MW real 101 setup and initial thoughts

the ortofon arm is a good arm and i love it. i plan on keeping it forever. the triplanar is a little more performance for alot more money. so its hard to justify. i been eyeballing some good deals on agon for one, but timing is everything. im happy for now.
the maggies and 300b's dont work out together, ive heard several older models and really like them. but im not giving up my 300b's. im waiting on a review from Mike on these Spatial statements, and im also looking at tannoy dc10a's and some zu models and others too.lol.
please let me know when you get the table id love to see some pics and hear your thoughts.
 
Yes, 300Bs don't work with Maggies......unless you have dog ears....

I've never heard the Tannoys, besides the big ones in the Vac
room at RMAF last year......I would think 300b's wouldn't like those
either as they're not SUPER efficient at 93...and min amp rating of 30W

I have heard ZU's at a couple of shows and in one home and
in general found them unbearable to listen to.....

One speaker I would absolutely love to own with 300Bs is the Kit4 Audionote
Alnico which is around 98db. There's not much assembly with these
and the kit aspect lets someone go as wild as they want on finishes....
and complete it's well under 10K.....time and time again, Audionote
is one of my favorite rooms at the shows.....these speakers just
pressurize a room with beguiling musicality.

ankaudiokits.com/newSpkr.html
 
well im not much of one for specs and the tannoys run 93db/8 ohms and yes are rated for 30w min. but im running 90db/6ohm and rated for 40w min speakers now with 12.5w and they are doing a great job. ill push em occasionally but not often. im a medium volume listener. obviously they are not optimal, they sound so good you just cant believe it until you hear it. but i have a baseline and would like a couple more db's and a beautiful cabinet, and the alnico drivers appeal to me. but im looking at alot . im too picky to pick speakers.lmao!!! it might be the toughest thing ive ever tried to buy. i was just giving vapor another look as well. the audio notes are cool, and me being a woodworker , i would love to put some of this gorgeous mappa burl veneer i have, on a pair of speakers and finish them the way i like. ive always had the dream of high gloss black(or dark stain) faces and rear with gorgeous wood light colored sides. but $7600 for a kit is a little scary. id have to hear them for sure. im headed to help a friend set up a room at the show in n.y. in a couple days maybe ill see a pair there. hopefully i can check out alot of pairs there.
and btw since this is a MW thread i have been using the ortofon phono cable that came with my arm, but that is about to change. what straight din will you use? im thinking between completing my avanti loom or getting the furutech ag12. but then i was reading Myles review of the audience, which is interesting as well.
 
I typically use Grover Huffman, but I'm going to try the stock cable to get a base point and
then on Jeff Whitlock's recommendation, I will probably try the Furutech AG12 as he says
it's the best cable by far for the dough......



Petro85 said:
well im not much of one for specs and the tannoys run 93db/8 ohms and yes are rated for 30w min. but im running 90db/6ohm and rated for 40w min speakers now with 12.5w and they are doing a great job. ill push em occasionally but not often. im a medium volume listener. obviously they are not optimal, they sound so good you just cant believe it until you hear it. but i have a baseline and would like a couple more db's and a beautiful cabinet, and the alnico drivers appeal to me. but im looking at alot . im too picky to pick speakers.lmao!!! it might be the toughest thing ive ever tried to buy. i was just giving vapor another look as well. the audio notes are cool, and me being a woodworker , i would love to put some of this gorgeous mappa burl veneer i have, on a pair of speakers and finish them the way i like. ive always had the dream of high gloss black(or dark stain) faces and rear with gorgeous wood light colored sides. but $7600 for a kit is a little scary. id have to hear them for sure. im headed to help a friend set up a room at the show in n.y. in a couple days maybe ill see a pair there. hopefully i can check out alot of pairs there.
and btw since this is a MW thread i have been using the ortofon phono cable that came with my arm, but that is about to change. what straight din will you use? im thinking between completing my avanti loom or getting the furutech ag12. but then i was reading Myles review of the audience, which is interesting as well.
Click to expand...
 
zuluwarrior0760 said:
I typically use Grover Huffman, but I'm going to try the stock cable to get a base point and
then on Jeff Whitlock's recommendation, I will probably try the Furutech AG12 as he says
it's the best cable by far for the dough......
Click to expand...
yes the ag12 is better than the stock ortofon cable, i took my cable to my friends place and used it side by side with his ag12. he was going to give it to me when he got his silver arrows but sold it at the last moment. damn!! i havent decided if i want to go full loom and get the avanti cable or get the ag12. maybe ill get both.
1 more post from you and i can pm you to discuss this further.lol.
 
We basically are private messaging, since we're the only ones in the forum it seems.....as of late.....

