[a.wayne]

It was , with multiple tables I never attempted to deal with it and gave  it to  a friend who wanted an analog setup, he did replace the Grado..

That is odd.

[DavidS]

could the tonearm on this table (the Pioneer) be swapped out easily or would it involve major surgery?

[*Scotty*]

a.wayne, regarding that Microseiki and Grado combination, I'm thinking that bitch Karma is involved in this somewhere. Short of corrosion in a ground connection, if it worked without humming along when it was stored it shouldn't be humming now. That being said, the Grado is like a mine sweeper, a sensor hooked up to a high gain circuit and very effective as a detector of EM fields.
Scotty

[a.wayne]

Yeah i figured aged wiring or old motor issues could be at fault,  the table/ Arm was re-wired and a Denon installed, all's well .....

[Lymbo90]

could the tonearm on this table (the Pioneer) be swapped out easily or would it involve major surgery?

I wouldn't want to try it and frankly I like the tonearm.  Kevin from KAB ought to think about checking this table out to see if he could apply some of his upgrades to it.  I love the work he did on my 1200.  And apparently this Pioneer is selling pretty well.  My local Guitar Center can't keep them stocked and said there are a lot of people buying them for home listening.  I imagine a lot of people would send them to Kevin for tonearm rewiring, fluid dampening systems, psu's, strobe and Isonoes.  But I imagine he gets enough 1200's to keep him plenty busy.

I know there will always be people that say this table is crap but I really don't care anymore.  I'm enjoying the hell out of mine.  It has far exceeded my expectations. When I bought it, I honestly thought, "this is going to be like the AT-LP1240 I bought and returned quickly." But I was dead wrong.

[neobop]

Lymbo90,
Welcome to vinyl circle.  Glad you decided to post.

could the tonearm on this table (the Pioneer) be swapped out easily or would it involve major surgery?

With a fully manual table the biggest problem would be devising a mounting surface (armboard) and physically securing the new arm at the right distance and height.   This would probably eliminate 12" arms unless you took extreme measures.  I don't know about the PLX-1000 arm bearings, but Pioneer took a different approach to arm damping/microphonics - it's internal:



I read somewhere (here?) there is some play in the bearings.  This might be an isolated instance, but it should be an easy fix.  There will be a service manual.  I don't know if it's widely available yet.  A better arm could cost more than the table.  If there's a problem with a new table, send it back.
neo

[Lymbo90]

There is an issue with some of the tables having loose tonearm bearings.  A friend of mine got one but his replacement was fine.

I discovered the buzz Wayner was talking about.  I tried the supplied headshell and wow...buzzzzzz.  Immediately swapped it out with my Ortofon headshell and dead quiet.  So I definitely don't think it was the Grado.  The Pioneer headshell blows!

[Lymbo90]

Lymbo90,
Welcome to vinyl circle.  Glad you decided to post.

With a fully manual table the biggest problem would be devising a mounting surface (armboard) and physically securing the new arm at the right distance and height.   This would probably eliminate 12" arms unless you took extreme measures.  I don't know about the PLX-1000 arm bearings, but Pioneer took a different approach to arm damping/microphonics - it's internal:



I read somewhere (here?) there is some play in the bearings.  This might be an isolated instance, but it should be an easy fix.  There will be a service manual.  I don't know if it's widely available yet.  A better arm could cost more than the table.  If there's a problem with a new table, send it back.
neo

Thanks Neo!

[Art_Chicago]

There is an issue with some of the tables having loose tonearm bearings.  A friend of mine got one but his replacement was fine.

I discovered the buzz Wayner was talking about.  I tried the supplied headshell and wow...buzzzzzz.  Immediately swapped it out with my Ortofon headshell and dead quiet.  So I definitely don't think it was the Grado.  The Pioneer headshell blows!

Do you mind to post the model # for that Ortofon headshell?

[Lymbo90]

Do you mind to post the model # for that Ortofon headshell?

SH-4..comes in Red, Blue, Pink, Black and Silver.

I also tried one of my Technics headshells and didn't experience any problems.

