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Showing posts with the label Thorens

Trio Kenwood KD-1033 turntable main bearing service

  One of my first posts in this blog was regarding the servicing of the Pioneer PL12D turntable, and that has proven to be the most popular by a significant margin. The Pioneer PL12D had its competitors, and probably the most popular alternative was the Trio Kenwood KD-1033 turntable. I use both names (Trio and Kenwood) as the company operated under different names in different markets. In the UK they were Trio, possibly because the brand Kenwood was most famous here for food blenders. 95% of a KD-1033 is similar to  Pioneer PL12D, and servicing them is very much the same process. Both are belt drive , have an AC synchronous motor,  mechanical speed change , a main bearing, sprung top deck and rubber motor mounts. the KD-1033 uses a different type of anti skate mechanism, employing a thread and weight. The plinth is shallower with an internal cross brace. One aspect that is different is the design of the main bearing, and servicing it is a little harder than a PL12D. The ...
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Bracing IKEA EXPEDIT or KALLAX cabinets for greater rigidity when used with a turntable

The inevitable problem, too many records. Turntable and amplifier on top Like many record collectors around the world, I have a number of IKEA cube cabinets from both their EXPEDIT (older) and KALLAX (newer) ranges. These are easy to make, cheap to buy and perfect for record storage. The system comes flat packed and uses bolts and dowels to hold the system together. If you follow the instructions  the system is strong and should not collapse. You can augment the joints with PVA wood glue for extra strength. My turntable sits on top of an EXPEDIT 2x4 cabinet, laid along the long side, with some felt feet to support it from the floor, and you can use KALLAX in the same way. It's been great but has two problems I wanted to address : 1) Because the system has no back panel, the records  can be pushed too far back. 2) While the structure is strong and fairly rigid, there was some lateral movement. With heavy equipment on top, I found that if I nudged or knocked either top side, thi...
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Excellent Cartridge review site

A feature of many of these blogs is my interest in vinyl records and turntables. Over the years I've acquired and restored a number of decks, all of which came with a cartridge, but were they worth keeping ? Well my  friend , and fellow fan, Clive,  has created a wonderful resource with a great deal of invaluable detail about a wider range of cartridges, and reviewed in classic decks like the PL12D, Rega Planar 2 and the Technics SL1200. Well worth visiting for the insight and detail around things such as optimal capacitive loading , for example PHONO CARTRIDGE REVIEWS
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The Thorens TD280 MK IV turntable

I like to  fix up old turntables, especially odd or unloved examples. I've posted blogs on other decks , and back in November I saw a Thorens TD280 on ebay at a very low cost,  close to where I live. I prefer to collect, as decks need careful packing. In the end I bid and won the deck, a Thorens TD280 MK IV. I am very familiar with the Thorens brand, my father had a classic TD150 MkII followed by a TD 160 - both classics from the Golden era of the 70's. I read that the deck was a late model, and while not a classic Thorens, was widely liked by people who had owned one.  the TD280 is from the mid 80's when CD had started to put a lot of turntable manufacturers out of business, and like the Ariston Q-deck, was a bit of a final gasp from a declining industry. I got the auction for £64 as the external power supply had been lost, but I was sure I could source a new one. A bit of research indicated the external power supply is 16v AC,  and I happened to know this...
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