[Nick77]

I wanted to upgrade my turntable but couldn't afford a better modern deck. So i found this mint Sony PS-X70 with Yamaha MC-1 cart. I haven't had a moving coil before so i am excited to upgrade on a budget. Should have this in a few days. 





 

[orthobiz]

Nice looking deck. I set up a Sony for a friend recently and was impressed by the high quality build. It was heavy and solid.

Paul

[Nick77]

Nice looking deck. I set up a Sony for a friend recently and was impressed by the high quality build. It was heavy and solid.

Paul

Thanks Paul, i just got it. I am very pleased, sounds great. But i sure could use a hand getting it fine tuned. 

[TheChairGuy]

Way to go, Nick.

Once you get the basic deck, cartridge and phono amp situation sorted....read up on plasticlay or non-hardening modelling clay and what it can do to make your very decent Sony player into something truly better 

[bpape]

I used to have that exact same table.  I found that removing the 'automatic' guts and damping the case with Mortite made a significant difference in a variety of ways.

Bryan

[simoon]

Way to go, Nick.

Once you get the basic deck, cartridge and phono amp situation sorted....read up on plasticlay or non-hardening modelling clay and what it can do to make your very decent Sony player into something truly better 

I used to have that exact same table.  I found that removing the 'automatic' guts and damping the case with Mortite made a significant difference in a variety of ways.

Bryan

I was going to recommend the same thing.

This simple mod is well worth the effort. You will notice quieter backgrounds and  more information retrieved from the vinyl once you damp that plinth.

[Nick77]

Way to go, Nick.

Once you get the basic deck, cartridge and phono amp situation sorted....read up on plasticlay or non-hardening modelling clay and what it can do to make your very decent Sony player into something truly better 

Thanks........  Gosh the thing weighs 29lbs, can it really benefit from plasticlay?  I will check it out.

[bside123]

Thanks........  Gosh the thing weighs 29lbs, can it really benefit from plasticlay?  I will check it out.

No doubt about it! Additional mass and damping does wonders. Plastic Clay works great. Love the stuff!

[Wayner]

The plinth of Sony tables of that era were made from a non-resonant molding compound. My Sony PS-X5 and PS-X7 are also made from this stuff. It's very heavy.

The linkage of the semi-automatic/automatic feature decouples from the tonearm when the tonearm is in the play position. Sony also uses a lamp and baffle system to activate the linkage for auto-return which is kind of a neat idea for the time.

The PS-X5 and PS-X7 also have a different tonearm parking system, that keeps the arm in the que up position. At first this kind of pissed me off, because it made cartridge alignment somewhat of a hassle, but in the case of the X5, one only had to unplug the deck when the arm was in the play mode. In the case of the X7, this trick does not work and the que lift pad had to be removed, but this is easily done with an Allen wrench and one set-screw.

I think many of the Sony decks of this era are highly collectable, as they more then likely still work very well.

I'm sure the PS-X70 will be an excellent performer (for the money) but I'm unsure what the extra plasticlay may do. Of course, it wont do any harm, either.

W

[simoon]

The plinth of Sony tables of that era were made from a non-resonant molding compound. My Sony PS-X5 and PS-X7 are also made from this stuff. It's very heavy.

I'm sure the PS-X70 will be an excellent performer (for the money) but I'm unsure what the extra plasticlay may do. Of course, it wont do any harm, either.

W

What great information!

I guess I made the assumption that the plinth was more like most of the standard Japanese tables that came out at the time. Cheap and plastic.

[neobop]

Hi Nick,
I found that the PS-X50 did benefit from some modeling clay, although not as much as other decks with a hollow wooden plinth. Just be careful to keep it away from the arm mechanism and you might want to give the motor a little breathing room.

You'll find the owners manual and service manual in the Vinylengine library.  Even if you don't need repair, the service manual will tell you how to adjust the vertical bearings and end of record pick-up point. If you flip your mat upside down, you'll see two overhang alignment grids. The one marked 235 is for your arm.