[NIGHTFALL1970]

With the Ortophon headshell can you set a Lofgren B curve?

[jsaliga]

I only want to add that I bought a PLX-1000 and set it up last Friday.  Listened to it all weekend.  I did some homework before the purchase and was aware that a headshell with longer slots was needed to obtain a baerwald alighnment, so I ordered a couple of headshells when I bought the table.  I also purchased a Way Excellent II mat from Herbie's Audio Lab and some Sorbothane boots from KAB.  The cartridge I am using is a Nagaoka MP-200.  After about 25 hours of listening to a lot of rock, jazz, and classical LPs I think the table is a keeper.  Very solid build quality and excellent performance in my opinion.  I had no problems with alignment and the VTA adjustment.  The antiskate works fine on my table.  And I get absolutely no hum (all of my audio gear is run through a power conditioner).  I agree, however, with the earlier comment about the tonearm queuing lever -- it is not sufficiently damped to give the stylus a gentle ride down into the lead-in groove so I handle that chore manually.

As a point of reference I have at one time or another had the following setups over the last 10 years.

Garrard 401 in custom walnut plinth with two Jelco arms and Ortofon SPU stereo and mono MC carts
SOTA Star Sapphire Vacuum Platter turntable with an SME 309 tonearm and Ortofon Jubilee MC cart (boron cantilever and nude shibata stylus)
Rega P7 with Benz Glider MC cartridge

I can't say that any of the above tables were better for spinning records than the Pioneer PLX-1000.  Feel free to take that with a large grain of salt if you like.  But I am very pleased so far with the Pioneer and will be buying a second unit with a mono cartridge that will be used only for mono LPs cut in  the 1950s and 60s (I have a large collection of them).

For those sitting on the fence my suggestion is that you Google for as many documented owner experiences as you can find.  You are doing yourself a disservice if you are making buying decisions based on one person's review and perspective -- everyone has some degree of bias whether they care to admit it or not.  Some of us PLX-1000 owners knew what we were buying going in and didn't mind spending a few extra dollars to get the most out of the turntable.  And people should accept that no product is without its detractors and that in manufacturing some very small percentage of products will be defective.

What the PLX-1000 seriously lacks is audio snob appeal (not really a problem for me but it will be a deal breaker for some).  It is not massively over-engineered and will not attract people with more upscale tastes who care as much if not more about aesthetics as they do performance.  But purely as a platform for spinning records I would not hesitate to recommend the PLX-1000 to someone who wants excellent vinyl playback performance but doesn't want to spend a small fortune to get it.

--Jerome

[jsaliga]

Lymbo90,
Welcome to vinyl circle.  Glad you decided to post.

With a fully manual table the biggest problem would be devising a mounting surface (armboard) and physically securing the new arm at the right distance and height.   This would probably eliminate 12" arms unless you took extreme measures.  I don't know about the PLX-1000 arm bearings, but Pioneer took a different approach to arm damping/microphonics - it's internal:



I read somewhere (here?) there is some play in the bearings.  This might be an isolated instance, but it should be an easy fix.  There will be a service manual.  I don't know if it's widely available yet.  A better arm could cost more than the table.  If there's a problem with a new table, send it back.
neo

I read on another forum that Pioneer was letting these go out with a little play in the arm bearings, but after following some of the forum posts and receiving customer feedback they have taken the play out.  I don't know how true that is but the bearings on my arm had no play.  Motion was effortless and smooth in both directions with no wobble at all.

--Jerome

[Wayner]

There is an issue with some of the tables having loose tonearm bearings.  A friend of mine got one but his replacement was fine.

I discovered the buzz Wayner was talking about.  I tried the supplied headshell and wow...buzzzzzz.  Immediately swapped it out with my Ortofon headshell and dead quiet.  So I definitely don't think it was the Grado.  The Pioneer headshell blows!

It was the Grado. The hum changed with the cartridge's relative position to the platter, and I was also using a Technics headshell when I did the Grado hum test.

