Advice on restarting vinyl playback after 30 years

VPI Classic w/Dynavector 20

Been there, done that, (about 10 years ago now), and haven't regretted it for one minute.

As far as the turntable, get something fairly easily setup, like a Rega P3, or a Basis 1400 with a RB300 tone arm, or a VPI Scout, or something similar. (As far as the cartridge, that really depends on the phono preamp's gain. Make sure that you match that up.) You'd probably be better off with a nice MM cartridge to start with, as that would allow you to scrimp a bit on the phono preamp, (as it will not need as much gain). A Dynavector 10x5 or a Grado Gold would probably work fine. (Note: Beware of which table you put the Grado cartridges on, as sometimes they have hum issues.)

And, here are some more tips:

1. You are going to need a phono preamp with a fair amount of gain, especially if you don't have a preamp already, (as the preamp normally adds another 10-15 db of gain to what the phono preamp gives you).
To be honest, I would probably just get a decent full function preamp, one that has the phono stage built-in.
(Then you can just run your DAC into the preamp, and you'll have a nice switch to go from digital to analog).
A vintage tubed ARC preamp would work nicely and would be fairly cheap. However, you might get some low level tube rushing noise, so either live with it, or get a solid state preamp, which might sacrifice a bit of musicality for a deeper, darker background. (I'll leave it up to you as to what you prefer. At your price point, you'll need to make compromises.)

2. Next you'll need some supplies, which include:

A. A vacuum Record Cleaning Machine, (highly recommended)
(Even a cheap Nitty Gritty or Record Doctor will do just fine, as long as you don't mind using a little elbow grease. I have one of these, and find it works just fine even after all these years.)

B. Cleaning supplies such as cleaning fluids and brushes.
(The MoFi cleaning fluid and brushes are a good start and not too expensive).

C. New inner record sleeves, (so you can chuck all those crappy paper ones that your old records are in). Outer sleeves are nice too, but not necessary.

D. A Micro Fiber brush, (as you'll only need to wet clean your records once before you first play them, (yes, even the new ones!), but you'll want to brush the dust off before each play afterwards).

3. Record Racks will be necessary as soon as you figure out that you prefer analog to digital. Ikea has some fairly cheap bookshelves, which can be used as shelves, or, Music Direct has some nice dedicated ones, (which is what I went with).

Well, good luck in your quest!

As to whether you need a pre-amp or not, I *suppose* you could just swap interconnects if you don't switch very often. But you still need a volume control for the analog signal. So the options are:

* Phono pre with volume control
* Phono pre + line stage
* Pre-amp with a good phono section

My advice: haunt the 'gon classifieds for a pre-amp with a good phono section. Ask around here for recommendations.

Sleeve City is great for Lp supplies:

http://www.sleevetown.com/turntable-accessories.shtml

You'll need a carbon-fiber brush and a stylus cleaner to use before each play.

I hate the noise of vacuum cleaning machines. I might try a Spin Clean first. They *say* it doesn't leave residue.

I have a Gem Dandy, which uses pressurized water to clean the record. I find this more effective than my Nitty Gritty machine, but it's way overpriced for something made of standard PVC tubing.

For support, installing a wall shelf, if possible, would probably be ideal, particularly if you have footfall problems, and is actually more cost effective. I use a Pro-ject Ground It, which is an overpriced sand filled platform with cone feet. It does allow for leveling, but it also adds mass to the *top* of my rack, which is probably the *wrong* place to add mass for stability.

Thanks for the great suggestions. Funny hing is that I had sold not long ago, my Cary SLP-05 tube pre. That will be a very hard act to follow.

The Pass X350.5 has RCA and balanced inputs. I'm currently using balanced from the DAC. I could perform cable swapping when switching to analog as you cannot have both sources plugged in at the same time. Nuts. It's just an additional step and I'm on the fence on whether it's worth going for a pre with a built-in phono stage. Any suggestions on phono stage vs pre with phono stage would be greatly appreciated.

I once owned a AR LS15. Audio Horizons seems to produce some highly customizable pre XX for whatever one wants to pay for good quality parts. But I'm so new to the "analog done right" world, that may not be the correct solution.

You got me thinking about foot-falls and platform isolation Daverz.