23.20, he bought a Luxman PD151 Mk2!

Idler drive (garrard301/401) + 12 tonearm with a spu - that is the classic setup you need.

Did the vintage TT thing for years. Nothing wrong with it. Unobtanium parts and repair techs retiring and dying off drove me towards a newer model. Never had any issues with motor noise on vintage DD decks. That is a myth. It's important to note that back in the 70s DD went through a lot of changes and some evolution. Better DD motors were quartz locked and coreless, even in the late 70s and early 80s. DD was not exclusive to Technics either - many Japanese companies made DD decks and not just DJ models.

Really cool choice and setup! Looking forward to seeing and hearing more about your experience! Congrats!

Luxman makes great equipment. I used to own the Luxman PD444 two tonearm version made in the 80’s

I actually have both. Technics and Rega. Technics SL-3300 with Ortofon 2M Mono and Rega Planar 6 with Rega Ania Pro cartridge.

Superb choice, just superb. Luxman has a long distinguished history & well, I approve sir. Looking forward to your appraisal. I too have the swap-out stereo/mono option - you will NOT regret that, especially with OG mono pressings.

Congrats! 🎉🎉🎉

Very cool, man! Congrats!

Congrats on the new table , it's alot to think about when buying something great video

You really covered all of the bases for decision on the Luxman PD-151 MII. The icing on the cake was seeing/hearing/buying the TT. I too like the “vintage look” of turntables and gear and that’s why I have lots of vintage Luxman gear except for their TTs. I use two TTs, one belt drive VPI Scout and a fully automatic vintage Pioneer PL-630, both using LOMC cartridges going into a tube phono preamp (stereo & mono switch) with MM & MC choices. I am looking at the Luxman PD-151 MkII and the PD-151 that has a Jelco tonearm. The next level for Luxman is the PD-191a which is double the price of your 151. You have inspired me to look at buying a “mono” cart. PS - I hope you find the time to level the tonearm, check VTA, tracking force and azimuth when you swap head shells. I hated doing it too but it’s a habit you need to acquire. You found lots of time to market, sell, package and mail a ton of your collection so a few minutes swapping carts will be a breeze. Again, great video and I will subscribe to your channel. Hope you give an update in the future on your 151, maybe even a sound demo.

I just went through a similar process and the ability to swap headshells easily was a key as well. I ended up with the Technics, but can totally see how the clunky styling is not for everyone. The one you picked is beautiful, enjoy!

You made a great choice. A really fine Turntable! It will bring many hours of musical enjoyment to you.

I went through something similar recently. I ended going for the Denon DP-3000NE because I have had nothing but trouble with belt drive speed control and wanted something with automatic speed control. The removable headshell and peace of mind with respect to the speed has made for an awesome experience. The Luxman looks like it detects the speed but still requires you to manually adjust it. This is an interesting solution and I look forward to hearing how that ends up working out for you! Enjoy your new toy.

The more you were providing your criteria the more I thought you were pointing at a Thorens and you got me surprised with your final choice. It looks like a very interesting option and I am looking forward to hearing your take on it. Cheers

I’m right there with you on the Hana carts; that’s the same two I’ve been using. I use the Audio Technica AT LP 240 and it has worked perfectly for me. When many people were complaining that the Chet Baker, Picture Of Heath Tone Poet mono, was cut too hot, mine played perfectly. This turn table is absolutely silent and was purchased from LP Gear in 2015 with not a single problem. I use the iFi Zen phono preamp and a acrylic mat that allows me to check the tracking force on the fly. Good luck with your new equipment!😊

Just for people's information, the Ortofon 2m series has a mono stylus available which can easily be switched onto the cartridge.

Whew! I was scared we were still going to be waiting for what you actually got 😂😂😂. The videos have been structured well. I run a Hana SL on ONE 1200 mk2 and Ortofon Blue/Orange (depending on mood) on ANOTHER 1200 mk2 😂😂😂. I’m joking with you a bit. I didn’t specifically buy the 1200’s, although I do prefer direct drive. I had them so I repurposed them. Luxman popped up on my list while shopping for a new table, but I’m just holding tight for now. I don’t “need” to upgrade. It’s that pesky buying syndrome 😂 The sound of the SL is great! Now my concern is having a back up for when I need a replacement 😂. MC is great, but not being able to replace the cantilever/stylus sucks a little 😂.