[Wayner]

I only want to add that I bought a PLX-1000 and set it up last Friday.  Listened to it all weekend.  I did some homework before the purchase and was aware that a headshell with longer slots was needed to obtain a baerwald alighnment, so I ordered a couple of headshells when I bought the table.  I also purchased a Way Excellent II mat from Herbie's Audio Lab and some Sorbothane boots from KAB.  The cartridge I am using is a Nagaoka MP-200.  After about 25 hours of listening to a lot of rock, jazz, and classical LPs I think the table is a keeper.  Very solid build quality and excellent performance in my opinion.  I had no problems with alignment and the VTA adjustment.  The antiskate works fine on my table.  And I get absolutely no hum (all of my audio gear is run through a power conditioner).  I agree, however, with the earlier comment about the tonearm queuing lever -- it is not sufficiently damped to give the stylus a gentle ride down into the lead-in groove so I handle that chore manually.

As a point of reference I have at one time or another had the following setups over the last 10 years.

Garrard 401 in custom walnut plinth with two Jelco arms and Ortofon SPU stereo and mono MC carts
SOTA Star Sapphire Vacuum Platter turntable with an SME 309 tonearm and Ortofon Jubilee MC cart (boron cantilever and nude shibata stylus)
Rega P7 with Benz Glider MC cartridge

I can't say that any of the above tables were better for spinning records than the Pioneer PLX-1000.  Feel free to take that with a large grain of salt if you like.  But I am very pleased so far with the Pioneer and will be buying a second unit with a mono cartridge that will be used only for mono LPs cut in  the 1950s and 60s (I have a large collection of them).

For those sitting on the fence my suggestion is that you Google for as many documented owner experiences as you can find.  You are doing yourself a disservice if you are making buying decisions based on one person's review and perspective -- everyone has some degree of bias whether they care to admit it or not.  Some of us PLX-1000 owners knew what we were buying going in and didn't mind spending a few extra dollars to get the most out of the turntable.  And people should accept that no product is without its detractors and that in manufacturing some very small percentage of products will be defective.

What the PLX-1000 seriously lacks is audio snob appeal (not really a problem for me but it will be a deal breaker for some).  It is not massively over-engineered and will not attract people with more upscale tastes who care as much if not more about aesthetics as they do performance.  But purely as a platform for spinning records I would not hesitate to recommend the PLX-1000 to someone who wants excellent vinyl playback performance but doesn't want to spend a small fortune to get it.

--Jerome

If you use a blank disc to see the performance of the AS, you will discover that the AS is pretty much non-existent until the dial is set in the extreme positions, as with other tables made by this company. I will not subject my record collection to wear from an ineffective AS feature.

[jsaliga]

I wasn't with you when you tested your Pioneer.  You also were not here when I was setting up my table.  You have no idea whatsoever about how my specific table is functioning beyond what I have already said.  To set antiskate I use the blank side of a classic records 45RPM 180g LP.  On my table the scale is set to 2.0 to get accurate antiskate for my cartridge, which has a 1.7g VTF.  I never consider the scales on these knob-type AS adjusters to be perfectly calibrated from the factory.  Even my SME 309 was not a perfect 1:1 calibrated scale with VTF.

I don't doubt what you say is true, but your comments are only valid for the specific unit you reviewed.  You would do well to refrain from making assumptions that every PLX-1000 will behave exactly the same way as the unit you had.  For all we know the antiskate adjustment on your tonearm was broken or defective.

My point is that my experience with the PLX-1000 is not the same as yours and we should leave it at that.

--Jerome

[Wayner]

Well, so much for mass production and uniformity.

[Rocket]

Hi,

Last time I read Wayner was the person who started this thread and his conclusions are appreciated.  If you disagree with his comments just start your own thread.  Wayner has a wealth of experience and a good reputation on Audiocircle regarding his knowledge of turntables.  He currently does work for Audio by Van Alstine and does the Longhorn modifications to the grade line of cartridges.

Cheers Rod

[RDavidson]

Seems like healthy discussion to me. Nothing wrong with that. This is a forum. Because one starts a thread, doesn't make them the "owner" of anything. That requires publication.

[woodsyi]

Different experiences and perspectives are welcomed.  I think it's good here.  Thanks for staying respectful of others.