Is This TEAC Turntable Worth It?
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- Опубликовано: 12 сен 2024
- Is the TEAC-TN-3B-SE a step above entry level?
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I have owned TEAC equipment throughout the years and have enjoyed them and not once any of them failed on me. As a matter of fact, I’m still listening to a TEAC reel to reel that I purchased in the mid 70’s 😊
One of these days I'm going to finally purchase a reel to reel, John 🍺
That fluance is "midrange" in the same way that the new Corvette is "mid-range". Yet most people could not justify the price of even that car. Heck, it's why I bought an FR-S in 2013. Also, It reminded me of the experience I had in the late 70's in my Opel GT, only the FR-S is WAY better. I put 185k mile on it on the twisties of Kentucky so far and had a blast. I still have it, but I retired 3 years ago and left my 150 mile a day round trip commute behind. I drive it to church a couple of times a month and sometimes the golf course, and that's about it.
But I see turntables the same way. I have four turntables. The worst of them is an AT LP120 USB and a U-Turn Plus with a built in pre. I honestly believe that unless one is in the one percent and must have the "best of the best", either of those two would be more than most people would ever need, even with the supplied cartridges. And I'm aware of their shortcomings (I sold hi-fi between 1976 and 1982). I wish the u-Turn was white, but I bought it used...cheap.
I tell anyone that cares that if they want to improve a midrange turntable ($300-$600 range), get a nude stylus for the cartridge. Getting an ortofon Blue is the biggest advantage of the RT-85. The comical part is that I got a friend into vinyl about 8 years ago. He started out with an AT-LP120 USB (his antiskating actually works, unlike mine). But he started getting into the hobby and simply had to "step up". I recommended the Fluance RT-85 because of the blue. He now uses both and to our old ears they sound the same. He uses both interchangeably. Yeah, I know the Fluance and blue sound better, technically, but it's hard to tell unless you are a/b comparing them. And that's not why you buy a Turntable.
That being said, Bob Bradley (youtube channel and local guy) picked up a completely restored vintage Thorens idler drive TT a few years ago and put an excellent cartridge on it. I'm sure it sounds amazing and set him back a LOT (in the same way a classic Porsche or Corvette would). Yet in the last year he bought a new, and more modern belt drive table. If you are really into this stuff, you end up with the same sickness boaters have. For boats they call it "two foot-itis".
The two most critical features for me in a turntable are Direct Drive and a replaceable headshell. Heck, even my main TT with an ADC LMF II carbon Fiber tonearm has a removable headshell. It's easy to mount cartridges, and it's easy to swap out two different ones when you have multiple headshells. I'm no fan of modern belt drives with exposed belts. That would have been unheard of back in the 70's. It would be like buying a car with exposed tires and mudflaps.
Sheesh, I'm wordy tonight. Can you tell my wife's out of town?🤣
BTW, I bought a 78 RPM stylus for the AT cartridge that came with my AT-LP120 and it is amazing how good 78's sound with the right stylus. They are a lot of fun.
. A Massachusetts made U-Turn turntable with a New York made Grado Cartridge for $349 is where I'm headed. Vinyl isn't my preferred source but because I really like the looks and I'm sure I'll enjoy using it. I'll be purchasing one soon enough.
They actually sent me one of their newer tables to review. I have an old Orbit that I bought a few years ago before buying the Thorens. I do enjoy U-Turn and love that they are based 50 minutes away from me.
150 miles to work! That's not all I got out of your comment but it jumped out at me!
Your recommendations to folks seem to mirror mine. I keep telling myself that my Thorens is my last turntable but I know that's not the case. Just like you stated - same sickness as boaters. I keep eyeing VPI turntables. Out of my range right now however. Maybe someday :)
@@TheJoyofVinylRecords .
Yup, I'm in the "Live Free or Die" state.
@@TriAmpHiFi As am I! 20 minutes from Portsmouth 🍺
SWEET had some great songs which I fondly remember of my youth like Fox On The Run, Ballroom Blitz, and Love Is Like Oxygen
Love is Like Oxygen is such a great song
@@TheJoyofVinylRecords .
Well, the beginning of the song anyway.
The upgrade path for that cartridge is what makes it so popular as you can elevate it with stylus swaps all the way to a shibata stylus with nude eliptical and microlinear in between.
Good point!
Microridge styli like microline are superior to Shibata.
Shibata is in between the elliptical and microline, but it's more expensive because of the higher licensing costs of the patents on Shibata.
@@QoraxAudio Do you happen to have any recommendations for a great-sounding MC that won't break the bank and a step-up-transformer?
