Old records.

I live with old, I mean OLD records. A couple things, first, upgrade your stylus to a Line Contact, or SAS, or other nude elliptical (for stereo, and a good mono cart...). Those styli designed for 4 channel (like the SAS) are an excellent choice for 70's and 80's records. The deeper into the groove the better (virgin territory...). Second hand records have an unknowable history, quite often the "top" of the groove has been worn by old, or inappropriate cartridge/stylus choices, or dirt. I also recommend Moving Magnet or Moving Iron for used records until their condition is known. As for cleaning old and used records I use Tergikleen mixed per manufacturer's directions in a Spin-Clean. I rinse with a spray bottle of distilled water, and then dry on a Record Doctor (vacuum) then air dry in a rack for a bit. Tergikleen can be formulated for Ultra Sonic as well, but it must be rinsed with distilled water no matter the method (get some label protectors on Amazon). The PVC (it's PVC that keeps vinyl records out of curbside recycling, nasty when melted) in the record is a recipe of different suppliers and products. Pressing plants often recycle rejects back into the mix. It is impossible to know, unless you mixed the batch yourself, just what is in your record. Some of the component parts of the vinyl mix can react badly to alcohol. It is not worth the risk of exposing your vinyl to any amount of alcohol. I have a ruined Mahavishnu Birds Of Fire LP on which I naively used a home brew recipe cleaning solution that had alcohol as an ingredient. None of the other records cleaned with that recipe show the same damage. The damage is visible through a magnifying glass, looks like ripples in a sandbar (the solvent action of the alcohol removed something and left the record "dried out"), and the damage was probably cumulative. And finally, if you can't think of your vinyl, polystyrene, or lacquer collection as Artifacts, you are bound to be disappointed. Yes, there are some excellent sounding pressings out there, and a perfect marriage of record, stylus and electronics can sound spectacular. But digital perfection is not what record collecting is about, for me, anyway. Maybe you can price your collection (3,000 is not an insignificant collection!  I'm sure there are some gems in there) on DISCOGS and find your nirvana..  Good luck

Interestingly, when I compare Reiner’s RCA .5 mastering LP of the Mousorgsky Pictures at an Exhibition it sonically blows away the Idagio stream of the same performance.  But this is a rarity.  Normally the Idagio streams sound better in comparison to LPs.

LEWM,

I do not want the OP to give up on vinyl this is why I suggested trying his older vinyl on a second system to see if it’s his system or the vinyl. I have spent hours on the phone with JR from WAM Engineering or Wally Tools. I have tested these theories enough that I can change my VTF/ VTA in one minute even though my tt has an Allen set screw on the tone arm post. I just wanted the OP to test some things out to help him out as efficiently and cheaply as possible. I listen to a lot of different types of vinyl but most of my collection is classical. I don’t mind that people are not into vinyl. I do feel when you hear it done correctly it is on another level. 

There is this totally false notion that records are the holy grail of good sound.

No and no. Record sound quality is all over the place just like all the rest. Some recordings are good and many are not. Some records are physically of good quality and some are not. Some are in good shape and some are warped and or have groove damage.

It’s literally all over the place .

The best sounding records overall are those from the golden age circa ~1955 into the 60s. This was the golden age because hifi recordings were new and novel and the manufacturers competed to deliver good sound accordingly. Then it went mostly down hill from there where good quality recordings become harder to find.

Finally you have the “vinyl renaissance” in recent years where people got hoodwinked into buying newer recordings that are totally digitally produced with the marketing spin that oh hey it’s a record and records sound better .

Again No and no. Records make a nice package but that’s it. They do not make digitally remastered recordings sound better because they are now records. All you get is a higher noise floor, pops clicks and other forms of noise and distortion in most cases.

I read something recently that more people who buy new records have nothing to play them with than those who do. They buy records to own them but not to listen to them. Who wants to deal with all that when modern day streaming does it all?

I still buy records, mainly on the cheap when opportunity knocks , because I have a large collection to start with and I like records. But I hardly ever play them anymore. When I do they get a thorough cleaning and go straight to my digital library to stream.

Mapman,

I totally agree with the digital recording presses to vinyl. If the recording is bad then the pressing sounds bad. Jimmy Hendrix, LED Zeplin, and even some of the Beatles albums sound poor. It is cool that it is digitally recorded sometimes in 4x DSD. I really do enjoy some of the reproductions because sometimes they do it right or at least better. Since I came very late to the vinyl game I have been very picky about what I buy or keep. My crutch is Pink Floyd. I have different pressings of Pink Floyd albums and they do sound different and even better. I have friends who have over 1000 albums. My problem is they do not or cannot listen to most of them. I am friends with Charles Kirmus. The one thing they always say to him when he is at shows is how can I clean hundreds or thousands of albums. If I’m near that person asking I tell them you don’t. Because you probably don’t listen to all of them. I tell them to clean their top 50 and then their top 100 while mixing in your recent purchases. You might only get to 200 or 300 albums cleaned. It doesn’t matter because everyone has their top 50-100 albums. I have been to my friends houses over and over helping them set up their carts and having a listening session. They always have that top 50 including myself. Every once in a while they picked up a new record. They clean it and we take a listen. If it’s great it gets added to the top 50. Eventually some if the albums get put back on the shelve. We usually only have so much time to listen. My biggest frustration is the price of a good pressing and it does not match the quality of sound or is warped.  Typically it goes back. I’m talking a brand new pressing from top rated companies like AP, OJC, and MOFI. I’m sorry but I am not paying $60 and it has missing areas and bad warps. I have taken a break from buying for a while do to these issues. I do have to say if you get into vinyl make sure your reasoning behind it is met. What I mean if you buy a $300-$500 new record player I can almost guarantee it will not best your digital. If you like handling the physical medium and are ok with the lesser sound then have at it. Sometimes I listen to the HEOS streamer in my Marantz surround system and it sounds really nice even better than that $500 record player. Luckily prices will be pulling back on vinyl so hopefully we all can get a lot more value then we did in the past three years.