jc
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Post by jc on Feb 20, 2015 16:09:32 GMT
I would agree with 2 and 3 but not point 1. There are some great CD players to be had at very reasonable prices, especially if one is prepared to buy previously owned machines. Excellent point. The 2nd hand market is awash with great CD players at very reasonable prices. This also applies to the mid-range market for turntables, though strangely not tonearms that seem to keep their value alarmingly well! |
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Nigel
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Post by Nigel on Feb 20, 2015 16:24:26 GMT
Hi Math,
Which turntable do you have? Is it a Rega? Please excuse me, if you've already posted that already.
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Nigel
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Post by Nigel on Feb 20, 2015 16:40:15 GMT
So do you buy CD's and rip them to your computer, Chris? Or do you download the music files? I tend to buy the CD and rip it. I'm then in control of the ripping and resultant file quality. I've put that to the test once before by DLing a wav file and then comparing it to the CD ripped on my PC, the latter was definitely of better quality. I also recently DL'd the free Peter Gabriel Flac24 tracks from B&W which are excellent quality. I'm now awaiting the BluRay disc of the same, not only for the rest of the excellent concert but also to see if I can rip better! I guess I will need to research all this one day. I'm currently satisfied with the quality I'm getting via CD but from what you're saying, even better sound quality could be obtained by ripping the CD and then playing the track files through a decent DAC. Thanks for the reply, Chris. For one of my CD players, I purchased a spare laser mechanism and correct size ribbon cable. Apparently, the CD player is no longer supported by Rega. One of the reasons given is the Sony laser mech is no longer available. I have a genuine Sony replacement, didn't cost a lot either, for when the original dies. The laser part is still readily available on the bay, it might be Chinese clone copies though. I don't have a spare CD9 part for my other old player. They appear a lt more pricey and i believe you need an oscilloscope to do the job. Different with the Sony, factory set, simply drop in and go. |
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Post by Math 1605 on Feb 20, 2015 18:38:19 GMT
I would agree with 2 and 3 but not point 1. There are some great CD players to be had at very reasonable prices, especially if one is prepared to buy previously owned machines. You may have heard a gem. Every budget CD player I have had has sounded strident. My Pioneer PL115 of yesteryear was never brittle and edgy in the same way. |
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Post by Math 1605 on Feb 20, 2015 18:39:34 GMT
I would agree with 2 and 3 but not point 1. There are some great CD players to be had at very reasonable prices, especially if one is prepared to buy previously owned machines. Excellent point. The 2nd hand market is awash with great CD players at very reasonable prices. This also applies to the mid-range market for turntables, though strangely not tonearms that seem to keep their value alarmingly well! I would risk buying a second hand turntable. I wouldn't risk a used CD player though. |
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Post by Math 1605 on Feb 20, 2015 18:58:31 GMT
Hi Math, Which turntable do you have? Is it a Rega? Please excuse me, if you've already posted that already. I don't tend to get rid of previous kit so I have five turntables. Four of them are boxed up in the attic. One is in my current system. Just for fun, see if you can identify all of them.  |
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jc
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Post by jc on Feb 20, 2015 20:21:42 GMT
Hang on a cotton pickin' minute there; I don't tend to get rid of previous kit so I have five turntables. Four of them are boxed up in the attic. One is in my current system. Just for fun, see if you can identify all of them. VS as the opening post you made in this thread! math, are you having trouble with your maths? "First" just ain't quite the same as sixth!
Just to humour you, your google picture search quiz are the very well known (counter clockwise from top right) Rega RP1, Rega RP6, Dual 505mkii, Pioneer PL115, Crossley Cr6429......yaaaaawn. At least be consistant in your claims  |
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Post by Math 1605 on Feb 20, 2015 20:52:12 GMT
Doh, I missed the word 'quality' out........
The photos are from bing, can't get in the attic at the moment for boxes of other stuff.
Have to tell you the record payer was a W.R.C.C. actually.
Maybe you would consider the RP1 quality, but I was never happy with the plasticy feel.
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Post by Math 1605 on Feb 20, 2015 20:53:44 GMT
I'd best not run my cassette deck quiz now had I?
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Nigel
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Post by Nigel on Feb 20, 2015 20:56:25 GMT
I take it the Rega RP6 is the turntable that doesn't reside in the loft?
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pjc68
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Post by pjc68 on Feb 22, 2015 9:44:17 GMT
The funkfirm LSD with the f5 tonearm is supposed to be a class act for the price
But for £1400 i would expect it to
Or the funkfirm flamenca with f6 arm for £850
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Post by Math 1605 on Feb 23, 2015 15:05:07 GMT
The funkfirm LSD with the f5 tonearm is supposed to be a class act for the price But for £1400 i would expect it to Or the funkfirm flamenca with f6 arm for £850 never heard of them, I'm going to investigate. |
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jc
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Post by jc on Feb 23, 2015 17:05:15 GMT
The funkfirm LSD with the f5 tonearm is supposed to be a class act for the price But for £1400 i would expect it to Or the funkfirm flamenca with f6 arm for £850 never heard of them, I'm going to investigate. Funkfirm rose from the ashes of Pink Triangle. Oodles of experience and consistantly very highly rated peices of equipment designed and built by them. |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 26, 2015 22:57:13 GMT
I would add a couple of words of personal preference about music playback via a turntable.
I am not, at all, a fan of modern digitally recorded LP's. For me it sounds as though I've set the needle down on a cd with grooves in it. Cold, sterile and not at all like pre-digitized vinyl that just breathes realism (however one wishes to describe that).
I am a big fan of good to excellent moving magnet cartridges and their sound. Just a personal preference.