I'm gonna pull trigger on the AG12 and if it blows me away, I'll start to switch out my LOOM now
that I know what it means....

Petro85 said:
yes the ag12 is better than the stock ortofon cable, i took my cable to my friends place and used it side by side with his ag12. he was going to give it to me when he got his silver arrows but sold it at the last moment. damn!! i havent decided if i want to go full loom and get the avanti cable or get the ag12. maybe ill get both.
1 more post from you and i can pm you to discuss this further.lol.
Click to expand...
 
Petro85,
As the European distributor for Merrill-Williams turntables, I read your post with interest. A couple of weeks ago we showcased the Merrill-Williams 101.2 turntable at the National Audio Show 2014 in Whittlebury, United Kingdom. This was the first time that the Brits had experienced the Merrill-Williams turntable and it made an immediate hit with such blogs as: “I'm not sure whether best sound in show was those horns (which were superb) or the vinyl rig in 'High fidelity international'. Dunno what it was, all American, big class A amps, but utterly natural, unforced, unfatiguing.” Incidentally, we kitted our MW turntable with a Triplanar tonearm and Ortofon Black Cadenza cartridge. Even we had to play around with the VTA but when set right the sound was fantastic. I remember a reviewer walking into our suite with a record under his arm. He said that he was a collector and that he had found a record at the show that he had been wanting for a long time. I suggested that we might play it for him but was somewhat apprehensive when I saw the condition of the vinyl. It had certainly not been used for a Frisbee but the condition did not seem much better. When played on the MW turntable the sound was something else. There were no pops or hisses, just pure undistorted sound. Steve, you have made a sound investment in your Merrill-Williams turntable and will have years of pleasure from it. For those who have not heard of this amazing piece of American engineering they can log in to us at (www soundaudio eu) or Google us at:
High Fidelity International
 
Welcome to the forum High Fidelity International!

Thank you for joining.
 
Petro85 said:
hey doug i just saw this!!! sorry. yea this table is a badass and a great value and the cartridge combo is to die for. i never thought i could get this quality of sound in my budget.id have to spend alot more money to get just a little bit better performance, and i dont think its worth it. im stuck between the rock and a hardplace thing. i would keep this forever but i think ineed to upgrade the tonearm to my love the triplanar, but i lose the quick change cartridge capability of the ortofon which i will need in the near future. so whats a guy to do. oh hey i just found this tasty tidbit. lmao
wonder if i can upgrade. it seems to have the same list price as mine. might be a misprint.

MERRILL WILLIAMS 101.2

Item Description

After 35 years of revolution , a turntable has achieved total energy management.
The Rubber Elastomer Acoustic Laminate (R.E.A.L.) turntable has an 18 point patent.
No big chunks of metal or hunks of plastic are substitutes for solid engineering.
No mater how absurd the price of other turntables the REAL 101 will out perform any turntable at any price.
Introducing the REAL 101.2 $7180.00
The difference between the 101 and the 101.2 One: There are two arm mounting platform 4.64 inch to accommodate 9-10 inch arms and a 6 3/4 inch that will accommodate a 12 inch arm. Can be exchanged in about one minute . This will allow the use of as many tone arms as you wish. Two: The speed strobe is now printed on the bottom of the platter. It is viewed using a mirror. Three: The skin is phenolic ( black) instead of aluminum ( silver) Four: A fluid damped motor is available as an option. $349.00
The 101.2 will be available in about 8 weeks. Sold by select dealers who understand and care about selling their clients performance not hype. The start of the system is the heart of the system!
For more information go to realturntable.com
Click to expand...

About the speed strobe. The earlier models had the speed strobe “printed” on the bottom of the platter. This is essentially a paper strobe. The later models have the speed strobe “engraved” on the bottom of the platter. We have four Merrill-Williams 101.2 turntables in our warehouse in France and we had the chance to inspect these yesterday and to compare the quality to our earlier “printed” strobe version. You will like the improvement. High Fidelity International (www soundaudio eu)

