Archive: Systemdek IIX

By Michael Jones

February 2008 (first published April 1988)

Systemdek IIX turntable. $1070 in 1988.

Systemdek IIX on April 1988 cover One of the things I like doing with this magazine is finding hi-fi equipment that sounds great, yet doesn't cost the earth. That's one of the reasons that I'm so excited about the Systemdek IIX turntable.

Systemdek are a Scottish manufacturer whose products were available in NZ a few years ago, but until very recently were lacking a current NZ distributor. The Systemdek range comprises three turntables, of which the IIX is the middle unit and the only one available in New Zealand at this time. Price is $1070 including tonearm. It was anticipated that the IIX would come into New Zealand with a Mission tonearm, but Systemdek's own arm is now fitted.

The Systemdek is an incredibly attractive turntable, with a black wood finish and a black perspex lid. The model number is in gold lettering on the front. The IIX is a belt drive, suspended subchassis turntable. The suspension is easily adjustable from the top by an Allen key. To change the speed requires a manual change of the belt from one pulley to another. The platter is made from a thick piece of glass, with the ubiquitous black felt mat.

Supplied with the turntable is a Systemdek tonearm. This is a Japanese sourced OEM arm, similar to the cheaper Mission and AR tonearms. It seemed happy with a variety of cartridges used, including an Ortofon Xl-MC and MC20 Super, and an Audio Technica AT31E, though not with a Grace F9E. I imagine it will work happily with most cartridges likely to be used with the Systemdek.

The Systemdek was used with a Mega 105b and Audax A200 speakers, and later with Naim amplifiers and speakers.

The sonic attributes of a turntable can be looked at in two ways: how much information is retrieved from the disc, and how that information is organized. The sound of the Systemdek was quite excellent. It doesn't match a top turntable/tonearm combination, but for a fraction of the price it comes tantalizingly close.

Let's deal with the major weakness of the Systemdek first. It could get a little "rough around the edges." The IIX doesn't inspire the confidence and authority that more expensive turntables give the listener. Besides that, there really wasn't a great deal wrong with the sound.

The first pointer to a well made turntable was the very low level of record noise. Although it still seems strange that a turntable can affect the apparent surface noise of a record, they do, with a better turntable showing less "grunge". Detail retrieval from the disc was excellent, which made the price of the Systemdek all the more surprising.

For me the strongest area was the bass. This was well defined, dynamic and very rhythmic, an important consideration for this former bass guitarist. Bass transients were handled very well, as were transients over the rest of the range. Midrange and treble were clear and open.

I mentioned at the beginning of this review that I like components with a good price/performance ratio. The Systemdek IIX is certainly one of those components. Not only does it give exceptional sonic value for money, but it also looks highly attractive and is as easy to use as a manual turntable can be. Highly recommended.

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