This will give you factory alignment, which is close to Stevenson.  If you wish to change to a Loefgren alignment, it will probably require a headshell with longer slots. My arm is free to align with the power off. The cueing isn't engaged so just remember to use the arm lock if you're moving the table. BTW, the stock headshell weighs 11.4g w/wires. You can reduce the eff mass a few grams with a lighter headshell. This is a modified cheapo shell with longer slots and the front lip ground off - 7.4g.  Cart is AT-15SS.







The arm height adjustment can be used on the fly. After you loosen the wing, just don't let it get away from you.  I have and have owned, much more expensive tables.  I've always liked these Sonys so I picked this up around 5 yrs ago and I'm glad I did. With the right cart, these sound really good, and not just for the money.
One more thing, have fun and congratulations.

[Miney]

Nice Kit...

Some interesting info from thervintageknob.org...

The PS-X70 was carefully engineered:  BSL motor with Magnedisc barium-ferrite readout, urethane-coated Litz wires, carbon-charged tonearm, gold-plated contacts and adjustable VTA.

The J-shaped tonearm is a PUA-7 (available separately for 30,000¥) and a simplified version of the PUA-9 fitted on the PS-X9 masterpiece - ain't this neat ?

The PS-X70 was also carefully designed with Sony's unmatched mix of shiny & matte textures & assorted colors - looks do count as well when it comes to sales


Along the PS-X50, the PS-X70 is the original of the series : the PS-X60 and PS-X40 are later versions.

Like the earlier PS-X7, the X70 turned out to be one of Sony's bestselling turntable - and it wasn't cheap. The entire series is part of the most sold japanese turntables : there are tens of thousands of them around.


Add in a Denon DL-160 or a Sony XL-55 (the PUA-7 deserves good moving-coil cartridges, even heavyweights like the old DL-103) and you will be stunned by the results.

Quality, reliability and convenience all rolled into one : japanese engineering at its best.

Enjoy!

[Wayner]

IMHO, the stock platter mat has to go. It's too hard. I use my own mats on my Sony tables, made from 3/32 open cell sponge EPDM. I do not have any left, unfortunately.

Here is my PS-X5 and X7:




W

[wushuliu]

I wanted to upgrade my turntable but couldn't afford a better modern deck. So i found this mint Sony PS-X70 with Yamaha MC-1 cart. I haven't had a moving coil before so i am excited to upgrade on a budget. Should have this in a few days. 

Dude, just got hold of an X50 for super cheap. Oh man it sounds so frickin' good.

[Bob2]

Nick77,
great find! Same thing happened to me a few months back and
Wayner told me the same thing, "the stock platter mat has to go"
He was correct! New matt helped a bunch.
Nice to see some of this older gear getting back in the game.

[Nick77]

Bob, I never did get a new mat, what are you using? Looked at cork but never pulled the trigger.

Wush, i still cant hardly believe how good it sounds. Always wondered what it might compare too when upgrade time comes.

[Bob2]

Hey Nick,
made my own matt from this:http://www.mcmaster.com/#catalog/119/3545/=q9wmpf
12X12X.125 for about $20

Looks like this:


Same thickness as the original matt. I cut this on a laser cutter but you could use the old matt as a guide..
I'm not crazy about the color but what the hey!

[dlaloum]

Take good care of the Yamaha MC1 cartridge - that there is a legendary cart. one of the all time greats - very very low mass stylus.

The whole combo is quite a steal.

[Nick77]

Take good care of the Yamaha MC1 cartridge - that there is a legendary cart. one of the all time greats - very very low mass stylus.

The whole combo is quite a steal.

Thanks, Ive found very little information concerning the cart, but suspected it was special. Im certainly very impressed with what Im hearing, amazing detail. I am still very curious as to what would be an upgrade from here?

[dlaloum]

There isn't one.

The effective tip.mass on the mc1 is lower than anything currently made.

You can find.more coloured cartridges, and you may prefer them, but technically that cartridge is one of the best ever made.