I still have about 400 records and spin them on a 1978 vintage Dual 704, automatic, direct drive, with an Audio-Techinca ML-440 cartridge. It still performs well and although it does not match my former Rega Planar 3/Sumiko MMT/Bluepoint rig, vinyl is still important to me.
Over 360 LP and around 55 78rpms, two TT, one a Technics SLDD-33 and one the famous SL-1200Mk-II, both fitted with Shure V-15 Mk-IV.
__________________ Yamaha NS-1000M, NS-1000x, Yamaha MX-1000 and MX-1 power amp, Yamaha CDX-1050 CDP, Accuphase DP70V CDP, Canton Ergo 120 speakers, Technics SL-1200 Mk-II TT. For HT, Yamaha Z9 with three Yamaha subs, two YST SW800 and one YST SW320 in rear, for mains, Yamaha NS-300 with 300C and for surrounds, NS-100 in rear, front effects handled by NS-90. For DVD duties, Yamaha DVD-S540 and for SACD Yamaha DVD-S2300 Mk-I. Also have Yamaha EQ-550 equalizer and Yamaha KX-932 deck.
Lots of old '60s and '70's vinyl, mostly classical. I play them on my Thorens TD 160, bought new back in the day. Right now I have an Audio Technica cartridge; probably upgrade to a Shure eventually.
Have you guys seen these megabuck turntables these days with platters nearly a foot thick? Freakin' ridiculous! Talk about products for people with more money than brains!
__________________ "... it is surely a morally ambiguous position to persuade non-technical people that to get a really good sound they have to buy £2000 preamps and so on, when both technical orthodoxy and common sense indicate that this is quite unnecessary. " -- Doug Self "Audio Wisdom": Links for the new or confused audiophile.
seabiscuit : I still have about 400 records and spin them on a 1978 vintage Dual 704, automatic, direct drive, with an Audio-Techinca ML-440 cartridge. *It still performs well and although it does not match my former Rega Planar 3/Sumiko MMT/Bluepoint rig, vinyl is still important to me.
And you........? *
Some of the old vinyl is irreplaceable; So are some of the shellac and metal recordings. *I'm not one of those who enjoys the rituals that go along with vinyl, but we have two turntables, four tone arms, and a selection of phono cartridges and phono stages to choose from, plus a nice NItty-Gritty vacuum record cleaner, precision SFG, stylus microscope, test recordings, and all the other stuff it takes to get the most out of the formats. *We have wide-groove recordings from the 20's and 30's that require a special stylus, rotational speeds other than 78 RMP (80 RPM is common), and non-RIAA equalization. *Getting the most out of old vinyl can be non-trivial, but it can also be quite enjoyable.
Newer vinyl recordings can be interesting as well. *Making a listenable recording on vinyl is a lot tougher than making a listenable recording using a digital format. *Making a good vinyl recording is as much art as science. *Add to that the fact that all current vinyl releases are targeted toward and mixed for the "perfectionist audiophile" and what we end up with is a group of people with musical and artistic talent cutting vinyl that is mixed for optimal reproduction (within the limits of the format) on upscale audio systems. *CD's on the other hand tend to be mixed to "sound good" on more typical home and automotive audio systems. *Good "modern" vinyl recordings, reproduced on good equipment, almost always sounds stunning, in spite of the limitations of the medium. *The primary reason is the target customer, the skill and taste of the recording engineer(s), and the mix. *Vinyl attracts the cream of the crop.
If it weren't such a pain our turntables would get a lot more use, but we're rather be listening to music than cleaning vinyl and constantly tuning the mechanical playback setup. *My guess is that vinyl probably has at least another 50 years before it will be seen in the same way we see wax cylinder recordings today.
I still have a turntable. It's a heavily modified AR turntable with a Rega Arm and a Shure cartridge. The only reason I still use it on occaison is that some of the music I love dearly has never been put on CD, and probably never will.
__________________
I was an audiophile until I found out what they were doing in the recording studio.
I have a Technics linear tracking turntable from the early1980s, and a collection of vinyl from the 60s and 70s. *Every Thanksgiving, we spin Arlo Gurthrie's "Alice's Restaurant" to everyone's amusment. *However, any time I put some serious music on the turntable, I am disappointed by the sound quality. *Give me SACD in two, four or five channels any day.
__________________
Theater: Sharp XV-Z9000U (720p), Denon AVR-5803, Sony DVP-NS755V, Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300HD, Anthony Gallo Reference3 fronts, Axiom VP 150 center, Axiom QS8 surrounds, Mirage BPS-400 (dual active 12" bipolar sub). Zone 2: Axiom M60s.
Bedroom: Panasonic TH-50PZ85U, Sony PS3 (shuttles between theater and bedroom), Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300HD.
Goodman; I agree. I too have long since moved passed vinyl. Give me DTS 96/24, SACD and DVD A any day of the week. I have had and heard some superb vinyl recordings, but I never thought we would have access to the formats we enjoy now. They are quite simply astounding. I loved vinyl in it's day, but that day is long gone. However, I have about a dozen albums that I need to get onto CD somehow
__________________
"Thomas Jefferson once said, 'We should never judge a president by his age, only by his works.' And ever since he told me that, I stopped worrying." - Ronald Reagan
Rip Van Woofer : Have you guys seen these megabuck turntables these days with platters nearly a foot thick? Freakin' ridiculous! Talk about products for people with more money than brains!
For a guy with zillions of great vinyl these newer "super tables" are probably well worth the $. I hail back to the Oracle, VPI, and SOTA days which when factoring in inflation were far more expensive than today's units.
Yamaha NS-1000M, NS-1000x, Yamaha MX-1000 and MX-1 power amp, Yamaha CDX-1050 CDP, Accuphase DP70V CDP, Canton Ergo 120 speakers, Technics SL-1200 Mk-II TT. For HT, Yamaha Z9 with three Yamaha subs, two YST SW800 and one YST SW320 in rear, for mains, Yamaha NS-300 with 300C and for surrounds, NS-100 in rear, front effects handled by NS-90. For DVD duties, Yamaha DVD-S540 and for SACD Yamaha DVD-S2300 Mk-I. Also have Yamaha EQ-550 equalizer and Yamaha KX-932 deck.
Linear Mode