I am okay with a good "on board" phono stage...had a great one on a Luxman int. amp!
I am big on owning and using a record cleaning machine, preferably one with a vacuum. Which goes to my next suggestion and feelings for.
Definitely big on used LP bins found in "reputable" resellers. Found excellence at prices starting at $1.99 US. Look closely at the record itself, preferably in the sunlight coming thru a window, if possible, scrutinizing for visible scratches and stuff that ain't supposed to be there...with fingers off the playing surface, only on the sides.
I am big on buying a cartridge alignment tool and learning how to set up the "table" oneself...to tune it to satisfaction. Lots of info out there for just this must do.
I am big on turntable isolation tweaks....Vibrapods both the base and cone (with ball bearing top) sitting on a Mapleshade 2 inch thick maple hardwood block that sits on 3 triangularly spaced Mapleshade half Iso Blocks all on a 2 shelf rack....working nice for me presently. I also suggest using a leveling tool to make sure the table is as level as possible.
Disconnect/remove the dust cover when playing.
Clean each LP with a good static free brush before each play...even after the vacuum cleaning process.
One thing Mike alluded to a long time ago that still sticks with me....Prepare your listening sessions so as to be involved in the experience. No distractions and put yourself in the music. Take the time to set yourself to listen. Still good advice.
Since I buy used old LP's, I'd like to try an RIAA decoder like a Slee Jazz Club model, to better reproduce the London ffrr and Columbia stuff. But, that's for another day.
There's probably a lot more stuff to enhance vinyl replay...but those are my preferences I follow these days......j
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Post by Deleted on Mar 26, 2015 23:12:30 GMT
Many pre loved LPs will have diminished HF response despite being well cared for.
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jc
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Post by jc on Mar 26, 2015 23:20:24 GMT
Many pre loved LPs will have diminished HF response despite being well cared for. That depends a lot on the stylus tip that has been used. If the LP in question has only seen a cheapish "stone" then a much better stylus is likely to retrieve the HF that has been lost to the basic one as it delves into virginal depths of the groove. Admittedly the cycle begins again until the diminished HF returns, though this takes a long time under normal usage. My own experience on carefully selected SH LPs has been good, reflecting the above. |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 26, 2015 23:23:49 GMT
Caveat emptor !
Not all second hand LPs come from owners of rigs with Shibata etc. styluses. |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 26, 2015 23:27:35 GMT
Many pre loved LPs will have diminished HF response despite being well cared for. I can't say that I've found that to be true in my travels thru the used LP sections. Maybe it's my system, but I'm hearing excellent HF, even on this 1956 LP of the "Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra of New York (the old name of the N.Y. Philharmonic) version of Berlioz' Romeo and Juliet Symphony conducted by Mitropoulos on Columbia. Thrilling in all aspects. Maybe it's been proven with mic's and pick-ups and such instruments that HF is lost, but in the overall presentation of "live analog", I'm just not hearing a loss of HF. Maybe I'm not hearing it as well? My age? But, if it is a trade-off of sorts for having the analog version over the clinical digitized version?...I'll still take the analog from the 1950's and 60's. Personal preferences as alluded to  ....j |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 27, 2015 1:22:30 GMT
Caveat emptor !
Not all second hand LPs come from owners of rigs with Shibata etc. styluses. Case in point may just be this LP I just put on 30 minutes ago and is part of the LP's I purchased yesterday from an LP bin at a reputable reseller local to me. It is Sir Adrian Boult conducting the London Philharmonic's version of Elgar's Three Bavarian Dances on London LL 1335...and from a London discography website's info, recorded in 1956. It is in mono and has London's frequency extending ffrr tech, which was born, I've read, from wartime needs. This record came with a "new to me" inner sleeve that feels much like onion paper and is folded in at the corners from the factory I believe. Very fragile and totally new to me...or old to me. It all looks untouched, and cost me $7.99. Very dynamic, with fully extended highs and really subterranean subwoofer hits! The bass really caught me off guard....LOL! Crash, bam, ending! In monaural no less....but that's analog-ue for you...old analog-ue. j |
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Post by Math 1605 on May 26, 2015 17:36:04 GMT
Disconnect/remove the dust cover when playing. Won't that re-introduce dust though? |
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jc
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Post by jc on May 26, 2015 18:11:15 GMT
That's why you keep cleaning the LPs. The idea behind removing the lid during playback is that it acts as a receiving dish for air born vibrations e.g. your own speakers.
Closed during play it is still a weakness on any players design. All the lenghts a manufacturer (and user) go to in order to isolate the deck from vibrations and then stick a plastic sail on top.
Many high end decks have no cover at all, hence the use of drop-on perspex box-like structures to keep the deck dust free while idle.
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Post by Deleted on May 26, 2015 19:58:39 GMT
Back when my turntable was my hi-est fi source I never played it with a lid on. Actually, never had a lid :-) And today, before digitising an LP I use a large water colour brush held angled against the rotating record, gradually moving it from centre to outside edge, effectively sweeping the dust away. Seems to work just fine.
Derek
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Post by freddypipsqueek on May 26, 2015 21:39:00 GMT
Took the lid of my Systemdek - Better sound - but now I've lost it somewhere so its going to be naked for the rest of its life.
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Post by Math 1605 on Sept 7, 2015 9:08:48 GMT
I have decoupled the lid with rubber pads.
I tried it then with lid down, lid up, lid removed.
I could not hear any difference, possibly the rubber pads did the trick?
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Post by bigtony on Oct 1, 2015 12:26:50 GMT
‘Vinyl is like getting dressed-up and going out to dinner with a loved one; sure you stay at home eat, you can even have exactly the same food delivered, but we know which one always tastes better’
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....j