WHEN BUYING TABLES...

rock2russia · **Posted:** Tue Sep 02, 2003 10:22 pm

hey... when buying turntables, what are some essentials you should pay attention to, and what distinguishes good tables from bad?

obviously nobody wants to pay a fortune for tables unless they are full of money, but at the same time some of us are willing to make a bit more money in order to get a quality product, which is how i feel.

any comments are well appreciated.

Bemps · **Posted:** Wed Sep 03, 2003 12:25 am

Most people will say buy technics. I kinda agree. Things to look for might be first, are the tables belt drive or direct drive? I started off with Stanton str8 50s, belt drives. The tables were mostly plastic and the belts on the tables didn't always seem reliable, and the torque is much lower on these than on more expensive models. I've upgraded to technics mk2 1200s and they are sooo much better. My advice would be to try to practice on a friend's tables for a while to get an idea if this is something you really want to do, and seriously, I'd say go for technics or another decent direct drive table. In the case of tables, what you pay is what you get. Technics are built extremely well and can take a lot of abuse.

rock2russia · **Posted:** Wed Sep 03, 2003 1:21 am

thanks man i appreciate the help... but in addition to the questions in the first post i made i also have a few questions for you (bemps) in regards to your post.

first of all, what is the difference between belt drive and direct drive? what are the pros and cons of each and which do you suggest?

i was also wondering, when you personally got into this did you know from the start you were gonna get serious about it, or did it kinda escalate from a hobby to a more serious hobby (or into perhaps a performer, if you are one)? if you knew you were going to get serious, i was just curious as to why you wouldnt have just bought a decent set of tables to begin with, since im guessing it was probably costly to buy a new set of tables. thanks man, your comments are well appreciated!

cheers

Bemps · **Posted:** Thu Sep 04, 2003 12:52 am

I don't know all the ins and outs of direct drive vs belt drive, but physically, belt drive is run literally by a larg rubber band-like "belt." Direct drive tables run from a motor and have not belt. People are advised not to scratch with belt drive tables as it might mess up the belt, but I just beatmatch anyways. All in all, direct drive just feel better when using them. They seem more smooth.

I've been listening to different styles of electronic music for a long time, but only in the past 3-4 years gotten into almost exclusively dancy stuff. The thought just hit me one day to be a dj. I thought about getting cdjs but then opted for tables. In retrospect, I wish I had just waited and saved up for better tables. I guess I was just in a hurry to start learning to beatmatch... but I know its hard to wait once you get an idea to do something, but I'd still suggest trying to find someone who has them to test it out. I wasn't totally sure I'd stick with it at first, but its really such a blast to mix!