 
Hi Fidelity International said:
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Petro85,[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]As the European distributor for Merrill-Williams turntables, I read your post with interest. A couple of weeks ago we showcased the Merrill-Williams 101.2 turntable at the National Audio Show 2014 in Whittlebury, United Kingdom. This was the first time that the Brits had experienced the Merrill-Williams turntable and it made an immediate hit with such blogs as: “I'm not sure whether best sound in show was those horns (which were superb) or the vinyl rig in 'High fidelity international'. Dunno what it was, all American, big class A amps, but utterly natural, unforced, unfatiguing.” [/FONT][FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Incidentally, we kitted our MW turntable with a Triplanar tonearm and Ortofon Black Cadenza cartridge. Even we had to play around with the VTA but when set right the sound was fantastic. I remember a reviewer walking into our suite with a record under his arm. He said that he was a collector and that he had found a record at the show that he had been wanting for a long time. I suggested that we might play it for him but was somewhat aprehensive when I saw the condition of the vinyl. It had certainly not been used for [/FONT][FONT=Arial, sans-serif]a[/FONT][FONT=Arial, sans-serif] frisbee but the condition did not seem much better. When played on the MW turntable the sound was something else. There were no pops or hisses, just pure un-distorted sound. [/FONT][FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Steve[/FONT][FONT=Arial, sans-serif], you have made a sound investment in your Merrill-Williams turntable and will have years of pleasure from it. For those who have not heard of this amazing piece of American architecture they can log in to us at [/FONT][FONT=Arial, sans-serif]www soundaudio dot eu or google us at:[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]High Fidelity International[/FONT]
Click to expand...
that is just awesome im glad you like it. i spent few months and lots of miles on my car, to make sure i liked the mw table. and compared it to many similarly priced tables and just couldnt find a better table for near the price. and the cadenza black just wrapped it up into a nice , great sounding package. that im not sure there is better value available anywhere. the triplanar is on my list but my glaring need for speakers(my weakest link) now has made it less of a priority. i finally stopped obsessing over turntables and just listen now, because the table i would want to upgrade this with is way out of my pricerange. and id never be able to afford it.
congrats and welcome to the forum.
 
Hi, I believe you are Steve am I correct? Thank you for your reply post and for the welcome to the forum; it is much appreciated. We have been using the Aerial 7T speakers but there are also the 6T ones. Both are on our website. I have spent about four years with a US speaker manufacturer based in California and we started off with speakers weighing two mother in laws apiece and around seven foot tall. They were priced at over $100,000. My speakers in California are JBL monitors supposedly ex Rod Stewart. I was pleasantly surprised at the Aerial speakers that retail at around $9,000 for the 7T and at the UK National Audio Show we were surprised at how well they were received. Here in France we have paired our Merrill Williams turntable with Pass Labs class A monoblocks, a Ron Sutherland N1 phono stage pre-amp and the Aerial 7T speakers. Best regards, Peter at High Fidelity International (www soundaudio eu)
 
very nice , i run 12.5w 300b's so speaker selection isnt that easy.lol.
your merrills are little different from mine, my strobe marks are in the middle of the platter and on the ring clamp. but i must tell you in a year it has never moved or needed adjustment. and you have the ability for quicker arm changes, although with that triplanar i dont know why you would change arms. and i think the black on the 101.2 is better looking than my silver. but i wont change up. i like the 3 footed ugly duckling.lmao!!!!
please keep us informed as you progress with these tables, im always interested.
thanks
 
Finally got all the stuff set up:

MW 101.2
Ortofon TA210 Tonearm
Ortofon Cadenza Black Cartridge
Arche Headshell
Furutech AG12 tonearm cable
Hashimoto HM7 based Step Up Transformer
into MM section of Convergent Renaissance SL1

WARNING:
This video contains music by Jazz singer Diana Krall.
If you have irritable bowel syndrome or any disorder
that might make you more prone to periods of
spastic vomiting please enter with caution:



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctaIWCcz9LQ
 
Hello everyone!

So what do you think of your new table? You had a VPI Classic? How's it compare? I'm sending a check to George soon for my own 101.2, I'm quite excited.
 
The VPI Classic 3 I had, combined with the MC stepup of my Convergent SL1 Renaissance and Kleos cartridge, gave
me a warmish/dark balance that I wanted to move away from.

Upon getting the 101.2 with the Ortofon 12" TA210, Arche headshell, I kept everything else the same (Kleos/Preamp)
and the presentation was still very dark/recessed, but overall clarity and pace was improved versus the VPI.
Overall, I was disappointed......

Upon talking to Jeff Whitlock, he indicated that many of his customers who did the VPI C3/Kleos combo
after Fremer's glowing review and Class A listing ended up swapping the Kleos later for the same reasons
I was overhauling my system.......The Classic3 just needed more of a kick in the pants than the Kleos was providing.....

I decided to not only change cartridges, but I also decided to take my phono pre's stepup out of the equation
by doing an outboard moving coil stepup. My research took me toward the Bob's devices units, but ultimately
I settled on a Hashimoto H7 based stepup from Traditions Audio. This is around 1500.00 or so, so it's not
much more than the Bob's devices.....

I decided to go with the Ortofon Cadenza Black Cartridge.......

After two weeks of breaking everything in, my reaction is OH MY GOD!!!

