Clueless Analog Newbie, Looking to Buy

Hi Knotgreen, my apolitical response to your question would be to consult with a reputable audio dealer. Analog is intrinsicly more complicated than digital, in both its user involvement in setup and the difference in sound. Listen to several different setups at several different pricepoints, ask questions and familliarize yourself with the difference between those pricepoints and the type of sound they offer. Make yourself aware of the difference in sound between analog and digital, and understand that whatever table you choose will not be as simple to use as a cd player. Make sure your table and arm choice is going to be something that can be setup by someone at your skill level. You may have to save your money for a while to get the setup that is right for you, as anyone on this post will tell you, analog is not cheap.

If you are serious about this, as others on this thread have said, you probably want to save up around $2k to make this a good experience from you. Even then, if you don't have someone there helping setup the table, etc, it is likely to be an exercise in frustration, as making turntables sound as good as CDs is not easy to do with all of the setup variables involved.

But - if you want to just jump in, buy the Audio Technica table and cartridge that has been recommended. Take the table and the cartridge to a reputable hifi dealer who can properly set it up, and pay them to do it.

You'll be in for about $400 at this point, and you'll need to buy some records to of course. You'll need to find a phono stage as well. This would be a good time to decide if you want to take things seriously, or if it was just a fun experiment, or maybe nothing will go right, and you will hate everything about how high maintainence analog playback is. Either way, that would be a good place to start.

The Audio-Technica turntable makes things even easier because it has a built-in phono stage. You can just plug it right into today's line-stage-only receivers and integrated amps.

Of course you can get a better phono stage by buying separately, but the AT-PL120 can get you started without that additional complication.

I want to add one more thing: different people hear things differently. It's why some languages have five different versions of the letter "p" and English has only one, why only a very few languages have a "th" sound at all.

My point is this: some people will never be satisfied with LPs regardless of how much is spent, while others will hear a marked and preferred difference even with the humblest of turntable/cartridge setups. Digital excels at the boom and sizzle--the sharp transients, dynamic contrasts, and frequency extremes. LP playback gets expensive to achieve the very best of that, but even my $2 (garage sale) belt drive Yamaha turntable with included conical stylus P-mount cartridge gave me the magic of the music between the bits that you can't capture via redbook (or even 24/96) no matter how much you spend.

So this idea that you have to spend $2K and up to begin to sound better than CD is highly subjective; it comes down to what you hear and what you listen for. If you hear the "music between the bits" you'll hear it right away on any turntable, even if it sounds compressed with a limited frequency response.

After all, it's the iPod generation who have been bringing back vinyl. They want something meaningful and involving to listen to when they get home and take off their earbuds. Do you think most of these new pressings are being played on Rega P7s with an Exact cartridge? They're either being played on Dad's old direct drive, B.I.C., or a new $150-300 Denon or Yamaha belt drive with cast aluminum platter.

Johnnyb53-
What an excellent post.