I couldn't find the other long running vinyl posts....

Finally got a record player & I've kinda been going IN... this could get pricey as a hobby.....

I went bottom barrel though.... Audio-Technica - ATLP60XBT. The bluetooth was the biggest draw, most of my listening will likely have to be via headphones, so having wireless capability was a must. So far i'm pleased. At first I was worried that it wasn't handling 180gram vinyl well...but it turns out I hadn't followed the instructions when setting up the player....I needed to rotate the platter by hand 10 times to make sure the belt was seated properly. Once I did that it's been handling the thick stuff just fine from what I can tell.

I also needed to step up my stereo situation.... Ended up getting one of these little tube amps off Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07TKLSNT2/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Little thing packs a punch!



"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

An Audio Technica LP120X. Basically a knock off of the Technics 1200s to put in my living room. My other player is in my bedroom.
I don't do too much as far as speakers are concerned because I live in an apartment.
Really happy with the new player though.
And yeah, vinyl is an expensive hobby if you buy new albums like I do.
And I have a vmp subscription.
I've cut back a bit in the past month or two, but there's still a like a record a week arriving at my place.

--

"You can't beat white people. You can only knock them out."

decided I'd start with my favorites and things I consider classics from my high school & college days in the 90's along with more recent classics. I figure i'll pick-up older goodies (old Jazz, old Soul, old rock, etc.) along the way.
I'm starting with neo-soul & acid-jazz form the 90's with Brand New Heavies, early Erykah, etc...
Somehow I've ended up buying almost all of Maxwell's catalog brand new...so I guess i'll finish that lol.. actually...not somehow...I targeted Maxwell since my wife likes his music too and I figured that'd soften the blow of me starting a new pricey hobby lol...



"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

I just wanted my favorite albums and things that I would want to lay around in bed with my girl and listen to. I was able to hold to that for the first year or two. Then I signed up for VMP to expand my collection with things I may not have checked for otherwise. And then it blew up. Now it's all that plus shit I just think it would be cool to have. Up and coming artists, collectible shit. And that's a bad way to buy lol

When I first started one of my record collector/dj homies was like "don't treat it like your mp3 collection. I ain't gotta have everything."
If only my dumb ass would have listened.

--

"You can't beat white people. You can only knock them out."

I have three main turntables.

An MCS 6700, a MCS 6600, and a Dual 1257.

All three are better turntables for the money than what you would find new in most cases. If you find a used one in good shape it will still run for years if lubricated properly and cleaned.

The MCS turntables were rebranded higher end tables from the late 1970/early 1980's. The MCS 6700 is a rebranded Technics 1900 and the MCS 6600 is a rebranded Hitachi 350. Both are rock solid tables and the great part is you can find the MCS variants way cheaper. The Dual 1257 is the only belt drive table I have. It's a German made table and is rock solid as well.

The tables are only going to sound as good as the shell/cart that you use. You can have a $1000 turntable and it won't mean shit if your cart and needle suck.

As far as records go. There's nothing wrong with buying used vinyl. Most used vinyl now is super clean because people don't really listen to it. They buy it.....play it one time and it sits until they unload it. I buy exclusive pressings brand new but other than that I just go find nice used vinyl for half the price in some cases.

This hobby can be completely reasonable if you take some time and learn how to make it work for your budget and understand that at the peak of vinyl is where you will find the best pressed records and equipment. The late 1970's.

I didn't have the time to do the necessary research into what to look for and how to properly purchase. The prices on eBay and Esty were all over the place on the few brands and models I was vaguely familiar with.

I'm struggling with pinpointing a good source for used stuff during the pandemic mainly because I prefer doing anything and everything I can online lol... Also having worked in a used music store (The Record Exchange in Greensboro and CD Superstore) through the 90's, seeing the price of used vinyl these days has me legit sticker shocked.. Stuff I KNOW sold for $4 in the 90's is like $30 now! WTF?!?


"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

Didn't really get into collecting records until about 2009 though. Even about 10 years ago records were still really cheap.

Around about 2015 is when that started to change and the hipsters really started getting into it.

