Black hole of vinyl is pulling me in.

[sterling shoote]

I mothballed my turntable in the mid 1980's having been sold on CD audio's promise to deliver perfect sound. I never thought about firing up my turntable again until a few years ago, having heard some credentialed audiophiles insist that vinyl sounds better than CD, which made me curious enough to look into it. Well, now, having occasion to re-visit my LP collection and compare to my CDs of same material, I find myself thinking maybe these vinyl enthusiast's are on to something. And, although I never thought I'd be considering a new turntable, theTechnics SL-1200GR, that is exactly what I am doing right now. Is this just crazy, or what?

 

[lovinthehd]

Whatever floats your boat. I never mothballed mine (an SL1200mk2 I got in '84),it's been in occasional use even after I moved mostly over to digital. Sure, some records sound great, so do some digital recordings. That vinyl is always better is not my experience but I suppose that may depend on what range of music and what you're comparing it to; hard to know the provenance of each recording, as to what versions you're actually comparing. That is a tt I'd love to compare to my tt but not willing to spend more on playing my record collection either. What was the mothballed tt?

 

[John Parks]

According to many (especially on some of these forums) yes, yes you are (crazy, that is). I must be as well because I love the sound of vinyl on my turntable! Is it better? Not always - I have some awesome CDs, SACDs and digital files that do not sound as nice as their vinyl counterparts. The converse is certainly true as well. As @lovingthehd said, "Whatever floats your boat" and that is how it should be, not whatever suspends other's vessels.

 

[sterling shoote]

Whatever floats your boat. I never mothballed mine (an SL1200mk2 I got in '84),it's been in occasional use even after I moved mostly over to digital. Sure, some records sound great, so do some digital recordings. That vinyl is always better is not my experience but I suppose that may depend on what range of music and what you're comparing it to; hard to know the provenance of each recording, as to what versions you're actually. That is a tt I'd love to compare to my tt but not willing to spend more on playing my record collection either. What was the mothballed tt?

My 43 year old Sony PS-4750 is now out of mothballs and overall I'm still very satisfied with it; but, it does not have some features which I perceive to be useful, like adjustable feet, adjustable VTA, and digital speed lock. I also like that there are some high quality carts in headshells for the Technics which do not require user to align for best results, like the Ortofon M2 PNP Series.

 

[3db]

I only suspended my vinyl listening whiel I was saving up for a new turntable. The old one I had sounded bad and I was afriad it was ruining my collection. That was 10 years back and for teh last 6 years, I''ve enjoyed vinyl a lot. My take on teh vinyl verses CD is that I have recordings in both formats, sometimes CD wins, sometimes vinyl wins. It all came down to the mastering .

I won't call you crazy until you get into ...

 

[John Parks]

Self recorded cassettes can sound pretty good, especially if it is vinyl-on-tape. This is where I draw the line:

 

[3db]

Call me crazy but here's a pic of my latest edition to my bedroom system; Yamaha KX-630

 

[sterling shoote]

Well, it sucked me in. I ordered the Technics SL-1210GR this morning from B & H. As I understand it, I can expect delivery on the 5th. I've already got one of my cartridges aligned, so I'm good-to-go. Here's a picture:

 

[jcparks]

awesome!!!
I ordered a turntable last year, a lesser turntable then the fancy Technics one you ordered, but it is still tons of fun. I personally don't subscribe to the belief that analogue has a "soul" and will therefor always be superior to digital. It is awesome to have physical copies for your favorite music, and what better way to do that then an LP. Also they make for great decorations and usually can spark a conversation. My only regret is I purchased a grey turntable thinking that it was going to be for my listening room, however as it turns out my wife is way into the vinyl thing, so now the turntable is down in the living room, and grey isn't exactly in the decor... Now I'm going to have to get a more attractive (more expensive) turntable with a wooden finish for aesthetic purposes.. Enjoy your new turntable man.

 

[John Parks]

awesome!!!
I ordered a turntable last year, a lesser turntable then the fancy Technics one you ordered, but it is still tons of fun. I personally don't subscribe to the belief that analogue has a "soul" and will therefor always be superior to digital. It is awesome to have physical copies for your favorite music, and what better way to do that then an LP. Also they make for great decorations and usually can spark a conversation. My only regret is I purchased a grey turntable thinking that it was going to be for my listening room, however as it turns out my wife is way into the vinyl thing, so now the turntable is down in the living room, and grey isn't exactly in the decor... Now I'm going to have to get a more attractive (more expensive) turntable with a wooden finish for aesthetic purposes.. Enjoy your new turntable man.

I love it that many turntables these days come in lots of neat colors. I have a white u-turn Orbit in my living room, that goes quite well with its surroundings. In my media room (where I was able to add a punch of color) I have this:

 

[sterling shoote]

It seems to me that the necessary engineering, materials, and precision to deliver a turntable which can extract all there is from the record groove to extract would be settled science by now; and, this makes me wonder today if there is a price point which an audiophile can expect to be completely satisfied. From all of what I've read so far it looks like there are no credentialed reviewers who are willing to declare a winner yet. One thing for sure, buying the Technics SL-1210GR is as far as I'm going to go with it.

 

[sterling shoote]

I just finished assembling it. And, my expectations are being realized. The unit's adjustable VTR, precision tonearm bearings, and adjustable feet are indeed contributing to getting more out of the groove, even with the Ortofon 2M Red, which only took a few minutes to align. One really neat feature, not advertised, is the azimuth adjustable headshell. The headshell needed no adjustment however; but, the feature could come in handy.

