Turntables, Arms & Cartridges

Hand-assembled throughout its long production lifetime [see inset picture], the DL-103 is a true hi-fi icon that begs to be used in 'period' systems with BBC monitors, EMT turntables and other vintage kit. While the charcoal-grey-bodied DL-103 with spherical stylus is the definitive purchase from a purist viewpoint, its entry into the consumer sector (like the LS3/5A and others that also made the leap to hi-fi) has generated numerous variants, most recently the DL-103R with 6N copper wiring [HFN Jul '09].

Perhaps the most successful and desirable of these spin-offs was the DL-103D with mushroom-coloured body, launched in the mid-1970s. Its design addressed those consumers who were put off by conical styli and the 2.5g tracking force. The DL-103D offered an elliptical stylus, lower tracking force and higher compliance, and it – along with the DL-103S with Shibata tip – was the first of over a dozen models that Denon would release in the wake of the original. Standouts for collectors included the DL-103 Gold to mark the DL-103's 20th anniversary, and many with special wiring such as the DL-103C1 with LC-OFC coils and the DL-103GL Gold Limited with 4N-purity gold coils.