I'm lucky that I got the bulk of my collection those first few years. There's records now that have no business being the price they are.

As far as the gear goes you're going to have to really look if you want to find a good deal and you need to know what you're looking for.

I found out about hi fi through my Dad and just hanging out on headfi.org, audiokarma.org and avforums.com. The guys there are hella cool and will answer any questions you have. Also the forums at forums.stevehoffman.tv/ are great too for information on specific pressings and quality.

There are some really good youtube channels as well. I'll probably be starting one myself pretty soon to answer questions just like the ones in this thread.

Gotta be on headphones cause me and my wife share the workspace

Got the AT-LP120XUSB turntable. Not using USB currently but go from the turntable to a Rolls MA258 preamp (really so I get some basic treble / bass control) to a VGtx bluetooth transmitter to Audio Technica middle-grade bluetooth headphones.

When i'm listening out loud I go from the Rolls preamp to Kanto YU4 speakers with the Sub6 subwoofer.

Listening to a ton of vinyl has made quarantine much better

or not the built-in preamp was any worse/better than an external preamp & amp combo. The amp got had the bass and treble and they seem to be effective. Still not sure if these tubes are for show or not. I guess it sounds "Warm".
Also, I see those Kantu's are powered...why do you still use the pre-amp with those vs the built-in preamp on the LP120?


"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

I prefer to be able to adjust the treble and bass manually when going from turntable to preamp to bluetooth transmitter to headphones. Really fills out the sound and you know turntables tend to skew trebly already.

Then when i go to the Kantos, I just swap out at the eighth inch jack on the preamp and go from turntable preamp to the Kanto speakers.

I'm sure I could have simplified at a couple junctures but based on the order I bought things, this is what is working for me right now.

makes complete sense!
I may have to look into that indeed. I guess I could try putting a BT transmitter leading out from my amp first and see if the results are solid...
Already getting some great ideas from this post!
thanks.


"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

I think I went from wanting just De La Souls discography just to have to getting a record player, AMP (AVR), passive speakers, subwoofer and 100 records in about 8 months time lol

The second year has been slower, I'm up to 170 records in the past 12 months or so. I bought a new cartridge a few months ago. It was like a $20 one and didn't notice much difference.

I have the AT-LP2X which is in between the LP60 and LP120. I'm happy with it. I figure there is much better equipment out there and maybe I will upgrade at some point.

I have it connected to the phono input on the Denon AVR-X1500H with some Polk T50 speakers and a Polk PSW 10 subwoofer. It gets plenty loud for me. I do think my speakers are the weakest point but its all budget stuff.

I am starting to consider separating the player from my home set up but probably wont do so this year. I need to try listening to it with some headphones, that was part of why I went with an AVR instead of just keeping it plugged into my mini stereo. I haven't tried headphones once I think lol. I have some Sennheiser HD 598's so I think I would hear a difference.

I think my current layout kind of keeps me from wanting to use headphones. Maybe I need to get a comfortable chair I can place near the receiver for headphone listening.

I made the mistake of starting to read the Audiophile subreddit last year, and of course I wanted to upgrade my gear almost immediately. Just copped a Rega Planar 2 after selling a bunch of stuff on eBay. Thankfully my amp is pretty good (Rotel a12), but I feel like these Kef Ls50 speakers are calling my name...

The only upside to being confined is that traditionally I've mostly bought records while on trips (was in Japan in Feb 2020, talk about a last hurrah on that end) so I've drastically slowed down my collecting. I look at discogs sometimes but it's just not the same to me

------------------------------
For the record, my teams:
MLB: Mets / Soccer: PSG
NCAA BB: Arizona / NCAA FB: Michigan
NBA: Spurs / NFL: Jets

I have a PSW 10 and some Polks in a 6.1 setup connected to my receiver in the basement...but it's really tuned for video & movie watching. I connected the turntable to it and it sounded good...but i'd need to do a bunch of tweaking and tuning to the levels to really get it sounding like I know it should for music listening... ANGTFT! ...

