Pictures, Video & Text courtesy of Carsten Fischer

Click on any photo to see the TD 224 in 78 rpm cycle !
If the video does not play full length, right-mouse click "Save target as", save file on your computer, and start movie file there.

MANY THANKS to PETER of San Francisco for letting me take these photos of his recently restored TD224 !!!

Thorens TD224 - The Last Amazing Changer

Introduced in 1962, this product of ingenious Thorens Swiss engineering is the last representative of the grand line of truly amazing changers. After this one, record lovers were stuck with the excellent - but unexciting - drop changers, like the DUALs, ELAC Miracords, Garrards and others.

To watch this changer is an almost religious experience: Powered by a second idler wheel from the platter rim, the changer will grab a record at the spindle hole, bring it down to the turntable, have the tone arm feel its size, and then the tone arm will set down correctly on the record. At the end of the cycle, the record is taken and deposited on the lower arm.

The changer speed is independent of the selected turntable speed, a nice touch that not many modern changers possess.

And all this with the sonic and motive assurance of the legendary TD124 turntable components.

The changer is remarkable in many ways: It fulfills the two "holy grails" of record changers:

- Only one record on the platter at any time. (Constant VTA, for you phonophiles : )
- Plays up to 8 records intermixed (any size). Through the feeler of the tone arm, it can recognize and play any odd-size record.
- Naturally, the changer will shut off after the last record has been played.

One feature is truly unique, and I have not encountered in any other changer:
- The TD 224 will adjust itself automatically to the large spindle holes of 45 rpms. Once you adjust the upper magazine arm to 45 rpm records, the transfer arm will pick up the record securely, and a spring-powered puck 45 rpm adapter will pop up from the turntable to receive the record.

See below for a more dynamic display of a 45 rpm change cycle.

Click on any photo above for a TD 224 45 rpm change cycle.
If the video does not play full length, right-mouse click "Save target as", save file on your computer, and start movie file there.

 A Thorens expert from Germany, Herr Joachim Bung, sent me this interesting piece of information:
  
  (he can be contacted: info "at" redaktionsbuero-bung "dot" de)
  
The Thorens TD124 book contains a very large description of the TD 224 plus photos.
There is even a drawing which shows how the changer adjusts itself automatically to the large spindle holes of 45 rpms.
  
A description of the GERMAN version can be found on this website (in German):
     http://www.thorens-info.de/html/schweizer_prazision.html
  
  (has an annoying pop-up talking about a "Blackworm-Virus infection")
  
Joachim sells the book (I am not clear if in English or German) on ebay.de (handle td124-1):         http://search.ebay.de/_W0QQsassZtd124Q2d1
  
  Also, here are some more interesting stories by Joachim (translation is mine):
  
  "The TD224 designer's name is Louis Thévenaz, who died in 2000 largely forgotten in Sainte-Croix.
  
  The changer is - indeed - very finicky. The story has been told that the German Thorens importer  would deliver the mechanism on the backseat of his car to his customers.
  
  And concerning Service and Adjustments, I write in my book: Change a single lever, and all of a sudden, five parts will no longer fit in ...
  
  In my book, I describe a gentleman in Munich, who is the only technician in Germany still able to repair these majestic machines."