality, but I could not tell you why.
 
I've got one that I found in my father in law's old bedroom that was his years ago. I've dropped it and broke a chunk off the base (not that it was in good shape when I got to it) and it still plays great and is very quiet. The only upgrade I did was make new RCA cables for it. It's the only TT I own that will work with my Grado without humming.
 
Surprisingly nice table. I got one at a thrift last year and it is doing duty in my fiancée's set up currently with a Grado Black. Sounds remarkably good and tracks very well, though a bit more sensitive to floor vibration than I'd like.
 
I bought one from a friend in 1989, and it is still in use in my studio. If you brief your friends dad on the proper way to ship a TT you should be fine. You probably will need a new cart. I have a Shure M97XE on mine, sounds great!
 
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spideyjack said:
If you brief your friends dad on the proper way to ship a TT you should be fine.
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.............. or not. Packing turntables is a very tricky proposition and shippers are notoriously callous about the property they handle.

This might be a great excuse for the OP to visit his family.

As for the table, it's worth the effort to get, especially since it's free. ;) The SL-D2 was the lowest priced direct drive with S-arm that Technics made at the time, well the manual SL-D1 was, but that's not a criticism. Technics direct drives of the time were superior to their belt drive models. They built them all to a pretty high level.

Oh, and no, you can't get anything new that will approach it for less than around $300.

John
 
Not to go against the grain here, I would not recommend the Technics SL-D1, 2 or 3 turntable. Although they perform reasonably well, their plinth material is hollow composite material which resulted in the worst feedback issue I've ever experienced in a turntable. YMMV but that has been my experience.

For similar money you can get a Pioneer PL-518 semi-automatic which is a far superior TT IMO.
 
I owned one and liked it real well. I used the Grado F1+ cart on it and it was hooked up to a KA 5700 intregrated amp and I was using a set of polk M5jr speakers. A really nice TT as far as I am concerned. Never had a problem with it.

It got traded for a KA 701 amp later on. The TT is well worth the trip to pick it up
 
Thanks!

It seems like the overwhelming consensus is that it's a good table. Now, if it's not too much trouble, can I ask a follow-up? Does anyone know what the best way to ship a TT like this would be? Barring a major event, Dan said he's not going back to Cali for another ten months at Thanksgiving, and we're trying to get this set up sooner than that? Presumably a big part of this will be padding/packaging?

Thanks in advance, for all you've said already and for anything that's added after this! I'm glad I came across these forums. It's fun to read about other people's rigs and the like. Come for the advice, stay for the banter. So far, at least, this is one of the most straightforward and helpful message boards I can remember coming across [knock on wood].
 
You can't really go wrong with any Technics, especially one of their direct drives. That's even better if it's free. If it has to be shipped, make sure the platter is either removed and packaged separately in the box or taped down very securely; also make sure the tonearm is secured as well. Double-boxed with lots of padding (like newspaper) should also help.
 
Roivas said:
It seems like the overwhelming consensus is that it's a good table. Now, if it's not too much trouble, can I ask a follow-up? Does anyone know what the best way to ship a TT like this would be? Barring a major event, Dan said he's not going back to Cali for another ten months at Thanksgiving, and we're trying to get this set up sooner than that? Presumably a big part of this will be padding/packaging?

Thanks in advance, for all you've said already and for anything that's added after this! I'm glad I came across these forums. It's fun to read about other people's rigs and the like. Come for the advice, stay for the banter. So far, at least, this is one of the most straightforward and helpful message boards I can remember coming across [knock on wood].
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http://audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=440622
 
Roivas said:
It seems like the overwhelming consensus is that it's a good table. Now, if it's not too much trouble, can I ask a follow-up? Does anyone know what the best way to ship a TT like this would be? Barring a major event, Dan said he's not going back to Cali for another ten months at Thanksgiving, and we're trying to get this set up sooner than that? Presumably a big part of this will be padding/packaging?

Thanks in advance, for all you've said already and for anything that's added after this! I'm glad I came across these forums. It's fun to read about other people's rigs and the like. Come for the advice, stay for the banter. So far, at least, this is one of the most straightforward and helpful message boards I can remember coming across [knock on wood].
Click to expand...




the BEST way to ship it is in its ORIGINAL BOX with all the original packing material. that's the BEST way. anything else is a compromise and a risk....unless you know for a fact that the person has extensive experience in shipping turntables.
 
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