Technics SL-Q202 cart recommendation

[Chrispy]

I would say it is potentially worthwhile as a speed control technology, just not important and no longer significantly beneficial. Now that the 60Hz coming out of the wall in the US is dead-accurate for this, devices using the mains frequency for clocks perform a lot better than 40 years ago;1970s servo speed controllers can perform better today than they could back when they were made.

Just meant it's only that, doesn't relate to the quality of the rest of the system.

 

[Helicopter]

Just meant it's only that, doesn't relate to the quality of the rest of the system.

I didn't mean to have a tone of disagreement. I was just elaborating.

 

[killdozzer]

It's like a quartz regulated watch....not very meaningful as to the rest of the mechanism.

I know what it is. What I didn't understand was why you said that to me. I was only replying to DSJR. When he distinguished between my deck/lower models AND his decks that are quartz locked, I just corrected him - mine is also quartz locked.

@killdozzer his choice of word has a sarcastic overstatement of the literal meaning; the literal meaning is more like that he had more expensive tastes than people buying servo-controlled lighter-weight models of Technics turntables at the time. Maybe other people would consider him snooty for this, but he doesn't actually consider himself snooty. You can't really be snooty, consciously aware of it, and willing to admit it, because honesty and self-awareness are contradictory to snootiness.

I think I'm starting to like you.

They look like what you already posted in #62.

The AT-LH11, LH13, LH15, and LH18 are threaded, designed to be used with cartridges without threaded cartridge bodies.

The AT-LH11H, LH13H, LH15H, and LH18H are not threaded, because they're designed to be used with the newest AT carts that have threaded cartridge bodies (like ART9XA, OC9XML, etc.).

I thought you might've meant those, but what confused me was that you said round nuts are made for those. But I don't see any use of nuts at all with the threaded headshells. Perhaps you meant bolts in this case...? So that bolts would spin freely in their designated place while you screw the cart onto the headshell.

 

[killdozzer]

What did the TT have before?

An OM5 or something?

I'm sorry I missed this one; yes, I had the Ortofon SuperOM5E:

 

[killdozzer]

Good luck. being an enthusiastic ex-seller of Rega decks, may I suggest very careful siting of the deck away from the speakers and room corners and also, remove the lid when playing or at least lower it down, as these solid plinth types with lid hinges directly attached, can feed back terribly, the sonic degradation heard long before the 'howl-round' starts..

Thanks for these. I know most of them. I had my rig set once to have the TT literally in the next room as once, long time ago, Mr. Toole said would be the only way to stop stylus picking up in-room sound waves. It was just a fun or not so fun experiment. My TT had some noise issues and I wanted to see if it's feedback.

Before I bought stands, I had speakers on a commode together with the AVR and my TT.

I was able to get the feedback loop going madly. I'd place the stylus in the silent groove, between songs and crank it up, way up. The cones would start swinging and really accelerate that swinging and I had to take away the volume to stop them.

I tried to replicate this after I got the speaker stands and it wouldn't happen so I'm happy with how it works now. It's not perfect, but it never is. The TT is on another piece of furniture altogether and below the speakers. It's fine.

 

[DSJR]

@killdozzer his choice of word has a sarcastic overstatement of the literal meaning; the literal meaning is more like that he had more expensive tastes than people buying servo-controlled lighter-weight models of Technics turntables at the time. Maybe other people would consider him snooty for this, but he doesn't actually consider himself snooty. You can't really be snooty, consciously aware of it, and willing to admit it, because honesty and self-awareness are contradictory to snootiness.

Oh crap, this was forty years ago and hopefully 'we' can learn from youthful attitudes? Surely many of you have been into high end 'salons' where the attitude of the staff is a bit condescending and, well, 'snooty.' (we were adopted by a cat we nicknamed 'Snooty-Paws' as he was definitely the supreme ruler of his manor...).

I worked in a then high end store and where Technics turntables were concerned, it was the top models that we were interested in from the SL1000 downwards. They changed their mainstream models so often looking back, that I believe it was the very compact SL10 and SL7 that caught our imagination - this could have been a season or two later, I can't remember now..

By the mid 80's, decks like this were coming back for cartridge and stylus replacements. By then, our narrow insular UK audio market had cottoned onto better supports for our decks (springy Linns and relatives or solid Regas) and I remember how surprised we were at how good decks like this Technics actually were if treated right. None on eBay UK currently but surviving ones may well make excellent cheap vinyl spinners. My Choice books cover the later? ones with T-4P cartridge fittings (sadly this mounting seemed to have a weakness in terms of tonearm rigidity at the fixing point) but they usually came out ok for the price.

