As some of you know, I play only digital and have some foo cables, which actually looks easy compared to searching for a record player.
I started to consider analog as my pre amp has an MC input, but this turns out to be a snake pit.
First, I have no idea what would make sense as a budget buying strategy (already stretched from 2k to 4k), and then secondly, which brands to consider after I have decided how to spend the budget.
It might be worth mentioning that my record collection consists of 2 (two) LP’s. I hope to double my collection in due time.
The thoughts evolved up till now:
buy a used turntable+arm for around 1k (Rega P9?), and add a new cartridge for another 1k
(and buy records)
buy a new Rega P8 + new Dynavector 20X2L as a dealer package for under 3k
(or stretch to XX-2 MkII?)
buy a used turntable+arm for 4k-5k trying to reach brands like Dr. Feickert, Bauer, et al, but have maybe 500 left or less for a new cartridge. Is this sensible for a cartridge grow strategy?
As interesting as I find the subject, reading through articles of turntables, arms and cartridges, I find it a hard subject to fully understand, foo cables are easier .
Any thoughts, serious or not serious, are highly appreciated.
OK, I’ll be Cassandra: don’t do it - however much you invest in vinyl replay will be a pittance compared with the cost of building a vinyl collection.
Vinyl is part music replay, part belief-system, and part addiction. Because of the addiction angle, everyone will insist you must join them in their addiction. This makes Them feel better, and makes You feel poorer.
As my system stands I have about £4.5K tied-up in the vinyl front-end, versus about £2.5K tied-up in digital. Both sound very similar indeed. Vinyl sometimes edges it if the LP is top quality. There isn’t all that much top quality vinyl out there, and what there is, is expensive.
People will claim this is because the vinyl front-end is shit - usually people who have spent £10K-upwards on their front-end…
If I was in your situation today, I would not bother with vinyl. YMMV.
I have a decent t/t setup and about 3500 records . I’ve also got a nice dac and streamer. I’m obviously invested into vinyl but I rarely buy records now as prices are ludicrous and quality is poor. If I were starting out now I would be streaming only.
The only person I know who has done this well is @browellm , who went from streaming to vinyl plus streaming.
I tried and failed. My main issue was that I wasn’t dissatisfied with the quality of streaming - classical recordings are great, usually. If you like some pop said then the vinyl can be better mastered.
Depends if you want to do it for fun and pick up a few used records here and there, and enjoy the ritual, or try and beat your digital setup. One can be very expensive
I use Spotify through a fairly decent dac and still prefer the sound sometimes over vinyl. Considerably less faff if you’re going to do vinyl properly too. I mean I have £600 in cleaning and measuring things. It’s a passion more than anything sensible
As sodders says,I’m not sure I’d bother.
I started again in 2010,but will probably be selling my deck and most of the records soon,and just hanging onto a small amount.
My ears aren’t good enough to tell a difference,and I got back into it more for sentimental reasons rather than sq
Everybody is trying to talk you out of it. For good reason, listen to them.
However, can i ask what type of music you like to listen to, or is there a style you would want to listen to on vinyl rather than digital?
I tend to find digital does the technical aspects better, less noise and stereo low frequencies, for example, but the right kind of vinyl setup can do musical performance and emotional involvement better, if it is there to be had, and if that is what you are looking for.
If it is what you are looking for, try to find a dealer who talks about music rather than hifi, and hear a range of decks and see what connects with you.
Why is a good question. I’m not looking for the ultimate SQ through analog.
However, during audio shows, I notice with vinyl a naturalness and ease of presentation that digital seems to lack.
I suspect that records might be mastered differently too, as digital still struggles with the loudness wars. But I might be wrong here.
Vinyl will also be a sort of trip down memory lane, I think I miss the scrolling though the physical media, be it CD or vinyl. And I wouldn`t mind the faffing about with the cleaning, the whole ritual makes you more aware of all, instead of consuming a playlist playing on the background.
I have neither the intention to replace my digital with analog, but to have analog in addition to what I have (CD plus streaming). So I won’t be buying the records of the CD’s I already have, just pick occasionally some records new or used that I come across.
I guess at the end I look for just another way of enjoying music and relax.
I listen mostly to either electronic music (Trentemoller, Kruder&Dorfmeister, Infected Mushroom) or vocal jazz, blues, world/pop (Diana Krall, Christina Branco, Kari Bremnes, Lizz Wright, Keb Mo).
But basically anything except rock/prog.
I get the feeling with vocals, that there is for whatever reason more emotion involved, so thank you, yes, that might be exactly the thing I’m looking for.
I’ve been committed to Vinyl for years and have a good collection.
If I was starting out I wouldn’t bother with it due to the excessive cost required to better streaming quality as distinct from emotional involvement.
The marketing men have taken over with the hipsters so the cost of buying new vinyl is excessive and a rip off for what are often questionable pressings.
This is not my system built up over decades but today it would be streaming with active big speakers to get 95% of the way to Nirvana. That extra 5% is just not cost effective any more but blow your brains out if you have an itch to scratch
I have 6-700 lps, that were all purchased over 35 years ago. I have not purchased any lps since then. I have a decent vinyl setup, that I hardly ever use.
Definitely would not invest in vinyl now.
Look Rudy I know I originally implored you to just not bother in my first reply but then you posted -
In which case I recommend you skip the expanse and faff of vinyl replay, and instead head straight to the expense and faff of reel to reel tapes
Get yourself a decent reel deck for less than the cost of a good record deck, buy a load of blank tape reels, and record your favourite music straight from digital into tape. Hey presto that undefinable analogue quality and ease of presentation on any digital that you already have and just want to hear it ‘better’*
(*different).
I’m half joking but half serious. I tape a lot of digital electronic stuff I’ve got, especially the hi res versions, and it sounds great played back through the reels. You get the low bass response from digital with the more fluid overall sound from analogue.
Case in point - I got my nephew into Trentemoller and he went and bought and enjoys the 3LP version of ‘The last resort’. He brought it here and loves to hear it blasting out through the horns on my deck. Then I played him a version I had taped from digital and he loved that even more (he does love bass you can feel tho’).
Also most modern vinyl is absolute cack, basically the CD poorly mastered into analogue and then pressed with zero care and attention. If new vinyl sounds anywhere half decent it’s most often an ‘audiophile’ edition costing £50-200.
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