I picked up an old 1962 Electrohome Montega console stereo a few years ago for $50, because I wanted to hear what old tubes sound like and the receiver looked quite hefty and well built. I have been using the aux in to play my digital sources since then.
Just recently I finally took a look at the turntable - a Garrard Type A. It actually looks quite respectable, with a host of screws for fine tuning the tone arm.
Would anyone care to comment on it? It seems to keep steady speed, but the cartridge is crap (the needle is toast anyways, and it most certainly is a cheap ceramic).
I'm assuming it's a nice idler wheel design. I'm toying with the idea of getting a cheap phono preamp and replacing the cartridge with an old backup Grado. Would this tonearm be able to carry that weight? It seems quite light (plastic) and doesn't have a whole lot of counterweight.
Tough question! The Garrard Type A was, in the early 60's and at the beginning of the hifi era, one of the best turntables around. It's well built and flocks around it a group of die hard fans. In today's standards, it's average at best under the far fetched assumption that it's in a perfect working order and that it's original 50 y/o rubber parts (idler wheel) are not crumbling. It is very probable it will need to be refurbished and rebuilt bottom up. This could get costly and I cannot find justification for it due to the average expected performance. It's basically a mono turntable - and I'm guessing it's tonearm was designed for the best carts of the day at 2.5g - 3g of VTF. I don't think it's well suited for the lighter trackers of today's favour, but it may do well with some veteran Shure's. I think it deserves it's share of respect for historical reasons - yet - I'd be surprised to learn anyone is using it for the everyday casual or audiophile listening experience. It could have some advantage in playing mono LP's or 78's with perhaps, another dinosaur of the era, the Denon DL-103 cart. Anyway, if it hosts a piazo stylus it will need some conversion to host an MM or MC 1/2" standard mount stereo cart.
Last edited: May 19, 2016I've found that these work good with DJ type cartridges that run in the 2-5 gram range. The trip mechanism won't run reliably under about 2-3g anyway. Mine is wearing a Stanton 680, but other companies make a functional equivalent. Original mag probably would have been something like a Pickering 380. They're quite a decent machine. Some are mono, most are stereo though. They make a stellar 78 changer too.
Rebuilding isn't that bad, its just time consuming. If you're OK with small mechanical items, you can deal with this. They aren't super silent even when in proper running shape, and they are a little rough and clunky so I wouldn't play my prized rare records on one. I have something of a soft spot for Garrards, though I recognize that most of them are not exactly primo machines. I have an RC88, a Type A-II, a pair of Lab 80's and an AT6 kicking around and I've had and repaired others in the past. Its all about the same, remove the nasty grease and put in non-nasty grease.
The Type A is a really cool record player, well worth the effort to bring it back to life. gadget73 is totally correct; ". remove the nasty grease and put in non-nasty grease."
I have a Type A that I can't seem to part with, it's just too cool looking. It needs a total rehab but is in mint cosmetic condition. It kind of reminds me of a 50's banana split.
Last edited: May 20, 2016I have 2 of these, picked up the second at a garage sale in case I ever wanted to play with the original. Neither one works. One of them does have a Shure M3D cartridge on it. My first Garrard came with a console that belonged to my wife's grandfather, but it never did work. Too many other projects ahead of it.
I'm using a Shure SC 35C on my Type A. I think I have it tracked around 5 grams (I forget, in that I tracked it quite a while ago). The thing is, you need a relatively low compliance cart, in that the arm is a little heavier than a more modern arm. Got it all teamed up with a nice mono Fisher TA-500 receiver and a single two-way alnico Wharfedale W60. Sounds great!!
Also don't worry about the higher tracking force. If you use a conical cart like the SC 35C, it won't really cut deep into the record groove and won't damage your records.
Last edited: May 21, 2016Love em! It don't take nothin' to throw it in the parts washer, clean the concrete-grease off, schlap some new lube on the criticals, put a new tire on it and crank it up. maybe a little more.
I do have to say I prefer the look of the original A vs the A-II. I'm pretty sure all they did was change the coloring to make it more drab.