Technics linear tracking tables (vintage 2ch)

JLStice

Looking to swap out my turn-table. My Pioneer's cartridge died and I'd rather complete the Technics stack so it's a good excuse anyway...

Does anyone here have any experience with the Technics linear tone-head?
I can find the tone-arm Technics (SL-PD22) for easily half the price and twice the availability.
Technics makes a vertical and horizontal table in the old SL-5, I'm looking for something more like the SL-J33, as my Technics stack is that dark bronzy-black anodized color.

I can dream of this one, but I can't afford it - This gorgeous SL-M3

My 2ch, for reference:
Technics SA-GX300 - 2Ch receiver
Technics SL-PD887 - 5 disc rotary cd changer
Sony SS MB300H - 3-way monitors

Also feel free to shamelessly advertise if you have some old Technics gear sitting around.
I'd like to flesh this stack out with the right tape deck eventually. I don't record my vinyl to tape anymore, but a vintage stack just looks empty without the deck under it. I also never had the remotes to these.

So, what's your experiences with them or other linear tracking tables?

A few other brands use the linear system and heard a Linear B&O -once- back when I was a kid. I've always found them really intriguing. And poking around on the eBay You can find some interesting configurations:
This Sony PS-FL7 front-loader
This vertical Sharp that plays both sides

I'm pretty much a 2Ch die-hard...
My old system was a TEAC driving Infinity RSi 10's with the film tweeters, but a room-mate managed to burn that up.
I got into 2Ch as a kid, had an old Panasonic turntable/receiver with the wood cabinet and the big chrome bezel dial AM/FM dials ... which my parents got rid of when I went to college >:(

I might get one of these Polk sound-bar surround systems eventually for movies... maybe.

SCompRacer

I have an old Mitsubishi LT-5V vertical with linear arm in the retro system.




https://youtu.be/T8OjlcJjSEE

Also have an old DIY heavy plinth Lenco idler drive in the main two channel but with newer air bearing linear arm.

mhardy6647

One of these passed through --

P1020533 (1) by Mark Hardy, on Flickr
P1020525 (1) by Mark Hardy, on Flickr

I gave it to a friend's son when he matriculated into college (and wanted to be able to play rekkids).


It was pretty OK.

FWIW -- this is the one and only linear tracking tt that still lives here.

DSC_9813 by Mark Hardy, on Flickr

Dawgfish

I have a Pioneer PL-L1000 Linear Tracker in my rotation:



It's a great sound deck and is a pleasure to use.

JLStice

SCompRacer - That vertical Mitsubishi is just really cool to watch. Thanks for that! The short little Technics arm assembly is not much of a visual element...
Nice build, too.

Mark - A 'pretty OK' from you is saying something, right? When you listened to the SL-5, was it a decent cartridge or the stock panasonic cartridge? I'm guessing it barely holds a candle to that B&O there in either case...

FestYboy

You need either of these:

JLStice

Yes I do, @FestYboy

FestYboy

How close are you? (I'm in Lititz PA)

JLStice

About an hour. I live in Port Deposit. Haven't been to Lititz in a long while.

mhardy6647

I know Port Deposit (MD, at least).

As to the SL-5, it had some A-T cartridge on it. Presumably what it came with, although I dunno. I bought it ($10) at the Harvard MA annual League of Women Voters fall townwide fleamarket. It's a hoot; highly recommended if you're anywhere in or near "MetroWest" any Columbus Day weekend
http://www.harvardfleamarket.com/

I used it for a 'season' whilst recording holiday music, as is my wont, to VHS HiFi Stereo on videocassette media It performed admirably, and those tapes (still) sound good. Early 2000s, give or take.

Nightfall

Yamaha PX-3 here, not going anywhere, I love it.