You should look into a bluetooth adapter or something. If you get something with AptX chip you might not loose too much of the fidelity that vinyl is supposed to be providing. Being tethered can be a PITA...



"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

I bought Tribes first 3 and their last one. That was the moment I think I realized I was going to buy a record player. Had one the next week with 2 or 3 more records.

If it weren't for the pandemic I would be visiting the record store more often and coming out with more records. I've been to a record store I think 3 or 4 times since last year. Mostly buying online.

The r/vinylcollectors sub is the debil. I found some great deals on it though. I don't find much on it anymore.

I feel you on the movies vs music set up. At the time I was only okay buying a receiver because I was going to use it for both. More bang for the money you know?

I have a long enough cable for headphones and I really want to get more use of them since I love their sound. Maybe having the option for bluetooth would make me use headphones more but since I'm solo and live in a house I think it just makes more sense to let it bang.

What I really want is speakers in multiple rooms. When I'm watching something or listening to a record but also want to cook I can't hear it in the kitchen, not well at least. I want to get a wireless speaker that my receiver will send sound to but I can't get myself to pull the trigger on those prices. It may just be the time for me to revisit that though.

I have a shitty little record player that plugs into a stereo aux

and I have my dads record collection.

I was about to go in years back with record collecting until I saw the prices. Also, whole bluetooth is a nice plus, dont you still have to get up and flip the record every 15 minutes or so? Thats my biggest drawback. Vinyl is cool but it requires more maintenance than I prefer.

I have this thing in my pocket that can access millions of albums too..

****************
TBH the fact that you're even a mod here fits squarely within Jag's narrative of OK-sanctioned aggression, bullying, and toxicity. *shrug*

>dont you
>still have to get up and flip the record every 15 minutes or
>so? Thats my biggest drawback.


Forces you to be a more active listener than just throwing on whatever streaming shit you got and letting it play.

That being said, it is kinda annoying when they press a double or triple lp when they could have fit everything on one or two discs.

--

"You can't beat white people. You can only knock them out."

The Heaven and Earth LP.
Dude got kinda ridiculous with this....lol...
I'm still awaiting my copy of The Epic.

"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

than have it be two discs. With my setup I don't really hear the difference lol.

I have Moment of Truth in 3 LPs and it is one of the flattest sounding records I have. It's not even in bad shape.

but it really does sound better when they don't squeeze as many songs on a single face at once

No harsh tones, and the since old records were mixed before the loudness wars, you get this great dynamic range.

There's no point in vinyl without a good sound system to match tho.

The novelty hasn't worn off yet...but holla at me come end of summer lol

I'm similar in that I got a handfull of albums I swipped from my dad's collection over the years. I'd been itching to really enjoy them for the past few months so I just said "fck it" and coped the turntable.

I'm going to do my best to focus on albums that I just really want to sit down and engulf myself in. I doubt i'll be buying much hip-hop if any at all....that's always been a "Portable" genre for me just because that's the only way i've ever really experienced it from a consumer level. By the early 80's I was buying tapes and then moved into CD's and then of course MP3's. I've never been a DJ, so hip hop records just weren't something I ever consumed or sought.

I will say this though...pursuing albums over the past couple of weeks has DEFINITELY brought back some feelings about music enjoyment that I sorely missed. Having a physical thing is.....nice.


"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

to chop up samples, but now they are in our living room with a nice stereo set up. Every time I put a record on - like when guests come over or something - I get annoyed with having to keep flipping records and end up just using my phone with the stereo via bluetooth.

And I'll also say this - years ago there was a large difference in audio quality between vinyl and mp3s - but now, even over bluetooth, don't hear any drop in audio quality. Yes an analog signal chain adds a bit of character and you hear the little crackles, but from a quality perspective? Not really compromising anything.

Stock cartridge is kinda basic, but it's as easy replacement. The USB output makes ripping vinyl a breeze (no more fussing with levels). The D/A converters inside the table seem pretty good.

I only play records (no scratching, blending, etc.) I have Traktor for all that.

