Just an observation here, but????????


Is it me or has anyone else noticed the change in turntables designs from with sub chassis to without? Is there any manufacturing or acoustical reasoning behind this?
joes44
It’s all about trade offs. No matter what drive method, design based on suspension or unsuspended mass, or a balance in between, or multi plinthed.They ALL have trade offs in their inherent strengths and weakness’s of design. The more you pay initially, or the more you pay in tweeks and time will determine how few weakness’s are left.
Just pick the poison that suits your needs and what it needs to do and not do and how far your willing to have to reach up your backside to pay for it. A properly set up table/arm/cart that won’t damage the grooves of the record and when played through the owners system pleases her / his requirements......is all that matters.
There always seems to be exceptions to the rule in vinyl as well. Not all tables need or sound well on a mass shelf as some prefer a light support and sound better for it as just one example of the many exemptions to the rule or generalized beliefs many (incorrectly) take as gospel.
They all can be manufactured to sound good (relative), and all can be set up to sound bad. Its a personal thing,....including some with the inability to set and dial in and accepting mediocrity from under achieving set up, then believing its the product ……
I have witnessed it and heard it in dealers showrooms of all places......
also one of the biggest problems I see...is people often really don't know exactly what they want and thus accept someone else's wishes that often end up not matching their own......
Orpheus 10

My ex wife work at Teac in 1975.  Lots of my friends had reel to reel tape decks.  Straight vinyl always sounded more real than vinyl to tape.  Now master tape before vinyl could be a whole other game.  Good news about her working at teac was I got Acuphase and Micro Seiko below dealer cost.

If your vinyl system is dailed in having the tape mellow it out is not a good thing.

Enjoy the ride 
Tom

Tom, you have left out too many specifics and specifications for your post to be valid.

How many reels did you own? I have owned Akai, Teac, Technics, and Otari.

The reel does not compete with the turntable, it is used to make vinyl more enjoyable with less work.

The best 1/4 track reels will duplicate your turntable precisely enabling you to listen to your records without the hassle, and danger to your precious record of being handled. Quarter track decks use half as much tape as half track decks, and deliver less quality.

When speaking of record and playback, 7 1/2 IPS is my preferred speed for home recording, 15 IPS is reserved for live or professional recording.

The size of the tape head makes the most significant difference in the quality of sound, which is why a cassette does not sound as good as a reel, and 1/4 track won't sound as good as 1/2 track, other things being equal.

The reason the playback sounds better on 1/2 track is because of the size of the tape head; what you have recorded will be magnified, made larger.


    https://www.google.com/search?q=difference+between+1/4+tape+head+and+1/2+tape+head&tbm=isch&...