Turntable recommendations

Are you looking for performance like the DJ uses or just to play LP?

I want a USB turntable that I can record my records with.

For just the LP, there are so many generic cheap ones that range from $20 - $80. But you can
get a good one for $99. It's a Numark TT1600MKII it's used by DJ but you don't have to. It's
good for the price. For the USB Ion Audio iTTUSB05. I haven't tried it but I am familiar with Ion
and they have fairly good sound through USB.

most players actually do not play 78s.

i've had 3 or 4 turntables, and only a soundesign (?) with also a built in 8-track was able to play the 78s.

http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/ION-U...oductDetail.do
That's USB if it's ok for you.
The only way to get 78RPM without shelling out a lot of money is getting a old ones
on eBay.

You get what you pay for when you purchase a $99.00 turntable. You might as well stick with cd's.

not so true. my first player was that 100 dollar sony.

i immediately noticed the difference. its a good introduction.

im starting to think vinyl sounds better because the people that transfered the tapes took greater care and consideration. cds are just done fast. that and cd sounds lifeless. might be the needle actually touching the groove. i dont know.

You don't need a $2000.00 turntable, but you should at least look at a Rega P3, Project or MMF5 turntable. Based on what I've heard, that is when you really begin to hear what vinyl has to offer. IMO

I'm looking at these two players:

Music Hall MMF-2.1

Sumiko/Pro-Ject Debut III

Any thoughts or other recommendations?

Thanks,

J.

I have occasionally considered a turntable simply to take advantage of the dirt cheap LPs that I sometimes run across in pawn shops and garage sales. Of course, CDs have much better sound quality.

Those are fightin' words...!

J.

Nah, merely an observation. It is also the reason that LPs can be found dirt cheap.

There are numerous, and I do mean numerous differences between CD playback and vinyl, even if it were that they were mastered from the same source. Now, technically and practically, CD is a better medium but that doesn't mean one should abandon vinyl. Seeing as music is largely a personal preference, there is more than enough room to embrace both approaches. Consider that many recordings simply don't exist on CD or hi-rez but do on vinyl can be reason enough to buy into vinyl. Further, even when they do exist on both mediums, a person may simply prefer the vinyl. Or not. Many of the problems come when people try to justify their preference using reasons that are demonstrably false. One can simply like something just because they like it. That's it. It doesn't need supporting documentation.

Now for those who have vinyl, if'n you ever get around to it, transfer your vinyl to CD. Use a program that gets rid of those ticks and pops. Now compare the two presentations. I think you'll find that the CD version sounds remarkably like what came off your turntable/cartridge combination. It won't necessarily sound like somebody elses turntable/cartridge, but it'll sound remarkably similar to yours. That in itself should suggest certain things to you.

Many people make needle drops from their vinyl. Using Audacity software it is very easy to see the similarities and differences between cd and vinyl as well as early cd's vs. remasters. I listen to both vinyl and cd. Most of the time (not all the time), I prefer the vinyl to the cd. This of course would be for music that was recorded in analog and not modern digital recordings. To each his/her own. One thing that I find funny about all the negative turntable posts is that the person making the comments neither has a turntable or has not heard a turntable in 10 or 20 years. Believe it or not technology has come a long way.

Finally, several artists remaster their music for lp's differently than they do for cd. The latest White Stripes and Red Hot Chili Peppers lp's are examples.

yes, i have the led zeppelin cd
remasters by jimmy page
nice and bright maybe to bright though and uh wheres the bass.

the original lps are mastered much better. maybe because jones and bonahm actually had say in the studio at that time. theres actually boomines to the bass.

also hendrix's first rays of the rising sun. the cd sounds great. then i got the lps and what i noticed were the drums. they were more prominent which i liked.

to me vinyl sounds more "spacey". cds sound brighter.

in the old days it was cool to buy any vinyl but now a days in the age of digital you gotta be careful. these studio guys dont use the original analog tapes. they use some digital master. i just got burned by a rollingstones lp masterd in 2003 called "audiophile". sounds very muted even when i crank the volume up all the way the sound still doesnt sound full to me. then i checked online and read all the negative reviews.

I just bought a TT you may want to check out. http://www.soundcity.com/index.asp?P...rodID=688&HS=1
It's a Rega P2 clone for pretty good price I think.

That is where I was when CD's came out. I bought my first piece of vinyl in the late 60's and still have more albums than CD's; about 1,200 to 700. Many of those albums are no longer available or never made it to CD. I am planning to convert some of my collection to digital but it will take time and I'll need to invest in a record cleaning machine to make the project worthwhile. So, for me, the turntable and software discussions are of great value.

YMMV

Just picked up a Music Hall MMF-5 from Elusive Disc for a nice price. I'm looking forward to enjoying some of my old collection and some new selected offerings.

J.

The high quality LPs being turned out today cost about twice as much as a CD.

http://store.acousticsounds.com/store.cfm?section=none

http://www.elusivedisc.com/

Vinyl has been "back" for several years, now. New vinyl sales increases have outpaced CD sales increases, percentage-wise, for the last couple of years. There's a large number of high-quality TTs being manufactured today. Vinyl is here to stay.

There's just something "tactile" about that needle in a groove that makes certain recordings sound better, especially rock-n-roll. Rock-n-Roll evolved along with the TT, not with digital media.

If I had the space and the money, I'd jump right onto the vinyl bandwagon.