biketony,
I didn't own the Classic for very long but in the brief time I did, it didn't outperform my Thorens. My Thorens does have some low rumble noise at higher volumes that the VPI did not. I currently have a $300 cart mounted to my Thorens (with stock tonearm) and it sounded better than the VPI with a Soundsmith Carmen. The VPI clearly ran slow while my Thorens holds almost perfect speed, even without a speed controller. The Thorens just has that great belt-drive analog fluidity and ease to the sound. To me, the Classic sounded like a worn out cassette tape.
From what I've gathered, the older Classic 1s are far superior to recent production models, mostly due to the differences in the motor. I was told the motor is mounted to the steel top plate of the plinth on the older models, but the newer ones, including the example I received, have the motor screwed directly to the wood underneath the top plate. I was told the newer motors are inferior. I won't divulge his name, but I received this info from a very well known and respected audiophile.
Most Classics are going for somewhere between 2 and 3K. There's many options in this price range, including the Roksan Radius.