Congrats!!!

Nice choice! I'll bet this will be an awesome table!

Solid thought process and an excellent choice! It is one of the most elegant tables that has come out in the recent years. As an ML owner, Hana choice is on point for your cartridges as well. Looking forward to hearing your update on the sound. Enjoy!

Great choice and don’t worry what others think. You bought it for the ease of use to swap between stereo and mono. Hope you have many years or listening pleasure. Greetings from Scotland.🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

If it is anything like their amps, I've owned both vintage & modern Luxman and neither have disappointed. Nice one

Congratlation. Really understanding what you want, carefully reviewing the options out there and making a sound decidion, I would say you did everything right. Luxman is a great company and the Hana's are great cartridges. You will be very happy. Enjoy.

About damn time you got a new turntable. Congratulations ❤👍🏾

Luxman, it"s a great choice. Plus, it looks great as well.

Nice choice! Went to a similar process a while ago. Ended up with a second-hand Micro Seiki DD, wich used to OEM the Luxman back in the day... cheers for the new toys!

Concrats, really great choice, Chris!

What a great video to go through the decision process. I went through this 5 years ago and it was hard!!! I went with the Gem Dandy Polytable which separated itself from so many by having a switchable headshell. Anyway, incredible value and I’m through the roof with sound quality. Aso has VTA adjust, which is super important. Very affordable for the quality, but the look of the table is kinda industrial. Yet it is small and great to operate. I highly recommend.

Wishing you happiness with your turntable choice, WCB. Enjoy your channel immensely! Wished you would have demo’d a turntable from the Technics SL-1200 line. It addresses all of the operational issues you wanted to solve. The mechanical noise complaint is a myth. If this ever was an issue, it was solved a long time ago. There are several workarounds, either DIY or aftermarket, for addressing aesthetic concerns with an inexpensive wooden shell.

All that matters is what you think its your taste and money if your happy with your choice great.

I’d love to see a video of how you set your VTA! Congrats on the new table.

Congrats. I’m sure you’ll be very satisfied.

Hi, nice choice, didn't know this turntable but looks cool. Only point I wanted to mention : the mono cart issue is a bit ''trickier''. Hana SL modern cart has a regular cantilever (ie. lateral and vertical) and - assuming - a dedicated larger stylus for mono records. For early 50's real mono records, you would also benefit having a real ''lateral only'' cartridge plus a even larger stylus, typically conical 1mil (=25µm for us european metric people). This would allow you to get lower noisefloor and best sound out of VG records. Some manufacturer still build such cartridges like Ortofon SPU mono, which would fit your tonearm. Last point : you can add some extra weight to headshell to tune precisely tracking force and be able to swap headhsell + cart assembly, without any adjustement to be done (headshell weight should not be equal, but it should take into account the extra tracking force for mono record if required). This is the best way to do it and it is the way EMT or Ortofon used to do it in the past. For instance EMT had multiple cartridge options, different stylus, different coils, mono and stereo and all could be plugged directly on TT tonearm without any adjustement required. Anyway, enjoy your new setup. J from paris.

Great stuff. My first stereo component as a teen was a Luxman receiver so familiar with the brand. Looks like a nice choice - though I'm a little surprised you like the aesthetics. Totally, with you on the rationale. I don't have near as many Mono records as you and I still want a mono solution! I'm not in a position to buy it now but I have considered my options, much like you did. The one thing that makes me wary about the swappable headshell is my experience with my dad's old TT. I inherited his old 1964-ish Rek-O-Kut turntable which had a swappable headshell. The problem I had with it was that the headshell had a tendency to move a little. It wasn't as rigid as a single piece tonearm. Now, it's likely this was due to age and other factors but, for me, it makes me nervous. Did you consider buying a TT without a tonearm and a tonearm separately that has a swappable headshell? Just thinking this would give you more options for the deck/motor/platter/etc and you can fit it with a tonearm that meets your needs. Not sure this would result in better performance (and likely would be more expensive), just curious if you went down that path. Enjoy listening!

