Turntable: Thorens TD 190 or Music Hall MMF-5

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  • Tapesh
    Junior Member
    • Oct 2003
    • 21

    Turntable: Thorens TD 190 or Music Hall MMF-5

    Recently with the help your help I have decided to go with either of these two. Please help me decide which one is better. I am new to technology so don’t understand all the terms.

    Thorens TD 190

    Three speeds
    Automatic
    German tech, should be good quality & reliable.

    MMF-5

    Two speeds only
    Manual
    Scary details-oil & lubricant may be flowing around. as per website.

    Don’t know who has better arm & cartridge

    Thanks

    Tapesh
  • David Meek
    Moderator Emeritus
    • Aug 2000
    • 8938

    #2
    Hi Tapesh, I hope you don't mind, but I edited your post to turn the TT names into direct links using the addresses you supplied. If you are interested, it's easy to do, just edit your post to see the modifications.

    Thorens has a very devoted following and for good reason. They've made good quality products for a long time. For me though, the Music Hall would be the choice. Belt drive (smoother motion than direct drive - better isolation), split plinth design (better isolation), supplied Gold Ring cartridge and record clamp, and all at a very good price. Also, don't let the lubricated bearing worry you. It's a "once- or twice-a-year peek at the level of the oil" operation. And again, IMO it's better from a smoothness of operation/rotation standpoint.

    Regardless, listen to the same 2 or 3 albums on both units and then vote with your ears. Listen in your home if possible, so that way, you'll know exactly what each will sound like in your system. Good luck and let us know what you decide.




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    Comment

    • Sonnie Parker
      • Jan 2002
      • 2858

      #3
      I didn't even know Thorens was still around.

      My dad was telling me the other day that he still had the Thorens Jubilee Turntable that I gave him 15 years ago. That was one fine turntable... heck I still have an extra belt for it. All I need is a good needle and it would probably still work.






      SONNIE

      Cedar Creek Cinema

      DVD Collection

      BFD Comprehensive Setup Guide

      Comment

      • Burke Strickland
        Moderator
        • Sep 2001
        • 3161

        #4
        Thorens was the king of turntables in the "golden era" of LPs. It is still riding on that reputation of 20 years ago when it made "bullet proof" products. In fact, when I set out to find a new turntable a few years ago, Thorens was at the top of my list. But unless Thorens has done something in the last three to four years to significantly beef up its support in North America, I'd suggest getting something else. At the time I was looking, a dealer of my acquaintance who carried the Thorens line strongly urged me to look at the Rega or Music Hall lines (even though he didn't carry either one and therefore lost a sale) based on the experience of his Thorens customers whose relatively new Thorens units broke down all too frequently and the trouble he had trying to get parts for them.

        The Thorens products are beautifully designed but the newer ones reportedly haven't held up in ordinary use (we're not talking about disco DJ operation -- just listening to vinyl in a home environment). They kind of remind me of a European automobile I had a few years ago -- beautiful to look at, but way over-engineered to the point that it could be worked on only by the dealer and they often had to wait for parts -- it sat in the dealer's garage as often as it did in my driveway. I'd hate to have a turntable that looks like modern art, but only has the functionality of sculpture. :>)

        For full disclosure, I bought the Rega Planar 3 with the RB300 tone arm (comes standard) mated to a Grado Platinum cartridge. It has worked flawlessly for over four years now and the updated P3 model continues to get excellent reviews. (It does not have oil running all over it, either.) :>) If you absolutely have to have a turntable that plays 78s, Rega makes one of those as well, which is essentially a Rega Planar 2 modified at the factory to run at 78 rpm. I own one of those too, (with a Rega 78 cartridge) and it also works admirably well. Actually, having the 78s on a separate turntable reduces the complexity of the design and therefore increases the expected reliability of the mechanism. In any case, you need a different cartridge (or stylus) for 78s vs. 33/45 LPs and having the two tables means the two cartridges are always properly mounted and ready to go.

        Good luck -

        Burke

        What you DON'T say may be held against you...

        Comment

        • Whozit
          Junior Member
          • Jan 2003
          • 10

          #5
          I bought my TD190 about 9 months ago. Because of placement, I had to have a fully automatic turntable, and it was the best price/performance I could find. While the Thorens is not a purist turntable, it has proven to be well worth the price for playing my vinyl collection. Even though it sits on a bookshelf, it seems to be well isolated. The Ortofon cartridge is OK, and it is mechanically solid.

          If auto vs manual is no big deal, get the MMF-5, but IMO the Thorens is the best sub $400 fully automatic turntable available.

          Comment

          • Bob
            Senior Member
            • Jul 2000
            • 802

            #6
            I would go with the Music Hall. It takes really superior engineering and great expense to make a direct drive TT that has less vibration than most belt driven TTs. Vibration control is of the utmost importance with TTs. Don't worry about the oil/bearing, it really is a non issue. People that are unfamiliar with turntables tend to figure that the cartridge is the most important aspect, then the phono stage, then the arm, and the turntable itself only matters in that it needs to turn the right speed. This is incorrect, in regards to how it will sound it is turntable first, then cartridge, then arm, then phono stage. This is a case where the mechanics and materials that the TT is made from makes a bigger difference than the electronics.

            Comment

            • Bob
              Senior Member
              • Jul 2000
              • 802

              #7
              If you don't mind buying used, this turntable would be much better than either of the other two you are considering:

              Comment

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