Turntable noobie...what advice do you have?
As this forum has corrupted me and I have decided to dive down the rabbit hole of LP's. Usually I stream but I find the tactile experience of records appealing. I have ordered a Pro-ject RPM-3 Carbon with Sumiko Amethyst cartridge and a Mobile Fidelity StudioPhono preamp. Oh, and a record brush. I will be plugging them into my Voyager GAN amp and from there powering my LSA 20 Statement speakers.
I know there is always better equipment to get but I feel this gives a good starting point. I picked up some new records but a half dozen does not a record collection make. So I do plan on making my focus for the near future getting more and expanding my collection. I listen to all kind of music so they will be many different genres. I will be getting new ones but I will undoubtedly get some used ones too.
Okay, so what all would you recommend for someone just getting into this hobby? Especially if I am getting any used records, I should probably look at a record cleaner. What else for equipment or doodads? What about tricks or tips for increasing my collection? In my city there is a record store called Music Millennium that I will be checking out and there of course if Barnes and Noble (where I purchased my other ones). Do you know of places online I should check out? Thanks in advance for your advice.
@mijostyn Stay in the dark ages. Ultrasonic + Enzyme on my Nitty + Sweep arm + Zerostat is just better….
For those moving out of pre renaissance age cleaning practices, see Bill Hart excellent blog The Vinyl Press which published @antin superb guide to US cleaning…
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@tomic601, Dark ages? Perhaps you mean Middle Ages. I have an album of middle age English folk songs. Most people can't listen to it for more than 15 minutes or so but I do find it entertaining as an historical point of reference. You can continue to perpetrate this mythology of behalf of the record cleaning industry. There are certainly people who take crappy care of their records which will need a good cleaning if you are unfortunate enough to buy one. Perhaps I live in an alternative universe where styluses just do not collect the detritus from groves. I get to save a lot of money to spend on new records! |
An enthusiastic 2nd on the recommendation of @tomic601 and others for the reading (several times) of the encyclopedic tome on record cleaning found on Bill Hart's website. Indispensable! As for dealing with the static charge found on many used record shop-"cleaned" LP's (and even some new/sealed LP's): I bought the original (white) Zerostat when it was first introduced, and for years suffered with it's 'fiddly-ness" (you have to squeeze the trigger veerrry slowly). Then the Nakaoka Kilavolt No. 103 was introduced. Hallelujah! At least as effective, and much easier to use. Unfortunately the Kilavolt went out of production quite a while back, but there is an even better anti-static product now available: the Furutech Destat III. However, it is priced at an absurd $399! Music Direct currently has it on sale for $329, and if you watch ebay closely you may get as lucky as I and find one for the $200 I paid a coupla years ago. |
Just getting into this hobby and this thread is hugely informative! Question: how do I identify if a record was recorded digitally or if it is fully analog? e.g. I am planning to get this when it finally comes out, but I don't see any indication of that important distinction: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09WH59NGS/ref=sm_n_au_dka_US_pr_fal_0_1 |
You all are awesome. This thread has continued to be some fantastic advice. I did scan the last few months of threads and didn’t see anything like this. I am happy to have asked for advice and I hope some others receive the same benefit from reading it that I have.
At this point I have ordered a sweeper, a record clamp, anti-static sleeves, and a cleaning kit (for both the record and the stylus). I also have a brush coming in with the turntable and preamp. There seems to be a lot of debate on different cleaning machines and processes, and I need to ruminate/research more before I pull the trigger on purchasing one. I think it is good to learn to do it by hand too. To me it is similar to learning to drive on a manual, change your tire, or to properly polish dress shoes. Every gentleman should know how to do these things. Not that I am a gentleman of course. By the time I am more proficient cleaning them by hand, I should not only be tired of doing that way but also know more about the different types of cleaning machines and what I am willing to invest in one.
I have also read up on the grading of records which in a lot of ways sounds much like coin grading (if anyone is a numismatist here). And I have started reading the Precision Aqueous Cleaning of Vinyl Records. The copy I downloaded is close to 200 pages so please bear with me as I digest that treatise. Once that is done, I will look at the Vinyl Press blog by Bill Hart.
I am still looking at getting a dust cover and a tone arm lifter (Pro-ject Safety Raiser or otherwise). Anything else in the immediate future I should be looking at?
I have already spoken to my gf about going to some of the mentioned Portland area shops this weekend to check them out. Oh, and I am totally down for a PDX meeting up. I am even happy to host if you all want to come down to Milwaukie for a BBQ afterward. I do have a decent streaming rig at my desk which is where the turntable is going (exclusively a music system) so we could even do some A/B comparisons. Okay, at least decent to me. |
