ARCHIVED FORUM -- March 2012 to February 2022READ ONLY FORUM
This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022
I know from posts that there are beograms 3000 and 4000 that are sought after but they are rare , old and hard come by. Which of the latter day bg's are the most desirable ?
The straight answer is that the later tangential decks are actually all the same, so one can only really differentiate between them by their looks and if they have a built in RIAA. Performance is the same except for the cartridges, which will probably either need replacing or will have been changed already.The most desirable is the Beogram 7000 as it is the last, is not that common and will work with modern equipment as it has a RIAA built in.
There are of course the slightly earlier range like the Beogram 8000/8002. These are in some ways the very best performing Beograms - however they are not quite as well built as the original 4000 series, having quite a lot of increasingly brittle plastic used in their construction.
For good performance at a cheap price, look for the radial tracking Beogram 5000 and the earlier Beogram 1700. I would suggest that these will actually outperform the later tangential decks.
Peter
I have a Beogram 5000 and love it to death! There was a slight audible improvement moving up from the also-radial tracking RX, an earlier, more basic design.I too would love a 4000, 8000, or 7000, but can't seriously say I'd hold out for one considering the joy the 5000 has brought me. :)
Mike
Michael J. Steevessince 1977
The 5000 is beautifully built. As usual with B&O ranges, the first of the series is usually the best built! In the case of the 5000, note the fact that the script on the Beogram matches the other components so that when stacked, the lettering all lines up! Also the splendid light in the lid rather than the totally inadequate light on the tangential models. I stupidly changed my 5000 for a 5005 when I had the 5000 system and regretted it. The Beocord 5000 in the same system is another example of superb engineering.