Saskia 2 Reference tt

Stacore

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Feb 23, 2017
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The bakelite...But I'm talking about sth even worse - selling just pictures.
BTW, David, always keen to learn from a 1st hand user: How does 930 compare to 927 sonically?

Cheers,
 

bonzo75

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Feb 26, 2014
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Actually, I want to know about 948.

Heard 930. It's like a CD player to operate with forward and rewind buttons
 

bonzo75

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Reading Schroeder's comments on lenco heaven he seems to prefer common wealths and Garrards to all EMT except 927.

One Dutch vintage restorer prefers TD 124 to all EMTs including his 927. He does not like any DD including his 950.

With these all are good, so restore, preference, all comes into play I guess.
 

Mike Lavigne

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Apr 25, 2010
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Actually, I want to know about 948.

Heard 930. It's like a CD player to operate with forward and rewind buttons

I had a NOS 948 here for 2 years (pictures are still on my Audiogon system page). it had the stock EMT arm and the vdH TSD15 cartridge, and I used my King Cello tape repro as the phono stage.

it was a fine tt with excellent drive, but in this context it was quite mellow sounding with that arm and cartridge.....lacking the refinement and detail of my NVS/Durand/Anna/darTZeel rig. it helped when I bought a separate plinth and mounted that on some Wave Kinetics A10 U8 footers.

I don't consider my experience as getting very close to the potential of the EMT 948. but it is what it is. I would love to hear another arm and cartridge with this tt.

I'm skeptical it can get into the 927 or even the 930 realm, but I've not heard the 930.
 

Mike Lavigne

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Reading Schroeder's comments on lenco heaven he seems to prefer common wealths and Garrards to all EMT except 927.

One Dutch vintage restorer prefers TD 124 to all EMTs including his 927. He does not like any DD including his 950.

With these all are good, so restore, preference, all comes into play I guess.

there are aspects of my Garrard 301 I prefer to all other tt's I've heard on certain music. I suppose if those things were all I cared about I could see desiring the 301 above all others.....I've heard.

but.....there are many musical things which are significant to me.
 

spiritofmusic

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Jun 13, 2013
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Mike, was the Saskia ever on yr radar?
Or anyone you know?
I'm struggling to think of any other big hitter in the tt world with next to zero feedback, reports, reviews, buzz etc.
 

Mike Lavigne

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Apr 25, 2010
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Mike, was the Saskia ever on yr radar?
Or anyone you know?
I'm struggling to think of any other big hitter in the tt world with next to zero feedback, reports, reviews, buzz etc.

I'm a Saskia fanboy, always have been, as well as could not think higher of Win as a person and class individual. known him for awhile.

absolutely the Saskia was on my radar as a top flight excellent turntable, as is/was my NVS. obviously, I was not compelled sufficiently by what the Saskia did to pursue it, whereas I was with the American Sound.

if we start down the road of choosing favorite tt's that are not my NVS, or the American Sound or the EMT 927, now I'd have to say that in my personal experience the Saskia would be at the top of the heap. is that heap very tall and narrow? or quite broad where there are many bunched near the top? good question.....and more relevant to how many tt's I've really spent time with. mostly preferences I think, not any objective thing.

maybe after i've actually lived with the American Sound i may have a different perspective.
 
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bonzo75

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there are aspects of my Garrard 301 I prefer to all other tt's I've heard on certain music. I suppose if those things were all I cared about I could see desiring the 301 above all others.....I've heard.

but.....there are many musical things which are significant to me.

Thanks, can you please describe what those qualities were? Was it flow, fullness, among other things?
 

spiritofmusic

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Jun 13, 2013
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Mike, I've been known to labor the same point over and over on the forum (groans all around LOL), but I've never known such an uber designed high end tt get so little, practically zero buzz.
For such a no compromise design, from mass, to materials, to unique idler implementation, fascinating motor, and not to ignore the price North of $50k, there's just NOTHING online.
No website, no reply to direct emails, no reply to PMs here (I often emailed him in between posts he was making sporadically, but nothing back). Do any of you high end tt owners even have a friend or a colleague who invested in one?
I need to leave it, this is a trail that's gone cold. Part of me thinks there is a sad story here of maybe good order levels, but inability to keep up with demand, and so a disappearing from visibility, or maybe personal issues.
Surely someone here knows.
 

ddk

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May 18, 2013
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The bakelite...But I'm talking about sth even worse - selling just pictures.
BTW, David, always keen to learn from a 1st hand user: How does 930 compare to 927 sonically?

