This turntable is the industry standard.
The vast majority of clubs use them, so why not do yourself a favour and get used to using one?

Sound quality is great for a DJ turntable, and still up there with a lot of Hi-Fi turntables.

Buy the mk2 every time.
The mk5 has been tweaked and has a digital speed control, but it's way more expensive.

Many people criticise the S-shaped arm, but FACT - A straight arm cannot track the groove of the record accurately from start to finish.
A straight arm will wear out your records. If you don't want the needle to skip when scratching, take the time to set up the cartridge alignment PERFECTLY and you will have no problems. Straight arms are a GIMMICK.

Every other DJ turntable maker has added stupid bells and whistles to their product to try and convince you that theirs is better.
A turntable is a tool for reproducing music. What you do with that tool is where the skill comes into it.
That's why the Technics deck is still the market leader after all these years. Don't be fooled by clever marketing and high profile endorsements.

Once you've bought turntables, you MUST take the time to set them up properly. Otherwise you may as well just plug an iPod into your mixer and pretend!

Follow these instructions:

1. Level the platter (without slip mat) with a spirit level. This makes a HUGE difference to sound for no cost - just a small amount of time.
2. Spend the time getting the cartridge set up properly. Take it to a Hi-Fi shop if you are not confident. Otherwise your records will sound terrible and the needle will wear them out fast.
3. Set up the tracking weight from cartridge instructions. Don't cut corners or you'll be replacing your record collection next year.
4. Unless you are scratching, set up the anti skating (read the cartridge instructions) Here is one of the mk2's downfalls - anti skating only goes up to 3. A lot of DJ cartridges need up to 5 (this has been solved on mk5).
SOLUTION - buy a cartridge that has a tracking weight of 3 grams or less.
Shure 44G is unbeatable for the money. Concorde designs are a GIMMICK. If you want fancy looks and easy set-up, Shure White Label is the go. I HAVE NO AFFILIATION TO THIS BRAND, THEY ARE SIMPLY GREAT PRODUCTS. ASK OTHER DJ'S.
5. Set the arm height. IMPORTANT - if like everyone else you have removed the heavy rubber mat and replaced it with a slip mat. you will notice that these mats are different thicknesses. get a ruler and measure them. Take this into account when setting the height.

This may seem like a lot of hassle - BUT (with the exception of leveling the platter) YOU ONLY HAVE TO DO IT ONCE.

Now your new turntables will sound better than you thought possible, and they won't skip.

While we're at it.
Never put coins on the headshell to add weight. This will make the diamond tip of your cartridge tear the grooves out of your records.
Never lick the contacts of your headshells. This will slowly corrode them and you will end up with no sound at all.

Some things that need to be said, when the Technics SL 1210s were 1st made they were hand build. The mk1 and mk2 are the best versions, today they are factory- mass produced after years of over demand, while still a formidable deck it is being made with cheaper and cheaper parts and the newer ones weigh less. 2 handy tricks: 1. if your having problems with vinyls jumping a while your trying to scratch add some bluetack and a 1p piece to the top. 2. there is a fairly easy procedure to up the pitch if, like me you play faster bpm music (hardcore rave and the like) you can find more about this on the internet. While the original technics were patented, the 20 year patient on the motor ran out a few years ago and other companies are staring to produce comparable wheels with similar torque, but for me, if you start playing on technics, it will be the 1st last and only deck you will ever want or need and is iconic in DJ culture, as long as there is vinyl there will always be a technics turntable!

A highly robust and durable turntable, an industry standard and a must for DJ's in the professional field of mixing records on vinyl. The platter is very sturdy and you could put a hoochie mama on it and would still go round!

SL1200's and SL1210's have no difference except the colour of the turntable and both have the same working parts inside too.
Both turtables have the feature of 33 or 45 RPM for the speed of the record.

For the beginner of the experience of the technics deck, the platter will seem heavy when cueing up records to start with, but as time progresses, the begginer will get used to the platter in time.

Value for money?
Not bad, priced around £349 in the UK for just one deck but most dealers do deals with pairs.With the MK IV out with 78 RPM and reverse platter feature, I'll think I'll stick to me old faithfull 1210's m8.

Scott 'the masta' jaye sheffield-live.co.uk (Internetradio)

I am a bit more critical than others, though I don't understand the review of the guy who says if you are just gonna remove the lids and crack on then get cheap decks. Never Get Cheap Decks if you can afford these, they are an investment, you can only learn properly on these, belt drives and low torque decks only serve to delay your progress. Mine have just come up for their 12th Birthday and are still going strong, they have outlasted 3 mixers and loads of Crossfaders, they have done roadwork and prepared me for club work, with the right cartridge they have been awesome for scratching and fast cueing. And they are better than the Mk3's - the bad points I outlined have been sorted on the MK 5's but they have added a pitch reset button which gets in the way. Sound quality is not as good as a Linn, but they cost about a sixth of a Linn, and you don't play Vivaldi in a club.

i have owned my Mk3d's for over a month now. The deck has uncanny capabilities that other decks don't have- namely the overall strength, and they are simply quite sexy, hence, there'll always be a place for the Mk3d's in my bedroom. Having no 'click' option has to be the main difference though, as with the old models, it was easy to lose a beatmix around the '0' pitch area. As for the 'wavering' comment in morfs review on this site, I haven't encountered any problems yet, so here's hoping. In general, they're not much different to the old models, but hey, if it aint broke, why fix it?

I have a prob with the head being to light its not the weight thats on max...any ideas