IMHO, if you want a dope sound for music you gotta go big. At the least some really nice 10- or 12-inch woofers in your chain. There's no replacement for displacement.



For my guitar tube amp, I crank it so that it just starts to distort, then I adjust the volume to taste on the guitar. Never used one for records, but that might be worth a try.

I was listening to Joyce Wrice on ig live yesterday. Someone asked her if she would repress the Rocket Science ep from a few years back. She said that there's a strategy with vinyl in that you don't want to press too many to keep the value high. I found that really interesting, because it makes sense if you're that kind of collector, but it doesn't make much sense from an artist perspective to me. Artists don't make any more money when there's only 1000 copies of your LP on wax if you could sell 3000. The resale market is insane right now, and that doesn't financially benefit the artist. Maybe drive sales to their next shit but... it's strange to me.
Looking at the vinyl market right now, i can see that playing out everywhere. All the time. Everything is limited edition. And like I said, resale prices are crazy. I sold a Frank Ocean record for $400 last year and if I'd held onto it a few more months, I could have gotten 6 or 7.

--

"You can't beat white people. You can only knock them out."

"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

I have this Jorja Smith ep. Released in 2016, 4 songs... last sold on discogs for $1000.

The market is insane.

--

"You can't beat white people. You can only knock them out."

"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

Once people realize modern shit it out of print, the price sky rockets.

--

"You can't beat white people. You can only knock them out."

The limited model works for clothing like a mug.

The smaller pressing is something Japanese labels have been doing for decades too and what keeps their reissues more valuable. If it's a batch of 1000, no matter if you got the 1st or 1000th you can be sure the sound hasn't deteriorated too much. Every time they press a piece off the plate the plate gets degraded slightly.

I can see why keeping your vinyl sought after (really how much money is in vinyl anyway vs. streams?) keeps your brand up for the digital side of your profitability

Then there's artists that will just do like 20 limited pressings of their newest release in different color combos.

>I sold a Frank Ocean
>record for $400 last year and if I'd held onto it a few more
>months, I could have gotten 6 or 7

Aside from the Griselda and the Air Vinyl type hip hop releases that's what I was surprised at is modern R&B just exploding with resale prices

enough to want to download it let alone buy it on vinyl....

I'm DEF. open to suggestions though.


"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

There's a popular narrative out there that r&b is dead, but, nah.
Most of the artists aren't huge, but the music has been fire.

--

"You can't beat white people. You can only knock them out."

"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

The Internet - Feel Good
Giveon - Take Time
Kirby - Sis.
Carlitta Durand - Kismet Green
St. Panther - These Days
Sault - 5, 7, Untitled
Baby Rose - To Myself
Ari Lennox - Shea Butter Baby
Kali Uchis - Sin Miedo
Lianne La Havas - self titled
Gabriel Garzon Montano - Jardin
Sampha - Process
Daniel Caesar - Freudian
Gallant - Ology
Cleo Sol - Rose In The Dark
Victoria Monet - Jaguar
Pip Millet - Lost In June
Nick Hakim - Green Twins
Durand Bernarr - Dur&
Girl Ultra - Nuevos Aires

--

"You can't beat white people. You can only knock them out."

Never been huge on R&B. These past two years? Most of my favorite music is R&B based. There might be some "hip-hop" to it but it really is R&B.

..most of my current vinyl purchases are older LPs, but I still pick up a few new releases each year.

I'm currently awaiting my pre-order for Glasper's "Better Than I Imagined" and Sault's "Rise."




*skatin' the rings of saturn*


..and miles to go before i sleep...

The reminder, I actually would really dig having that on vinyl

When I add a record on my discogs and I see the "value" I feel ashamed. I have spent how much on records in less than 2 years???? I think I have spent around the median on average, if I'm lucky leaning towards minimum. The minimum value is still a ton of money to spend on records.