Solid thought process on your vinyl playback dilemma. I’ve owned my Technics 1700 Mk2 (direct drive) for 45 years and never heard motor cog. Still my main table. Two years ago I acquired a Thorens TD318 (belt drive). Now I have both and enjoy both. I think the Luxman actually embodies the aesthetic of both the Technics and the Thorens. Looking forward to your next video with your new table! Cheers!

Fine choices, doin it right.

I came from a Technics SL-B2 and went to a P6. I had the same misgivings about a “DJ table.” I watched a video with the Grado guys being interviewed and they talked about the mono vs stereo carts and they said we make a mono cart if you want to be picky about it, but it doesn’t make a difference (not a direct quote). That sold me on just having a stereo cart and being done with it.

… a good thought process and balanced decision. Hope that you will enjoy the mono and stereo experience once your TT is broken in. Some time ago I had similar criteria for my TT choices. Finally I decided for a German built heavy mass Transrotor series model which is upgradable with a second tonearm. Very flexible as to choices of various tonearms thus cartridge combination choices. And its design is legendary if one likes a miniature oil rig in the room :-)

One thing to keep in mind about the Hana cartridges is that they load optimally at around 470 ohms, many stock MC cart settings preamps are at 100 ohms which will make your cartridges sound really rolled off. It's just a little more work to find a phono preamp that has the right setting for these carts. Can't remember if you had a dedicated phono preamp, I use the Hagerman trumpet MC which is a great match.

Just discovered your channel. When I did choose my TT, I did choose between Technics and Rega since I wanted a classic brand. Did go with Technics for automation, do want to own a Rega at some time also.

Hi did you ever considered the Mac mt 5 or 10 thanks

I considered luxman for my analog setup.. great brand and long analog history. Congrats on your new table!! Happy spinning!!

Went down this rabbit hole recently as well. I agree on the Technics aestethics/DJ look... couldn't do it! I was looking for ease of use/setup in a classy looking package that would still hit all of the audiophile benchmarks. Ended up going with a Dr.Feickert Volare and do no regret it one bit. I primarily listen to stereo format so cart swapping was not a huge consideration. I also have a Hana cart in the ML variety (open box demo at huge discount!) and I love it. Happy listening!

Go call you have picked a winner, Luxman is well loved here in the UK, real high end audio I have a Gyrodec

Nowadays I'm surprised the main comment wasn’t “get a streamer” lol

The Rega philosophy is all about keeping things rigid, and the real reason they don't provide VTA and azimuth adjustment is that it would compromise the rigidity. They simply believe that keeping it all as rigid as possible provides more benefit. The same applies to removable headshells. I personally went from a Clearaudio TT with full adjustment to a Rega, and never bothered about what I'm missing. To be honest, a part of me can't help thinking that people who obsess over VTA or azimuth must have difficulty coping with different record thicknesses, or minor warps.

VPI turntables allow for tonearm swapping. Each tonearm has its own counterweight, so there’s no need extra set up involved after initial set up. Only thing is you’re limited to vpi tone arms and they’re $$$. An extra tone arm costs the same amount that I bought my used vpi classic for.

IMO, you've chosen well for your criteria. In years past, I've owned a PD 121 w Grace 707 arm.Lovely sonics and high precision, quality build.Your new table looks to be of at least equal, and more likely, superior performance to my old classic Luxman.

Your choice is great, and no one with a brain is going to argue about it. I totally respect you liking a vintage-ish look over the “dj” look of the Technics. The only part I’ll quibble about is that you “don’t like” direct drive. Hearing hum on a direct drive is as much a myth as belt drives taking too long to get up to speed. Watch or read an audiophile review of virtually any Technics table. Saying direct drive is somehow audibly inferior is doing a disservice to people that trust your reviews. All that aside-congrats on the new table! I’m saving up for a new one myself.

