In 1965, the Thorens TD 150, an inconspicuous little turn- table, came on the market and thus started a technical revolution in record player manufacturing.

For the first time, a spring-suspended sub-chassis with an inner platter driven by a flat belt was used in a mass-produced unit. The princi- ple proved to be very successful and found many imitators in the years since.

Even today, more than half a century later, old TD 150 mod- els still enjoy great popularity. Picking up on this historic milestone, Thorens is introducing a new model in 2021, the TD 1500, which is very much in the tradition of its legendary predecessor but utilizes 21st century technologies.

Like its famous predecessor, the new Thorens TD 1500, which will be operated purely manually, features a sub-chas- sis that decouples the turntable and tonearm shelf from the motor and frame by means of three conical springs. In contrast to the TD 150, these springs can be adjusted from above through corresponding holes in the platter, which makes correct adjustment much easier.

The platter does not have to be removed for this. The platter itself, which weighs 1.4 kg and is 22 mm thick, is made of cast aluminum with a ground edge and turns its rounds in a bearing with a Delrin trust bearing, which guarantees enormously smooth running.

The speed of the DC motor is electronically monitored by an incremental encoder and deviations, e.g. caused by a broom, are automatically corrected. This also enables very good wow and flutter values. As a real unique selling point in its class, the TD 1500 has XLR outputs in addition to the usual pair of RCA jacks, thus enabling true balanced operation with a suitable MC car- tridge.

Power is supplied to the drive by a 12V power supply unit.

Newly developed Thorens TP 150 tonearm

The new TP 150 tonearm is similar to the TP 124 used on the new TD 124 DD. It has an effective mass of 14 grams, is adjustable in height and azimuth and is equipped with
a standard SME connector, so headshells can easily be switched or other cartridges mounted. The anti-skating is set by a sliding weight in the base of the arm, which is adjusted on a nylon thread guided over a ruby bearing. This guarantees the smoothest possible operation. The contact force is set classically on the scaled and two-part counterweight. This allows a wide selection of pickups to be used, from 6 – 30 grams weight.

The new Thorens TD 1500 combines traditional Thorens genes with contemporary modernity and proves a success- ful transformation of the TD 150 into today‘s world.

A high-quality and pre-adjusted 2M Bronze pickup from the Danish pickup specialist Ortofon, is also supplied as stand- ard. This proves to be a perfect playing partner due to its naked diamond with Fine Line cut.

Sub chassis turntable with Ortofon 2M Bronze

• Subchassis with three cone springs
• Solid 1.4 kg and 22 mm thick and ground turntable made of die-cast aluminium
• balanced (XLR) and unbalanced (RCA) outputs
• Precision tonearm Thorens TP 150

Specs

• Function: manual turntable with subchasssis
• Drive system: Belt drive
• Motor: incremental encoder controlled and stabilized DC motor
• Speeds: 33-1/3, 45 rpm.
• Speed select: electronical
• Platter: 12“ / 1,4 kg Die-cast aluminum platter with 22 mm hight
• Tonearm: Thorens TP 150 with SME headshell
• Cartridge: Ortofon 2 M Bronze with nude fine line stylus
• Anti-Skating: anti-skating weight, which is adjusted on a nylon thread guided over a ruby bearing
• Outputs: RCA / balanced XLR
• Power supply: external 12 V power supply
• Dimensions: 420 x 150 x 360 mm (W x H x D)
• Weight: 7.9 kg
• Scope of delivery: Power Supply, dust cover RCA cable