I think at some point I will start getting rid of some of these, hopefully the resale market is still good then. I can probably get my collection down to around 130 if I really try to stick to only albums that I love. Problem is that most of the records I don't love are $5 and under buys lol

There's an app called Record Scanner that I've been using and you'll get different results on there vs. Discogs, which I think is good, I don't think Discogs should continue to be the Blue Book on all vinyl out there necessarily

But anyway some shit is valued way less than what I paid compared to Discogs, and some things are higher

Might need to give myself sometime to prepare for the shock in value lol

most of it i collected in the early to mid 2000s.

i don't do much vinyl buying/digging anymore, but at the time it was addictive AF.

high school

first raiding my father's shit for samples, then digging at spots like Record Surplus in LA and Fat Beats when it was on Vermont in Los Feliz

Then through college any money I had went to picking up whatever shit at Other Music or Kim's in NYC. Starting digging for more Reggae in early 2000s, going to Beat Street on Fulton etc.

So I think the earlier you started the more likely you are to pick it back up and continue at various points in your life, there's something that draws you back about it. That's interesting that you quit cold turkey. I have stopped for years at a time but always went back to it.

I don't know if it's some type of caveman atavistic accumulation thing or just a hobby and I like hanging out in record stores

in a different way.

i've done enough record digging for 2 lifetimes. i'm of the opinion that there's no more heat to be found. any heat that still exists has been found, and if you want it, you're probably gonna have to pay top dollar for it. it was just such a popular thing for so many years, that you ain't gonna run across a $100+ record at a thrift store anymore.

since the pandemic, i started buying and reselling vintage clothing and collectibles. business is good.

it's weird. trying to find that slapper of a vintage piece scratches the same itch that digging for record heat did for me.

i just say this because it's been a recognized thought for me multiple times, like, oh, this rush is the same rush i got when i would dig up some heat out of the basement of a record store.

For me yeah, I know the swap meet / garage sale / thrift store come up is more and more rare, any record store you go to in the city or in the boonies is gonna have discogs to reference (and they do). at the same time my record guy still came up on TWO of these random life-changing gems recently (i don't think he's gonna sell them for that price though)

https://djmag.com/news/legendary-hip-hop-record-sells-126k-sothebys

You're never going to beat the game as it stands today, but the thrill of finding and putting an amazing piece in the collection is still fulfilling to me.

Also, since nobody is sampling, you'd be surprised what some of those OG JB's or soul jazz records are going for now. Way less than they did in the late 90's early 00's. The market has shifted to newer music, or prog rock, psych and original jazz pressings and that type of thing.

>since the pandemic, i started buying and reselling vintage
>clothing and collectibles. business is good.
>
>it's weird. trying to find that slapper of a vintage piece
>scratches the same itch that digging for record heat did for
>me.

I get that. that's a hustle i have no clue about but the older you get the more you appreciate your hobbies for sure

>Also, since nobody is sampling, you'd be surprised what some
>of those OG JB's or soul jazz records are going for now. Way
>less than they did in the late 90's early 00's. The market has
>shifted to newer music, or prog rock, psych and original jazz
>pressings and that type of thing.

I haven't looked in so long. Maybe I can get something I've been wanting at a good price.

impressive

"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

i don't think i spent more than $30 on any of those, and those were just ones that i knew i wanted to have and wasn't gonna find via hardcore DIGGING (barring some sort of miracle). also, not ALL of them are just dyed in the wool bangers or anything. some i just know there's one fire sample on and i'm keeping them around in case i ever start making beats again.

most of them i dug out of dollar/overflow bins. i was mostly looking for heat to sample back then.

now, it's weird to think that some of those records are worth hundreds, but i don't look at em as an "investment." i'd never sell 'em.

https://www.richersounds.com/project-primary-e-black.html


Honestly, nothing compares to vinyl. I don't need all my songs on vinyl either, just the key albums I actually wanna listen to all the way through on a Sunday morning while drinking coffee and doing chores around the house. Stankonia, some Tribe, a little Alice Coltrane. I'm GOOD

Most of the records were obtained while I was still at home, so I have a smattering of records I took from my dad's collection, 90's hip hop 12", Old children's records when I was a kid, records from my wife's collection when she was younger, and a few 180g releases I never took out the sleeve (Black Messiah and the 50th anniversary pressing of Kind of Blue)

