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What's the cost of an entry level vinyl setup?

I'm just curious how much it would cost to get the equipment required to make vinyl worth listening to. I know players are available for cheap, but would anticipate the sound quality to be the same.

What would be your recommendation to go with a system worth about $5,000 in total? Is there a significant advantage to vinyl at this level? I've heard vinyl on high enough equipment to know that at it's best it's better than digital, but am not sure what it would cost for the average joe to get a quality sound.
mceljo
oakleys
78 posts
 
mceljo-

i am only visiting the internets from the land of otl's and vinyl...

in deed im just got back from Bonnie "prince" Billy "Funtown Comedown" spinnin on the table.

good times.

in queue is My Morning Jacket 'it still moves'

an then Lambchop "is a woman"

later still Thee Silver Mt Zion "he has left us alone but shafts of light sometimes grace the corner of our rooms..."

with a little Godspeed You! Black Emperor "yanqui u.x.o"
to end a lovely weekend.

are you?
t_bone
1,182 posts
 
Thom Mackris and others have it right. One can get respectable vinyl sound at several hundred dollars. Good looks cost more than good sound.

I find that Absolutelytopnotchblowmeawaywitheverylisten sound costs more, but that kind of thing isn't usually classified as 'entry level.'
daverz
487 posts
 
I think before getting a vinyl rig you should think about how you are going to acquire records. It it's from Acoustic Sounds or similar, a collection of 100 records is going to cost $3000 or more. A lot less if you have access to a good used record store.
bjesien
1,310 posts
 
Daverz, I just picked up four complete Reader's Digest box sets from the swap shop at the dump. That's hundreds of hours of music right there. One set has ten albums dedicated to "Mood Music for Dining." Best thing is that that are so bad I don't think they've ever been played.

Point well taken.
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,308 posts
 
I'm with THom and T_Bone.

I have a vintage Dual 1264 with vintage Goldring cart and Yamaha cr-420 vintage receiver that sounds way more than just respectable.

The same pieces bought used today should only cost a few hundred if you can find them.
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