On Thu, 2 Nov 2006 18:46:20 -0000, "Malcolm Stewart"
wrote:

I picked up a mint condition Pioneer PL-930 direct drive turntable today
(bric-a-brac day at Milton Keynes market), and discover that it's fitted
with a moving coil pickup cartridge, an MC3, with I guess a pre-amp buried
in the deck.

Can anyone advise what voltage and polarity is required for the pre-amp?
Alongside the red and white phono type audio leads, there's a 3.5mm mono
plug (2 pole), and I assume that this is for the pre-amp's power supply.

On the web, I've found belts listed for this turntable. Can't see any form
of belt when I take off the turntable platter, and I thought direct drive
didn't need belts. Could the "fully automatic" pick-up arm require one?


It would be most unusual for a turntable unit to incorporate a preamp,
though I couldn't swear it never happened. There were some strange
designs - a section of the audiophile market was then, as now,
prepared to accept almost anything as long as it was sufficiently
esoteric and sufficiently expensive :-)

Back in the day, quite ordinary domestic amplifiers accepted both
moving-coil and moving-magnet pickups. Though there was a thriving
market in boutique alternatives.