Gerres26

I don't have much experience with the linear tracking versions but i do run a Technics SL-Q2 with a AT95e cart. Its a quartz lock direct drive table, rock solid and sounds very nice. Due to my current setup I don't listen to vinyl much at all these days unfortunately.... are you in Port Deposit, MD?? I'm right in the North East/Elkton area so i am right down the road possibly

Viking64

Sometime around 1982, a local used audio shop had a linear tracking turntable that I almost bought. It had controls that consisted of two small contacts each between which you placed your finger to make contact.

The shop owner scared me away from buying it because he said that the tonearm rail was a threaded rod with almost microscopic threads. Any miscue as far as control signals to the servo motor would strip the threads and render it useless.

Does anyone have any ideas as to which make/model this could have been? I would love to find a picture of it.

mhardy6647

Sounds like the harman/kardon ST-7. hk used the Rabco linear arm; a very simple design that really worked pretty well. There are rubber bits that wear out & need to be replaced, but I think there are still probably quite a few operational Rabco arms out there.


Scan0015 by Mark Hardy, on Flickr

The ST-6 had "manual" controls; the ST-7 had touch-sensitive switches (like a Philips 212 or 312, e.g.).

Viking64

By George, I think you've got it! Thanks, Mark!

mhardy6647

By 1982, it coulda been an ST-8.
There was an ST-8, but I don't know how much different it really was than the ST-7.

http://www.tonepublications.com/old-school/harman-kardon-rabco-st-7-linear-tracking-turntable/

Viking64

The close-up pic of the tonearm in that link assures me that it is either the 7 or the 8. The controls match my memory perfectly, as does the squareness of the base.

How did I know that you would be able to answer my question so thoroughly, with diagrams no less?

mhardy6647

I am, as a good friend's father once noted, a font of useless information.

JLStice

The Quartz series Direct Drives are spec'd as: "Wow and flutter: 0.025%"
An experienced 'OK' from MHardy, and a 'rock-solid' from Gerres on the Technics Drive so far.
A handfull of linear trackers here, nice. Overall I'm feeling better about giving this a try.

Mark... Somehow I doubt I'm going to find one of these for $10. I do love rummage sales, MA could be a fun trip in October to see a town-wide rummage festival...
I really dig that you use the VHS to it's best (but scarcely known) purpose of HiFi audio. It's an interesting thought to maybe fix the Panasonic TT and pre-amp it to my Panasonic stereo VHS recorder... But I know the first thing I'm gonna hear when a new TT comes through the door is that I gotta get rid of the old one... If I'm not mistaken, get rid of means move it to my office, right?

I'm looking at two J33's on the eBay at the moment:
First is $302 with the stock Panasonic cartridge, looks brand-spanking-new.
Other $240 with an AT cartridge and a nice big scratch on top of it.
I'm leaning to the second one... as the top of my TT often gets used as a base on which the kid puts his 'Sky-Landers' portal - some battles just not worth fighting. With kids, nothing is sacred it seems. If I got the prettier one I'd have to keep it covered.

The belt drive Technics and the tone-arm quartz drive D2 look like $100 range... Is $240 within reason or just milking the supply/demand situation on the linear tracking?

Nightfall - NICE DynaVector. Was it worth it?

@FestYboy - Do you have both sets of those or one each? They'd look real nice on the heavy oak bookshelves here in the living room. The Sony set I have there are loud enough but really don't have much character.

Nice. @Gerres26 you're pretty close, too.

FestYboy

I have both pair, and I'll get measurements for you later tonight... They aren't small...

Gerres26

I'm no expert on the value of the linear tracking tables so I'm not sure of the going rate on those, but the D2 model you talked about is a tone arm model but not quartz lock. Although a good reliable table it doesn't have the same specs as the better "Q" series which is why its value is a little lower. I believe i read somewhere that the Q-1, Q-2, and Q-3 models share the same arm as the Sl- 1600, 1700, and 1800....but i could be mistaken.

gudnoyez

I have a linear tracking Technics that I got from Affes at the PX when stationed overseas might have to dig it out from what I remember it would not track if the album's had minimal warp issues and it got replaced not long after the purchase.