@@TheJoyofVinylRecords The AT-OC9XML is a great LOMC cartridge for about 550 bucks, which is still "entry level" in terms of LOMC.
Even cheaper is the AT-OC9XEN, which I have myself... probably the cheapest I would go as far as LOMC goes.
It's good, but because it's nude ellitpical, it leaves some unrealized potential of LOMC on the table.
The XML version has a microline tip that realizes a lot more of that higher frequency potential LOMC cartridges are known for.
Unless you have an old school very heavy tonearm, then I'd just get a Denon DL-103R and call it a day.
Idk about SUTs, my phono preamp has a LOMC setting, so I don't use one...
@@QoraxAudio Thank you!
Great to see a turntable other than from a brand that everyone recommends! I remember many TEAC products growing up and have always enjoyed them! Thanks for the informative video!
thank you for watching, Glenn! Always a pleasure to see your comments 🍺
The band The Sweet became Sweet after their run of hit singles dried up here in the U.K. The album you showed is called Desolation Boulevard and was not a greatest hit package. From memory this was their 'big hit album in The States. Met the lead singer Brian Connolly a couple of times but sadly the effects of alcoholism was very noticeable. This band is dear to my heart as this was my entry point into pop and rock music when the single Hellraiser was released back in '73. A great glam rock band that morphed into a stunning rock band. They, along with Uriah Heep, were instrumental in developing a particular style of vocal harmonies later copied by Queen.
Amazing band. I also have Level Headed. Given the amount of great songs of Desolation Boulevard I was always under the assumption it was a greatest hits. Thanks for the correction!
@@TheJoyofVinylRecords If interested may i also suggest Sweet Fanny Adams and Give Us a Wink both being the band's hardest rock albums.
@@Baz63 Thanks for the recommendation!
They started as The Sweet Shop. They shortened it to The Sweet for their bubblegum records such as “Little Willy.” They dropped “the” when they took over control of their own career.
Nice review of a not so obvious choice turntable. Reminds me of my first turntable purchased in 1980, the Sansui SR222 MkII. A brilliant turntable for the princely sum of £65. Also gloss black. I bought another one 3 years ago out of nostalgia and it set me back on the vinyl path.
I’m so far along that road now but I thank Sansui for introducing me to vinyl not once but twice!
Love that, Mark 🍺. Made me smile
I had a Teac tn3b for a while and to be fair I found it sounded better than a Pro Ject debut carbon that all the hype suggested was better.
Interesting, Mark. I have a Pro-Ject here to review as well in the coming weeks. I'm interested to see how it compares. It's the newer T2 Super Phono.
1:30 am, getting ready to go to sleep, and joy of vinyl uploads a new video 🤦♂️
😂😂😂. I actually released it at the wrong time too. It was supposed to be "PM" not "AM". Oops!
beautiful turntable indeed!
The only thing that bothers me somewhat is when a furniture company jams some hifi gear on the shelves in the most unlikely setup: turntable on a middle shelf where it couldn't open, bookshelf speakers on a bottom shelf next to each other. If you make furniture for hifi components, it would help if you knew a little about hifi :)
Cheersm Gabor! 🍺
TEAC had a great variety of entry-level turntables like the MCD800 which I still have
It's hard to part with turntables isn't it?
A turntable I like in midlevel is the Pro-Ject RPM 1 evo. Interesting design with a detached motor, minimalist plinth and s shaped tone arm. Pro-Ject also offers several upgrades for this specific turntable.
I really am impressed with Pro-Ject. I have a turntable here of theirs that I’m listening to for a review and I’m incredibly impressed with the quality build. They really do pay attention to the experience and the sound.
Seems like a viable option in this price range. The one thing I like about my Fluance RT85 is the acrylic platter. To me, that's a step up from an aluminum platter, and I don't need a mat. Plus, it just looks cool to me. Teac was always a solid brand at a reasonable price back in the day. It looks like they are continuing that trend. Nice review.
Thanks Neil. I'm with you on the acrylic platters. Beautiful.
When I got back into hifi a couple years ago I wanted a turntable to replace my old Dual CS-5000 from the '90s. After a lot of research I decided on the TEAC TN-5BB, their top of the line. It's a belt drive with acrylic platter, but had the feature I really wanted; auto stop/lift. It came with an Ortofon 2M Red cartridge, which seems strange for an $1,800 turntable, but it's an okay starter. I soon replaced it with an Audio-Technica AT-OC9XML moving coil using the phono preamp in my Yamaha A-S3200 and was very pleased.