Cheers,

Unfortunately the 930 is nothing like the 927 sonically, any resemblance is only visual. The 930 was never supposed to be 927's little sibling, they were designed for very different jobs and environments even EMT's sonic ambitions for the 930 was different from 927's. With the 930 it was also an issue of their daily work environment which often was much harsher the 927 would ever see. So in the end very dissimilar tables.

david
 

spiritofmusic

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Jun 13, 2013
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Dave, have you seen this unblemished "low mileage" 927 for sale for €55k from NL?
Looks like a great, maybe pretty rare example.
---
Can you compare and contrast the ways the 927 and AS match up against each other?
 

ddk

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May 18, 2013
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Dave, have you seen this unblemished "low mileage" 927 for sale for €55k from NL?
Looks like a great, maybe pretty rare example.

You can’t gauge anything from picts, repainting the chassis is pretty straightforward it’s the mechanical side which counts but that vendor is a trusted source for EMT tables.
---
Can you compare and contrast the ways the 927 and AS match up against each other?

This is a tough one Marc since I’m a party with interest and I really love the 927 but the AS is a level up and it’s a steep level. Mike, Ron, Steve and recently Airbearing heard the same too.

david
 

spiritofmusic

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Dave, he claims it's pretty much unused.
Minimal level of restoration.
The proverbial mint condition barn find Bentley or Ferrari.
 

ddk

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May 18, 2013
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Dave, he claims it's pretty much unused.
Minimal level of restoration.
The proverbial mint condition barn find Bentley or Ferrari.

Could very well be what he says it is, you should fly over and check it out for yourself if you're serious about getting one.

david
 

Stacore

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Feb 23, 2017
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.... they were designed for very different jobs and environments even EMT's sonic ambitions for the 930 was different from 927's. With the 930 it was also an issue of their daily work environment which often was much harsher the 927 would ever see. So in the end very dissimilar tables.

david

That's interesting. I've always thought the reported sonic leap of 927 wrt 930 was sort of "accidental": ability to play 16" acetates forced larger platter, which forced larger bearing and stronger motor, which forced stronger chassis etc which t the end resulted in reportedly stellar sonics.

Cheers,
 

Stacore

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Feb 23, 2017
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Could very well be what he says it is, you should fly over and check it out for yourself if you're serious about getting one.

david

+1 a must do if serious. If possible, please load the Dr Feikert app /the paid version with a weighted readout/, grab a good test disc and test for w&f.
IIRC 927 has 0.03% weighted nominal.

Cheers,
 

ddk

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May 18, 2013
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That's interesting. I've always thought the reported sonic leap of 927 wrt 930 was sort of "accidental": ability to play 16" acetates forced larger platter, which forced larger bearing and stronger motor, which forced stronger chassis etc which t the end resulted in reportedly stellar sonics.
Cheers,

I was told the same that the 927 is an improved 930 but that's not true at all, the sonic differences go way beyond that.

+1 a must do if serious. If possible, please load the Dr Feikert app /the paid version with a weighted readout/, grab a good test disc and test for w&f.
IIRC 927 has 0.03% weighted nominal.

Cheers,

WhY :)?

david
 

Stacore

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Feb 23, 2017
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In my experience of the 930 that is a good, rough check of the health, which can be done without sending the deck to an EMT specialist.
Of course higher than nominal w&f does not mean the deck is necessarily unhealthy: it can be just a matter of the old idler, cap adjustment, or simply the
test record is not to the 927 standard ;) But a low w&f indicates that with a good chance the deck is healthy.

Cheers,
 

ddk

Well-Known Member
May 18, 2013
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In my experience of the 930 that is a good, rough check of the health, which can be done without sending the deck to an EMT specialist.
Of course higher than nominal w&f does not mean the deck is necessarily unhealthy: it can be just a matter of the old idler, cap adjustment, or simply the
test record is not to the 927 standard ;) But a low w&f indicates that with a good chance the deck is healthy.

Cheers,

You know when things are even a bit off and parts need replacing. I've heard this deck regularly for the last 20 years its sound is ingrained in my being. The other thing is that I don't own a pc and our 10 year old macbook died recently, can't run the Feikert program even if I wanted to.

david
 

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