I got a couple of Technics tape decks and a couple of Technics integrateds that I will never part with, a couple of SUV 909's one of the better Technics integrateds before they started making the for the masses all in one junk systems that they started putting put out in the late 80's.

mhardy6647

If I'm not mistaken, get rid of means move it to my office, right?

Sounds good to me; let me know if you need an 'expert witness' to vouch for you!

JLStice

@Gerres26
Q series doesn't see a big price jump between the swing-arm and linear versions. The J series seems to be running twice the price of the Q series, half the price of the 1600.
It does look like the Q1,2,3 have the same arms and head mount as the SL-1600 and so on - that can be swapped out for some more fancier head mounts.
There's a Q300 for about $150 delivered, but it has regular plasticy angled-head tone-arm like my Pioneer here, clearly all Q series are not the same, but they are all the direct drive.

@gudnoyez the Technics do have a relatively short tone arm in the linear version compared to some other brands shown or mentioned above. Interesting to hear it has issues with warped vinyl. Was that an issue right out of the box?

gudnoyez

To the best of my knowledge I was stationed in Germany at the time rarely did you get warped vinyl in German pressings, but the U.S. pressings they had at the PX were usually warped I believe it was due to the shrink wrap.

The record stores in Europe did not have shrink wrap on them and were superior to the ones over here sound wise and quality wise, and yes right out of the box it was finicky with warped albums.

SCompRacer

IME air bearing linear handle warps better than mechanical linear arms.

https://youtu.be/YYD9CIWJELc

[Deleted User]

Years ago I had a Harman Kardon T65c and it was outstanding. Sadly it was stolen by my douchebag roommate along with all my other stereo equipment and crates of albums.

Anyway, that's not the point. I just like to vent. I ended up buying a Revox linear track turntable. That thing was the most finicky piece of crap I've ever owned. I've been soured on linear tracks ever since. You can get a much better spinner with a standard tone arm.

IMHO.

JLStice

I think linear tracking Technics might just be out of the question as a lot of my vinyl collection is old and abused, much of it from rummage sales, and that short arm on may give me a lot of problems in the end.

The linear is still cool, but looks like that's only the case with designs that have more forgiving longer tone arms.

@SCompRacer - that air bearing plays beautifully - I'll consider it down the road when I have a proper listening library and more tinkering space... my solder station is a disaster and lives in my 8x8 office that doubles for tech support and PC build/repair. Having a kid somehow feels like living in one of those tiny-houses... his bedroom used to be my office...

For the retro Technics stack here perhaps the route is to buy a Q2 Q3 or Q303 - all have the better s-shaped arm and head mount on them - like the 1200 tables, just without pitch control knob, etc. Any laying around?

If the silver bothers me down the road I'll do a paint job on the case and probably build an MDF isolator to go under it - I can blend paint up and spray it easily enough.

Gerres26

How much are you looking to spend? As i stated earlier in the thread, I'm currently not using my SL-Q2 due to moving my gear out to the living room (my son took over what was my listening room) so i may be willing to part with it. I also have a non working Q2 that i bought just for spare parts. PM me if you are interested.

SCompRacer

The drawback of air bearing is compressor and plumbing. Fortunately, we have basement where the small compressor lives. I ran air line through wall and used a push-lock fitting in a media wall plate so it’s neater than a hose through a hole in wall or floor. A whole house water filter housing is used for the expansion tank. The reservoir smooth's the pulses of the compressor.

Folks without basements have built insulated boxes and put them in closets. The arm type determines size of compressor. Fortunately, mine uses a compact one, like you’d use for a large fish tank.

What cartridge / stylus do you have? Consider going Shibata stylus if available for your cartridge. Some manufacturers call them micro-linear or by other names. They get deeper into the vinyl groove where a regular stylus -hopefully- hasn’t reached.

Our daughter is long gone and on her own. We love our daughter but it’s kind of nice when they leave the nest. Just me, the wife and cat.

MrBuhl

Part of the system I put together for my teacher son was an SL-Q5, perfectly serviceable and cheap (I think $25 at GW), he's still happily using it.