Then last December I caved and bought a Technics SL-1200GR2 which I ran with a moving magnet beside the TEAC. I alternated between the two and enjoyed both, but with my recent purchase of the Willsenton R8 I needed to move one table to make room. I decided to move the Technics to my secondary system as I really prefer the semi-auto to the full manual. I just got the iFi ZEN Phono 3 and running the TEAC through it into the R8 is simply great. I am very happy with TEAC and have a AD-850 CD/cassette deck and also a V-6030S vintage cassette deck.
When I was looking for my TN-5BB Crutchfield had a bunch of TEACs but not the top model, and they wouldn't order it for me. It looks like they are phasing them out now and only have three models. Anyway I ended up going to Music Direct and had a very good experience with them, and bought the Technics from them also. Plus I've purchased a lot of vinyl from them.
As an aside, if you enjoy modern jazz give the album "Vol. 1" by Chris Botti a try. It's a Blue Note and has excellent musicians and the pressing is great, and sounds fantastic on my system.
I'll check Music Direct out again. I typically go to Crutchfield as you said, and also Audio Advice.
Also - thanks for the recommendation on Botti!
LP Gear makes a Vividline stylus for the AT95... costs more than the cartridge but man it turns that thing on! Makes it a real contender.
I need to take another look at LP Gear. I send folks there all the time but it's been a couple years since I've checked their site out personally.
Teac Corporation , in addition to the pro-audio Tascam brand has the ESOTERIC brand of super-high-end audiophile gear . Engineering trickles down from high to low . ESOTERIC now makes it's first turntable , a grand statement design with truly original engineering , but don't look at it if you don't want severe sticker shock . Indicates what a great engineering company can achieve .
I failed to take your advice, Joseph and took a peek. Severe sticker shock doesn't it justice - yikes!
Teac's cd players have a very good reputation for sound also. On the vintage used market it is hard to beat the Harmon Kardon T series of turntables from around 40 years ago. On the audio forums, it's pretty much unanimous that the upper models especially, have better sound quality than Thorens turntables from the same era. The line goes from the T20 to the T30 to the T65 model. Tbey all have a very good lightweight Carbon Fiber tonearm, and the upper models like the T60 and T65 have a heavier platter, a custom platter mat, and an excellent spring suspension. They also have controls on the turntable to adjust capacitance for different cartridges. The top of the line T65 model has a very unique type of anti-skating gizmo. They even come with a round record weight puck included. The T 60 model I experienced, outperformed an over $1,200 turntable model. Especially in the bass; which was deeper, tighter and more defined with the T 60. The T60 can be had on the used market, often for around $500. Frank Van Alstine, built his reputation as a long time well known modifier of vintage tube amps like Dynaco. Someone said he used or still uses a Harmon Kardon T 25 as his preferred turntable. Van Alstine is now not just a modifying company, but has their own line of amplifiers etc. They are highly respected for offering amazing sound quality per dollar.
Your breadth of knowledge on all this never fails to amaze me. Did you sell this equipment in a past life or just always been a hobbyist?
I didn't know about the ability to adjust capacitance on the turntable itself. That's extremely interesting. I'll have to look that up.
You're half correct. I did have this equipment in a past life, but I don't think I ever sold it, since it was so good. I still have the T60 turntable. The other thing I like about the HK turntables is that they have RCA jacks on the back, where you can use your own higher quality interconnects and not be limited to the IC that comes with the turntable. The positive + run of the interconnect or speaker cable is the more important one. I know of one manufacturer who has had a very popular interconnect model in their line sonce the 1990s, in which they give you pure silver wire for the positive (+) run of the cable and plain old copper for the negative (-) run of the cable. Silver is the best conductor, but too many silver cables in a system can cause it to be too edgy & bright sounding. The material Graphene, some say, conducts electricity in a better way than even silver, but graphene is only one atom thick.That would be hard to work with!... Cerious Technology Cables is one of the few cable companies who know how to work with Graphene. One of the better cable companies for sound quality. Not that well known a company. Between preamp and power amp is where interconnects make the most improvement in sound quality. There really shouldn't be a cable controversy. With the right cables, there is a day and night difference. But you might have to go up the price ladder a bit
Luckily there vary good turntables these days that almost any one can afford
Great content
I've subscribed
Thank you, Dave!
You tease. I am looking forward to that set up video to compare notes. Thanks.
Hoping to have it up next week!
That's basically mine
WTF is that a knife-edge bearing tonearm?
Didn't expect that one a midrange turntable like these!
You nailed it! That's exactly what it is.
Two items:
1)
Did you compare your S2 phono amp to the turntable's built-in phono amp?
2)
@7:00 -- Sweet.
Their big hit was "Fox On The Run". I used to have a 7" 45 of that song, that I played and played and played -- and has since disappeared like the sock in the dryer.