 

[davidscott]

I too went all cds back in 2000 or so when my venerable Thorens 280 started having problems. Unfortunately I also ditched all my LPs. Fast forward to 2014 and I purchased an excellent used Rega Planar 3 and have been buying used LPs. Glad I got back into vinyl I missed the sound. Still I don't think I'll replace the old Aiwa cassette deck that I also discarded. Supporting one old format (now 2 counting cds) is quite enough for me.
Dave

 

[sterling shoote]

I too went all cds back in 2000 or so when my venerable Thorens 280 started having problems. Unfortunately I also ditched all my LPs. Fast forward to 2014 and I purchased an excellent used Rega Planar 3 and have been buying used LPs. Glad I got back into vinyl I missed the sound. Still I don't think I'll replace the old Aiwa cassette deck that I also discarded. Supporting one old format (now 2 counting cds) is quite enough for me.
Dave

I remember, at one time I had equipment which could support just about everything except Elcaset. Now, I've got a few cassette decks, universal players, and of course my new turntable. That turntable is seeing 3-5 hours use daily, probably until the newness wears off, and all of the other pieces of equipment see occasional use; but, over all, I enjoy an OPPO Player for multi-channel SACDs. The least used equipment I own are a pair of Sony PCM-7010F Digital Audio Tape Recorders. I can't part with them however since they sound better than anything I've ever heard. At any rate, my recent excursions into vinyl again leading to the purchase of the Technics SL-1210GR, is, so far, without regret. I just now wish I could get some vinyl that I could play all the way through without distracting pops.

I believe then the vinyl might rival the SACD fun.

 

[davidscott]

Nice system. I had a Shure V15Type 4 back in the 80s on a dual TT. Great cartridge. Never had a DAT or a SACD player but a few cassette decks back in the day. I don't miss the cassettes do you still listen to them? My Planar 3 with the 24v motor is a nice TT and my NAD 516 BEE CD player is great. Just curious about the cassettes.

 

[sterling shoote]

Right now, I am making CDs of cassette recordings which my mother-in-law had earlier made. She now prefers to listen to CDs, since she is having some issues playing the cassettes on her cassette deck. This is about the only use I now have for my cassette deck. I had to put about $225 into it though for a new belt, cap, and a roller to stop it from eating tape. Now, it works great. At any rate, I think your Planar 3 and NAD are awesome designs, the sort of things which you can grow so fond of over time that you'd never want to part with them. That's the way I feel about the stuff I'm using, and, if I did sell some of system getting little use I would get so little for it, it is hardly worth the effort. Only reason to sell would be not having the room for the gear but I've got three more of the tall cabinets like in the picture should I need them so space is not a problem

 

[2channel lover]

I mothballed my turntable in the mid 1980's having been sold on CD audio's promise to deliver perfect sound. I never thought about firing up my turntable again until a few years ago, having heard some credentialed audiophiles insist that vinyl sounds better than CD, which made me curious enough to look into it. Well, now, having occasion to re-visit my LP collection and compare to my CDs of same material, I find myself thinking maybe these vinyl enthusiast's are on to something. And, although I never thought I'd be considering a new turntable, theTechnics SL-1200GR, that is exactly what I am doing right now. Is this just crazy, or what?

Definitely not crazy...but I raise my caution flag when someone says LPs sound better than CDs or visa versa.

There is an undeniable "sound" to vinyl that makes it different from digital, but that's where I stop...different.

I sold my LP collection before I ever had a really good turntable so I've long decided that digit is my format and even with the resurgence in vinyl production, I'm pretty comfortable still today with that decision.

 

[sterling shoote]

Definitely not crazy...but I raise my caution flag when someone says LPs sound better than CDs or visa versa.

There is an undeniable "sound" to vinyl that makes it different from digital, but that's where I stop...different.

I sold my LP collection before I ever had a really good turntable so I've long decided that digit is my format and even with the resurgence in vinyl production, I'm pretty comfortable still today with that decision.

My new turntable does permit the cartridge to perform as good as I suppose it can perform, so, for the pleasure of digitizing records, or the desire to get the most from music which I only have on LP, the new turntable has been the catalyst for a very pleasing experience. In experiments with music I have on CD, or SACD, as well as LP, so far, most of the digital discs do seem to sound as you said different from the LPs; yet, some could not easily be distinguished from digital if it were not for the occasional snap, crackle, and pop always absent on the digital material. I may even have a few LPs which I think actually sound better than the CD versions. At any rate, I think folks who say LPs sound better than CDs or visa versa across the board may not be having the fun I am having with it all.

 

[2channel lover]

My new turntable does permit the cartridge to perform as good as I suppose it can perform, so, for the pleasure of digitizing records, or the desire to get the most from music which I only have on LP, the new turntable has been the catalyst for a very pleasing experience. In experiments with music I have on CD, or SACD, as well as LP, so far, most of the digital discs do seem to sound as you said different from the LPs; yet, some could not easily be distinguished from digital if it were not for the occasional snap, crackle, and pop always absent on the digital material. I may even have a few LPs which I think actually sound better than the CD versions. At any rate, I think folks who say LPs sound better than CDs or visa versa across the board may not be having the fun I am having with it all.

Good to have that dual perspective...and most of all...having fun with it.

 

[davidscott]

Good to have that dual perspective...and most of all...having fun with it.

Well said,
And I'll add FM radio for a 3rd perspective could be either analog or digital delivered over the airwaves and basically free!
Dave