Getting into vinyl

[cloy26]

I know there are some knowledgeable guys on here regarding vinyl records. So, my questions:

Would it be better to get a dedicate phono receiver or just a phono preamp and connect it to my samson monitor control station?

Would my bx5a monitors be sufficient to really be good speakers? Or should I get dedicated stereo speakers?

Is it worth buying an album on vinyl that was recorded in digitally? lol

 

[GarethSE]

Google for a decent phono stage. Failing that, I use a hi-fi amp for my general listening in the sitting room that has a phono stage built in. I also have all my other media stuff in the room connected up to the amp, so it's the central hub of my set-up. If you have a lot of media stuff in one room, bluray player, laptop, turntable, some form of cd player, dvd player, then it's definitely worth buying a dedicated amp for everything to go through.
Otherwise, get a phono stage.

Your BX5A's will sound excellent with vinyl. I use my KRK RP5 G2's with a set of 8" hi-fi speakers. The RP5's provide the detail, the 8" speakers provide low end and a smoother sound to balance out the KRK's slight sterility. But before I acquired the extra speakers, my KRK's on their own sounded great. So no worries there.

And I have a lot of stuff on vinyl that was recorded digitally and for the most case, there's a slight improvement, bit more detail in the transients, a little bit more open, but I've also got digitally recorded stuff that sounds worse on vinyl. It varies.

All of the stuff I know was recorded analogue generally sounds fucking monumental. The thickness of the record also comes into it. All my stuff by Sunn is 180gram vinyl and it feels sturdy as fuck.
It also varies between label to label. Most of my Relapse stuff is pretty... Well it's okay but could be better?
All of my Southern Lord stuff sounds fucking incredible.

You get vibes from certain bands or labels or musicians where you know they're passionate about vinyl, just a gut feeling, and those bands you can generally be sure the vinyl will sound incredible, but otherwise there's generally an improvement. Most of my record collection is made up of more obscure stuff generally because the vinyl's better quality and limited edition and worth owning. Some people buy just EVERYTHING and ANYTHING on vinyl. What you buy and don't is your choice

Hope that helps somewhat dude.


Also look into an eliptical stylus for the best quality playback. Hit me up on msn if you want any more advice.

 

[cloy26]

Awesome post! Thanks so much.

I live in an apartment and my room mate has a whole media area, but his "surround system" is a joke. There is a subwoofer, but it doesn't work, so there is nothing remoltely close to bass on the system and he thinks it sounds amazing. so I'll probably just bring mine into my room and just chill out and listen to it on my own time.

I am probably going to just buy a nice dedicated pre because it's going to be on my recording/schoolwork/media center desk, but I don't have any tv or anything. so yah.

But thanks again d00d. I really appreciate it and I really appreciate the take on the vinyl recorded digitally. No one ever has a good answer.

 

[SimonTaddio_Qc]

I don't know about the stuff that's been recorded digitally, but I tell you all my old Maiden/Rush/Megadeth/Pink Floyd/Black Sabbath/Hendrix/you name it records sounds way better on vinyl than on their their CD/mp3 counterpart, so my guess it's that the "vibe" is in the vinyl itself.
I say if you're on a budget, you could keep your monitors without problem.

 

[ratsapprentice]

Pretty much everything gareth said.
Don't be fooled into thinking that eveything will sound incredible, some stuff lends itself to vinyl some doesn't.
Relapse stuff sounds decent.
Peaceville stuff sounds good.
Back on Black , some of the older stuff sounds IN-FUCKING-CREDIBLE, but some is just ok.
Certain record companies used cheap pressing methods back in the day, so you'll find that original records by Roadrunner will be crackly as fuck, even though it's not really noticeable during songs.

 

[cloy26]

I'm thinking about this:

http://www.needledoctor.com/Needle-...800-229-0644-Audio-Technica-PEQ3-Phono-Preamp

Seems like a great deal, can't find it for less than 80usd. And I trust AT, should I? lol

 

[GarethSE]

Looks like a bargain to me man. Grab it and you can always upgrade your phono stage later.

Also take special care when setting up your turntable. Go through some tutorials and read up on cartridge alignment and such. Try and get a turntable with a quartz lock, too. A quartz locked turntable will be pricier but it will play your records at the EXACT correct speed, whereas mine, which doesn't have a quartz lock plays sometimes a little tiny bit too slow, a teeny bit too fast, just enough to be subtley noticable and legitimately change the atmosphere and mood of a listen. Plus vinyl playing at the wrong speed WILL degrade your records faster.

My turntable cost me £150, though, and has a £60 cartridge upgrade with an eliptical stylus, which is a fairly cheap set-up when it comes to audiophile stuff, and my records are all still sounding pretty excellent and well maintained.

 

[cloy26]

Would it be better to go brand new or try to go to thrift stores and see what I can dig up for dirt cheap? I'm assuming newer as opposed to vintage.

 

[ratsapprentice]

You can get good quality turntables new for very reasonable prices.
As long as you avoid DJ turntables, you should be good on the quality.

http://www.project-audio.com/main.php?prod=essential&cat=turntables&lang=en

 

[AudioGeekZine]

You need to powder or you won't be able to get into it. Once you're in you'll be really hot, literally.

 

[cloy26]

'the fuck.

 

[AllanD]

You need to powder or you won't be able to get into it. Once you're in you'll be really hot, literally.

I see what you did there.

 

[cloy26]

ooo shit. haha