A deck that accommodates multiple head shells is a must for me. But, that really does eliminate a lot of turntables. I have a Pioneer belt drive that I really like, but I'm thinking of adding a Denon DP-3000NE..

Hey WCB, This is an excellent choice. Congratulations! Luxman offer great build quality and sound and your cartridge choices are excellent. I would make one suggestion if I may. I use Mike Burns at Wolfsong Audio to do my table setups and he is superb. Well worth the investment. Also, I have an extra Jackie McLean Action Tone Poet bought by mistake so if you don’t have it I can sell it to you cheap. I am in the Atlanta area.

Healthy thought process, makes perfect sense, and certainly valid end choice, both for turntable and carts... congratulations... I'm absolutely certain you will enjoy this beautiful analog front end...next step would be : pay attention to your phono preamp/stage

thats alot of money for a cartridge that merely sums the 2 channels a true mono cartridge would require a totally different phono stage as the output signal is vastly different between a stereo/mono vs a true mono cart. the best option is to stick with the mono selector on your amp(assuming its a vintage era amp) as it is most likely disigned >and filtered< to properly reproduce mono from a stereo cartridge,,the mono button was incorporated into these amps for that exact reason as stereo records started becoming more prevalent while many record collections still contained a sizeable mono selection

Wow nice choice, I use a Hana SL, awesome cartridge, I am definitely an eyeing the mono to put on another head shell to do exactly what you're doing.

Great breakdown of the problem. I have a Linn Lp12 (which I love) but would have loved to have been able to switch out the cartridges as well. Any chance you might do a commentary on the different era's of mono pressing and how it differs with the mono cartridge? Great video

Just a great turntable and a great company. You've also gone through a very well thought out process with your needs, wants, and biases. However, every TT needs a dedicated stand because a TT's greatest enemy (and the enemy of electronics as well) are micro-vibrations, and a good, dedicated stand will help eliminate this issue.

My Rega RP3's tonearm (RB303) had bad bearings and rega said they were not available and that the new stoneware (RB330) in that series would cost nearly $700 just for the tonearm. i had the external speed control,I considermost Rega's have poor speed caauracy so in my book it's mandatory. I thought about that but decided it would be nice to have a detachable head shell and that I would like to vary the speed on 78's because many of them were cut at 80 or 82 rpm. Several years back I had a Technics 1900 that I modified for 78 operation and that did have the option of varying the speed but It developed issues that made that table problematic at best. So it looks like direct drive was pretty much a given for me considering my budget. About a month ago I saw some 1200Gr's at a cut price because they were open box and new replacement models meant they were going for less than usual. So I orderered a 1200GR ($1,400) along with a Ortofon 2m Bronze cartridge. I already have a sure M78 and swapping the cart just means I have to Up the tracking force and the antiskate. The Technecs arm allows me to do that by sight without going through any real setup when i swap headshells. The Luxman looks like a very good choice but was not feasable for my pocket book. I've been running the Technics for a couple of weeks and am happy with the sound and the operation of the direct drive.

Who cares what the others think, everything is subjective in this hobby from the music to the equipment. I have heard of the brand you went with more for their amps than table. I like the look. As a metro Atlanta resident now I need to look and see who the dealer is. I like hear the thought process as I'm just getting into vinyl and I do like the process of picking equipment.

good choice, of both table and carts, though I've always felt the Japanese tables are at their best when DD, and I've considered one of the Luxman DD tables myself. In the end I went down the 1200G route, but it was a close call!

