Entry level turntable for my son


Hello all, 
My 16 year old has the same audio sickness as me. He recently approached me about acquiring a turntable for his system. Any recommendations on the entry level stuff from Rega, project, music hall, etc? Should I stick with the newer stuff or look for an older model like a Planar 3 or a MMF-5? I still use my Linn LP 12,  but I hear the newer ones out there have some nice new features the older entry level stuff didn’t. I don’t think he will be looking to do any modifications in the near future, he just wants to spin some vinyl. 
Thanks in advance!
skipper320

Showing 5 responses by cakyol

Maybe the motors were built much better 30 years ago.. Just like pretty much everything else these days
You must be one of the lucky ones.  I used the 'standard' Hurst motor in my Linn Sondek and it broke on me after about 18 months with grinding noises. My point is, I AM talking from experience.

Unless VPI is using a 'specialized' version of the Hurst motor, the issue is there.

At one point, being aware of this issue, I know VPI improved the motor by attaching a brass sleeve to the top bearing but this is a band aid, never a proper solution.

An axial motor without two bearings is bound to fail sooner or later.  It is a design flaw.


Cheaper/earlier  VPIs use the Hurst motor which does NOT have a lower bearing on the motor (God knows why they designed that s..t like that) ?
In a year or so, motor starts getting destroyed.  Keep away from any turntable which uses the Hurst synchronous motors.