 

[BDWoody]

I remember how surprised we were at how good decks like this Technics actually were if treated right.

I bet my humble SL-10 with it's 310mc would surprise a few people. I believe it would be considered the opposite of snooty now... Who could take a P-mount linear tracking full auto TT seriously after all?

 

[DSJR]

We sold more SL7's (sometimes the cartridge gave a slightly 'strident' sound into our them systems but clarity was superb) but my memories of the SL10 are incredibly positive and the thing was very solidly made as I remember I was more a 'tune dem' person than a 'pr@t factor' type (perhaps Serge or Frank can explain better than I from UK experiences?) and the SL10 was always a 'musical' sounding record player I recall.

 

[watchnerd]

I thought you might've meant those, but what confused me was that you said round nuts are made for those. But I don't see any use of nuts at all with the threaded headshells. Perhaps you meant bolts in this case...? So that bolts would spin freely in their designated place while you screw the cart onto the headshell.

Nope I meant nuts.

And I say that because those headshells came with round nuts.

But since you brought it up, the screws that come with those headshells are half bolts, meaning half of the screw (the part that goes through the headshell) has no thread.

 

[killdozzer]

Nope I meant nuts.

And I say that because those headshells came with round nuts.

But since you brought it up, the screws that come with those headshells are half bolts, meaning half of the screw (the part that goes through the headshell) has no thread.

?
Well... Where do you use round nuts on those threaded headshells?? I will admit - Do you have a pic?

 

[watchnerd]

?
Well... Where do you use round nuts on those threaded headshells?? I will admit - Do you have a pic?

Oh, I took them off after first mounting them with the normally threaded screws.

I realized that the half bolt / half screws were the proper thing to use with a threaded headshell and used those and the plastic washers, instead.

But they did come with the headshell, so there must be some intent behind it.....*shrug*

 

[Helicopter]

I don't understand why they would need to thread a headshell, unless you were going to have the bolt head on the bottom going through the unthreaded cartridge with no nut.

Here is a photo of the hardware that came with an unthreaded AT-LH11H headshell:

 

[killdozzer]

If anyone's interested. Shooting from the hip, this is just me holding the smartphone in my hand, record tilted towards light so that it reflects directly to the camera's eye with a free app magnifier something. The grooves of the record.

I imagined them differently.

 

[killdozzer]

Oh, I took them off after first mounting them with the normally threaded screws.

I realized that the half bolt / half screws were the proper thing to use with a threaded headshell and used those and the plastic washers, instead.

But they did come with the headshell, so there must be some intent behind it.....*shrug*

Where do you use nuts?

 

[watchnerd]

I don't understand why they would need to thread a headshell, unless you were going to have the bolt head on the bottom going through the unthreaded cartridge with no nut.

Here is a photo of the hardware that came with an unthreaded AT-LH11H headshell:
View attachment 106482

Yep, my LH11H and LH13H came with the same. Although for my ART9XA I used the brass fixings that came with it.

One each of my LH11 and LH13 came with round nuts in the bag, but the heavier LH15 and LH18 did not.

 

[watchnerd]

Where do you use nuts?
View attachment 106484

I didn't -- I took them off and used the plastic washers with the half threaded screws, as I stated above.

 

[killdozzer]

I think having your headshell on its back, cart looking up while you thighten it is a far better way of doing it, the way these threaded do.

Me...? I was holding the nut with tweezers, having headshell lying sideways, having the tiny screwdriver in my other hand screwing it in. While doing this, the cart would never stop and rest in the place you wanted it to be, it would always move a little.

 

[watchnerd]

I think having your headshell on its back, cart looking up while you thighten it is a far better way of doing it, the way these threaded do.

Yes, it's much much easier.

 

[Helicopter]

View attachment 106481
If anyone's interested. Shooting from the hip, this is just me holding the smartphone in my hand, record tilted towards light so that it reflects directly to the camera's eye with a free app magnifier something. The grooves of the record.

I imagined them differently.

Here are some microscope photos of an old Herb Alpert record that i haven't cleaned or played

yet.

 

[Chrispy]

Here are some microscope photos of an old Herb Alpert record that i haven't cleaned or playedView attachment 106491View attachment 106492View attachment 106493 yet.

Your records have dandruff!