I think you did well, I heard the first version of this turntable and thought it was outstanding. Luxman makes outstanding products. Your logic with swapability makes a ton of sense. I have owned over 10 turntables in a life time or more. What phono preamp did you go with and do you have any plans with the extra income from the record sales to upgrade the rest of your system? I love your thought process and I'm glad that you did it this way for those that might be grappling with an upgrade issue. I have a VPI Classic, Technics 1200GR, and a Music Hall MMF2.2. The VPI has the best arm, but more motor noise than the Technics. I midigated the noise on the VPI by applying some Accoustic Gaia III feet The Technics is ultra quiet, cartridge swapable. My phono preamp allows for me to have two turntables connected. The negative thing about the SL1200GR is the cue lever control, which is flimsy by comparison to the rest of the table. I didn't pay full price for it, I got it $500 off of retail during a sale. I have had a couple of records, one being the Miles Davis Kind of Blue original, where the speed adjustment on the Technics came in handy. I have 6 cartridges, but my favorite is a Hana ML, which is an amazing cartridge for the money and it is so good, that I will be buying another one as a back up. If you are not overly committed to that Hana SL and haven't opened it yet, talk to your dealer about the ML and get it, it is that good before jumping off a clip and buying a Hana Blue or Hana Red. The Hana ML is better than it has a right to be at it's price point. I'm sure your dealer will agree with me, you will be smiling ear to ear everytime you play a record, the ML is THAT GOOD!!!

WCB - great choice! A swappable head shell is imo one of the two best choices: two turntables or two swappable headshells. I have heard only good things about Luxman, but have not listened to a Luxman TT yet. Also I am a huge Hana fan and use the Hana mono cart on my dedicated mono turntable. I also own both the Hana SL stereo cart and the Hana ML stereo cart with a preference (big preference) for the microline (“ML”) vs the shibata (“SL”). I gather you went with the two SL set ups due to same weight. My question is could you go with the ML if weight is the only issue (ie not height of cart)? And simply adjust the tracking force using your scale and the to near weight? This is simple and quick. Good luck and happy listening! You are going to loooooove the mono cart. It truly changed my view on jazz listening - I try to buy mono whenever possible.

You tease 😂 Good process good choice Luxman high end amps are very good, their vintage kit holds it's value.

Had a Garrard 401 with 2 tonearms for over 10 years.. plus a vintage Yamaha DD that does not look like a Technics- has a Grace tone-arm. that said the Technics SP10 is a go to. lots more here to say.. food for thought... have a few carts to go...

ENJOY

No, Luxman is very well regarded here. It is just when On a Higher Note was "let go" as distributor, and Luxman built its own US distributorship, prices skyrocketed. People often land on even a McIntosh amp rather than the $$$$ LuxmanUSA demands. I like their turntables but am looking at a Pure Fidelity from Canada. For now my EAT C Sharp does just fine. Congrats on the purchase; again Luxman is a very fine brand.

On mono records are you listening to them through one speaker or two? Why do people have a dedicated mono cartridge if they are still listening on two speakers? All vintage hi-fi books recommend listening to mono records on one speaker preferably deflecting off a wall. I find that few are listening to mono records the way they were designed to be played, on one speaker. Personally, I prefer stereo records but those that are simulated stereo I find often do not sound the best. When listening to mono records I listen to them on a stereo cartridge with two speakers. I don't want to go through the trouble of changing setups for optimal mono listening, which requires moving your speakers around and turning one of them off. On a side note, I like the bayonette style headshell tonearms so it is easy to change out cartridges. Thanks for the video! Happy listening on your new turntable!

I'm also considering the Luxman or a VPI. Surprised VPI wasn't one of your considerations (not a vintage look and doesn't have switchable headshells though). Luxman should have come with 2 headshells.

Please get a stylus timer. they are not expensive and provide a solid idea of when it's time to replace your cart as it's getting worn. A worn stylus can & will ruin records.

Is the Hana ML Mono a MM or MC cartridge?

According to Michael Fremer, Rega make their cartridges so incredibly well that they are already perfectly aligned and you do not need VTA or azimuth adjustments.

I actually thought you would go with a Thorens.

I completely agree about the DJ look of the Technics. That’s a complete turnoff no matter how good they sound.

Luxman Amp coming soon...........

my turntable criteria is a lot more technical than his.

Jesus, Just tell us what you got!! You’ve strung everyone along for how many videos Just show it man!!

You've just fallen into the black hole of upgrading your system, your speakers are next in line to be replaced!

Have owned Luxman DD too... lots here that does not make sense.. their vintage tables are far superior ...

LOL, $5,000+ for a turntable??? Oh yes, I'm SURE you'll hear a difference!🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