This is the sound I've been chasing......Dynamics are 5 times better, bass to die for......the stepup has given
the preamp much more gain than the internal step up. I had a friend over who has heard my system many times,
and his reaction was "I never knew Magnepan 3.7s could be dynamic, but these are just about the most dynamic
performances I've ever heard"......

The only thing I would change at this point, is the system has moved on analog to a bit more forward presentation
than I'm used to with my digital rig and especially the old analog rig and on certain material that's a wonderful
thing, on others' not so much.......I think cable tweaking will take care of that somewhat.......if it doesn't, I might
be moving from bryston 7bsst2's to convergent tube monos to tame the dynamics just a bit, but it might
be just a case of the cartridge needing to break in a couple hundred hours.......

All this talk about the changes hasn't really addressed the turntable that much........the central question most
would ask is "Is the 101.2 worth the 7K asking price compared to other tables such as the Classic 3)

My answer would be:

The Classic 3 probably would have been a wonderful table if I had added the stepup and Cadenza when I owned it

but

There's no question the Merrill is better on every front and I would say you would have to spend probably 15-20K
to beat the Merrill overall. With an arm such as a triplanar mated to the Merrill, I would say it would compete with
anything out there up to 50K and beyond......

I don't think I'll be changing tables for a long time. The only one that might tempt me would be an AMG V12
 
Thanks for that detailed reply! I'm hoping this is that all so elusive "last turntable" for me. Although I know it won't be! I just want a table that's stops me from thinking about other tables, at least for a few years. I've been obsessing over different tables the past year: that beautiful AMG, a Raven GT, a Kuzma Reference, and a Feickert Woodpecker. I kept returning to the Merrill though, the engineering just seems right, at least on paper.

I have a Basis 2500 now, but it just isn't ticking all of the boxes for me. I'm hoping for the quite, black background of the 2500 matched to the musical force of my TD-124.

I have two arms for the Merrill: a Schick and an Ortofon AS-212S. We'll see what happens with them. I'm already dreaming of putting a Kuzma 4-point on it one day.

How's the 101.2 look in person? I found the 101 to be fairly homely, but the black is a huge improvement. How's the fit and finish?

Thanks!
 
I've heard several Basis tables over the years. Nearly bought a 2500
For me, the Basis tables are so neutral, they are boring.......Me thinks
it's something to do with the acrylic construction......they've just
never made me want to continue to listen........but they are built
like a swiss watch.....

The 212S arm should prove wonderful. I went with the 210S because
of the rubber infused armtube and the fact it was available faster than
the 10" arm......advantages of a 12" arm?? I don't know......I can't
tell much difference......The Merrill gives you so much flexibility in terms
of arm swaps that you can always keep that 210 for an SPU or mono
cartridge after you move on.....

I think a Kuzma 4 point is a wonderful arm, but I've only heard it
on a Kuzma rig. I can tell you the greatest performance I've heard
with this table is with the TriPlanar and it is George Merrill's favorite
arm for this table and it is also used by George Counnas of Zesto
Audio with the 101.2. He uses a fairly inexpensive Dynavector
20x2 and it sounds amazing at all the shows....

Never heard a Shick arm. Heard good things (Oswalds Mills uses them)
Michael Fremer says he doesn't see what the big deal is....

In person the 101.2 sort of goes away in black.....it is not a look at
me turntable at all compared to a black classic 3.....the 101 was
as ugly as an old man's butt.... the black is great......

Fit and finish is excellent.....but the spindle on mine needed a little
sanding down, maybe 1/2 a mm too big for a typical record hole....
The table's operation is absolutely whisper quiet....you've got
to stick your ear right up to the side of the table to hear the liquid
damped motor mount.........the documentation sucks......you'll
learn the little hook wand is for securing the belt drive, but
nothing will tell you that.....there's also nothing about the preferred
way to adjust the feet....

The feet need breakin believe it or not.......

Overall, it's the last table for me for a while.......I too flirted with the AMG
but for almost double the money, I really do think this table gives the
AMG a fair run for it's money......
 
Wow between those two posts you wrote a fine review! I really appreciate it. I probably should have been here asking these questions before I sent George a check, but I don't think I'll be disappointed.

I'm getting an armboard for both the Schick and the 212S, I'll try them both. Despite what Mr. Fremer says (I love his writing, but I don't alwats agree with him), the Schick is a great arm, and really great for the price.

The 4-point has been my dream arm for a while now, and most who have compared it directly with the Tri-planar prefer the Kuzma. Doesn't make them right, but it's difficult to ignore. Although at this level I imagine either would perform amazingly well, so I might just go with George's (both of them) preference.

Thanks again for you insights!
 
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