The main problem is I don't have anywhere to actually set up the record player. I need to reconfigure my basement, put the TV on the wall, get a better setup for my electronics (cable, PS3-5, server, etc), put up shelving for the records...it's a whole thing

I could go get my dad's vintage BSR 810 Transcription, but it needs servicing, and as old as it is, it may not be worth it or possible:
https://external-preview.redd.it/VcDlMkYAuaGWI4dqaLoNulbedYx9vlPao3UCheFT_nQ.jpg?auto=webp&s=8d4f4652b52a5f8f293fc76571e22fe18cd049c6

<-- Dave Thomas knows what's up...
__________________________

Jay: Look here homie, any nigga can get a hit record. This here is about respect.
Game: Like Gladys Knight.
Jay: Aretha Franklin.
Game: Word, I like her too.
Jay: Nigga...

takes up about as much square footage as a small coffee table.
Turntable, the little amp I linked and two Sony bookshelf speakers...the sound fills the 10x10 room completely with the volume only 1/4 up... If I turn it to level 5(out of 10) it's filling most of the first floor of the house....I fear blowing the speakers if I crank it to 10. That's with NO subwoofer too.

I'd try to get that BSR 810 going if I were in your shoes for real! How do you know it needs servicing?

"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

It's an automatic, but the arm won't always lift and move to the track. At the end of the record sometimes it will go back, sometimes it won't.

I can still remember the sounds it makes when it operates from when I was a kid. The platter is heavy as a sumb*tch too. Pops used to count and time how many rotations it would go round once we cut it off.

Setup is just going to be a cascade of things to get right. I've got my receiver, I've got speakers, but need space to get everything hooked back up so I can play my vinyl, play me cassettes (had my tape player boxed up since we moved 13 years ago...), sample my records, etc. Need time and money (which, strangely enough, I haven't found during the pandemic)

<-- Dave Thomas knows what's up...
__________________________

Jay: Look here homie, any nigga can get a hit record. This here is about respect.
Game: Like Gladys Knight.
Jay: Aretha Franklin.
Game: Word, I like her too.
Jay: Nigga...

both of them love listening and doing music
they both have record players and samplers in their room...its crazy

______________________________________

Navem nu, cuando sol
Tutu nu, vondo nos nu
Vita em, no continous non
Nos nu ekta nos sepe ta, amen

When the sun shades the ship
We sweat and life is not safe
To swim or to touch not
When we unite we hedge amen

>they both have record players and samplers in their room...its
>crazy

In a generation of swine, the one-eyed pig is king.
-Hunter S. Thompson

It's a little cumbersome trying to switch the cable to play 45's but I still rock with it.

I also bought the lil' Bose build-your-own speaker kit for kids to connect to it. I still love it, and it's cool to look at.

____________
Twitter & IG: @rulerofmyself
SC: rulerofmyself17

Yes! She's on the drugs. (c) BoHagon

Preferably for under $100.

You can probably go to a thrift store or a used electronics store if you have one in your area and find one for pretty cheap.

My suggestion would be to get a nice Pioneer, Yamaha, or Denon receiver.

Statik spin's joints while live auctioning. Underground mid 90's -aughts classic Hip hop. Lightweight had me wanting back in the game...2 dudes committed to $500 easy last night.

@GetoutTheroom
http://getouttheroom.podomatic.com
******************************************
https://twitter.com/Jayric

i'm a snob for direct drive models, when I used to play records (i.e. bedroom DJ) I used Technics 1700s

I want something that will play records and not look like its from the freaking future. some USB out for recording is a nice to have. I'm just not sure.

***********************************************************
https://soundcloud.com/swageyph/yph-die-with-me

was much higher than I wanted to spend.
I recall seeing a model with USB, but I don't know if it was Direct Drive too. Their whole line looks modern but classic....

This Audio Technica looks ultra DJ style but it might be what you're after: https://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-AT-LP120XUSB-Direct-Drive-Hi-Fidelity-Anti-Skate/dp/B07N3W8B5M


"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"