But you could also view this as colouration of course. Like the Linn LP12 it has this wonderful ability with rhythms and makes everything you play on it sound fast and engaging rhythmically. The TD160 is a finely balanced performer and once you start to mess with the suspension you start to loose something of the characteristic sound.
You could upgrade the springs to the later stiffer Linn type but this changes the character of the sound and here is the most tricky question. The usual favourite today though is a Rega RB250 which us arguably better than any of the aforementioned, but these don't gel so well with the 160's suspension.
I also tried an SME III which was lovley but a bit too smooth and the various Linn budget arms like the LVV and LVX which on balance I found to be the best upgrade. Mine came with an SME 3009 S2 Improved which is a very popular classic but can sound a little dated depending on your musical tastes. The problem here is that because the TD160 has a pretty springy nervous suspension it doesn't like anything too heavy. The original stock Thorens tonearms are ok but can be improved upon massively. This will be a massive upgrade making the deck more equivalent to a Linn LP12. A lot of people add internal bracing to make it more rigid or ditch it altogther in favour of a heavier hardwood one. They are very different and the 125 is a big upgrade in most respects.Ī big weakness of the TD160 is the build quality of the plinth which, since it was always a cost conscious design, is usually a fairly lightweight resonant plywood box. I had a TD160 BCII and upgraded to a TD125II. There's a beautiful gallery of vintage turntables (including Thorens) at the link below. I haven't read much about it except that some people rate the newer TD520 quite highly. I've only ever heard a TD150 and a TD160, but from what I've read: So my question is : is there a hierarchy in the performance of the various vintage thorens offerings? Or it is just a matter of taste and money? All in all, it cost me around 475 CDN (roughly 400 USD nowadays) for all of this, but when I look at some of the prices that are asked for a Td-124 without plint, arm and cartridge, I just wonder if the price difference really implies a stellar jump in performance, or it is just caused by rarity issues. Michell clamp, new stylus (on a shure v15 type 4). It's been four months now since I have bought my thorens 160 mk2, and with various upgrades I brought it to a very satisfying level : new thorens carbon fiber mat, J.A. Originally Posted by papomaster /img/forum/go_quote.gif