I tried hunting down a digital copy of it, and after four purchases (three digital downloads and one CD) from four different albums, I gave up, due to the barely listenable sound quality.
On a scale of 1 to 10 (the latter being the best), I rated each of my four purchases a 4. Disappointing. They all sound flat, compressed, and congested.
How is Fox On The Run on your vinyl?
I see none up for sale on eBay, and none up for sale on discogs.
Is it worth pursuing, and rolling the dice if one surfaces? It will probably cost $50+. I am not keen on taking such a gamble, if the vinyl is not better (or barely better) than the digital copies that I own. But if it is a good step up, then I will grab one when it surfaces.
The ones on youtube also sound south of good.
Hey there!
for #1 - yes. Not sure at what point I mentioned it, but I only tested out the built-in to hear how it sounded. Similar to the LP60 built in in my opinion. The Pro-Ject tube is far superior.
#2. And yes! The vinyl version is great sounding and I've owned that copy since the 1980s. Someone else mentioned that I had it wrong in calling it a greatest hits record. Desolation Boulevard has so many good songs on it I always thought it was a compilation.
@@TheJoyofVinylRecords "for #1 - yes. Not sure at what point I mentioned it, but I only tested out the built-in to hear how it sounded."
I missed that. I just checked, and you did mention that you listened to it. But thanks for pointing out that the Pro-Ject unit is far superior.
For #2, I saw that other person's comment, after I wrote my comment, and several pressings are available under the "Desolation Boulevard" title.
I guess that I will roll the dice with an eBay purchase, and keep my fingers crossed for great sound quality. Thanks...
I've always been suspicious of the metal platters on the Technics, but owners seem very happy with them so it must not be an issue.
. OK, then what would you like to talk about?
@@TriAmpHiFi I retract that comment, this channel caters to that market and that is fine.
It just seems there is a lack of coverage on mid level tables ($2500 - $5000).
But obviously that is a smaller segment of the market so I can understand why.
@@pnichols6500 .
Fair enough. But let me ask you to comment. You understand microphonic effects on sound & I was selling retail at Tech HiFi in 1982.
Why am I seeing virtually everyone set-up their rack & gear slightly behind and right between the loudspeakers. It's got to be THE worst spot for tubes & turntables.
So let's nit-pick that horrible trend. I have my guesses as to why, but I'm curious about yours.
Acid Jazz, Funk & Brass 🔈🔉🔊
@@TriAmpHiFi Ignorance on the effects would be the most likely, secondly I would guess limited options to locate elsewhere
@@pnichols6500 .
Well now, I'm not the only one. I might add first, rightly or wrongly, a 20 foot length of diminishing return speaker cable has become just too expensive but they feel a 6 foot length is worth the gain over the loss in performance.
Second reason is social media, prideful picture posting. A show-off wants a single pic with all their impressive gear piled on the ground to display at once. And again at the detriment to performance.
Acid Jazz, Funk & Brass 🔈🔉🔊
Teac has nice products. Any ideas on the TN 175. ? It's another cheap entry level turntable.
Hi Nikolas. The TN-175 is an interesting TT. Seems to be a good entry-level unit. I believe they factory set the anti-skate on it so users don't need to think about it or adjust it - similar to U-Turn's approach.
GM☕️..Teac is the OG of the Esoteric line of equipment…so….if you reach “the end” of your journey it’ll be worth the price.
You're the best Carmine 🍺
@@TheJoyofVinylRecords GM, I’m not trying to be that guy ..sorry if I came across as being a D. Tho, I know a couple of people with extensive vinyl collection ( over 1000 pcs) and realized that at some point they can honestly look at a top tier vinyl playback.
@@carminedesanto6746 I didn't take it that way at all! I always look forward to your comments 🍺
I dont know if I missed it, but did you comment that the cart can be fitted with many other styli? The Microline is a fav of mine.
You can add different carts. Without knowing which carts I can’t say for sure because it depends on the tonearm but it is upgradeable. Love that it is.
@@TheJoyofVinylRecords Of course it can take other carts, but the AT95 cart can be upgraded with better styli. Like I said, I have the Microline on this very cart and it is much more detailed.
@@ediblehorse Got it! Sorry - misunderstood your comment.
where would you rate TECHNICS SL 1300 which i have medium above medium or???
Hi Roger! It wouldn't be fair for me to truly judge as I've never had a chance to spend time with one, but based on what I know and have heard from others it is a great turntable. Solid mid-level and maybe a bit above.
@@TheJoyofVinylRecords that's what i thought above average.Are you familiar with Connie Francis.?
@@rogerturner1881 I sure am 😎
You have a webpage? Cool. 😏
It's a fun little site. I need to add more to it