Is There Any Point To Entry Level Vinyl?

That’s what I was suggesting.

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Respectfully, I was reinforcing your recommendation.

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Look at Music Direct and Acoustic Sounds for remasters and new vinyl.

For older recordings look on eBay or check with vinyl sellers in your area. Anything before 1990 will probably sound better but again it depends on the label.

Check Steve Hoffman’s forum as another source of info regarding vinyl and record engineering.

I’m not an obsessed vinyl lover that pores over the details. I’m very casual about it. I like to buy old Chopin and Vivaldi records knowing nothing about them and have found some great European pressings for less than $10. The most I’ve spent was maybe $50 and it was probably a limited edition.

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Here’s what I suggest, for below $1000 budget:

  • Rega RP1/RP2
  • Nagakoa MP-110 cartridge
  • Schitt Phono pre-amp

Then pick a cpl of vinyl records of your choice, and start playing! If you enjoy it (I am very sure you will), then you can buy more records and start upgrading your gears if you feel like it… BUT this “affordable” setup honestly is good enough for 80% of ppl, it’s significantly better than any all-in-one turntable kits, and perfectly suitable for mid to even high priced audiophile gear.

If however, it wasn’t for you, all of the above are easy to resell and recoup most of your money.

Good luck!

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Those are different preconditions and I realized your current DAC is a NOS DAC.

So you might prefer several limitations but recording independent pleasant sound to max. revealing characteristics (which admittedly can be demanding in terms of perfection in other parts of the setup).

You might be ok with the sound of such a cheap vinyl setup (1k incl. phono amp), but imo don’t expect a special or noticeably better sound (unless you compare different masterings) or to get an impression what the potential of vinyl playback means or how analog recordings differ from digital ones (except if they are mastered. with different EQ or higher quality environment). You would get the haptic experience with ok sound imo which can be better than the one of your DAC in case only inferior versions of albums exist on digital media.

Next is you have to learn how to find the best masterings (used on Discogs or new).
All the classic Blue Notes you look for will come 2021 new, cheap and all analog, mastered by Kevin Gray.

Those LP‘s will sound better than any digital versions, except the out of print Analogue Productions series SACD‘s will get close. There are some who also like the SHM or Esoteric digital releases. But those LP‘s will sound revealing. If you want pleasant but less revealing and dynamic sounding ones, buy the out of print Japan King GXK/GXF or out of print Blue Note Connaisseur versions.

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I have one friend who never listens to digital at home. He streams at work and in car but his home system is 100% analog.

I sort of respect that level of purity but I doubt any of us that are exclusively DIGITAL will ever hear someone say “I admire you for being so dedicated to digital only playback.”

Great suggestion I think. And if dancingsea is keen on pre 1960’s jazz, there’s a good chance he finds many versions bettering their digital releases.

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All I’ll say is that mastering and pressing > format and sample rate, and sometimes you don’t know until you find out for yourself when you put it on the turntable.

I have two vinyl versions of Hendrix - Axis: Bold as Love.

One is an Australian Import (not sure of release date) that was $30.
One is a US pressing from 2010 that was $20.

Was super excited to find the minty Aussie version, but it’s thin and lame and I never play it.

The US pressing is much fuller and richer and sounds great.

You just never know.

I listen to all sorts of music, of which 1950’s and 60’s relaxed jazz is one. I just thought that genre would be particularly well suited for vinyl given the great analog sources. I’m thinking to have jazz night be records, and most other listening be digital.

I know a number of people, audiophiles and not, who have modest vinyl systems. They find them fun and satisfying.

I have never found vinyl any more magical than any other from of sound reproduction. But there are those who opine vinyl’s fundamental unique characteristics can readily be enjoyed on modest systems.

If curious, I would at least listen to some systems at dealers, friends, etc. and see if the sound seems special to you.

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This what I wonder about. If vinyl is not inherently more magical, then what’s the point of all the hassle?

That genre is well suited to vinyl in my experience. The trick is having access to it at a “reasonable” cost. Starting from scratch as others have commented will require a certain level of commitment on your part. As others have stated give it a whirl, don’t overspend, and see if it is “your thing”.
I’ll offer you this, you pull the trigger, post a photo of the set-up and 'll send you a few jazz LPs from my duplicates. It’s a VCLT kind of thing.

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First rule, follow the music. Let that determine the format.

Vinyl is what I grew up listening to, that’s why we have so many LPs, and don’t think of it as a hassle. I like both digital and vinyl, it just depends on my mood which I play.

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Good decision. Just be aware that the ones I listed, with 20$ are the absolute cheapest great masterimgs. After you started I guess within a year you will have spent another 1k on records :wink:

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Others find vinyl compelling and worth the extra work. It is worth finding out if you are in this camp.

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You da man!

The YouTube video posted early in the thread that compared the Rega Planar 1 to the Pro-ject Debut Carbon to a Sony was extremely convincing about the superiority of the Rega. So convincing that my sights are set on the RP1. Getting stuff to Hawaii is challenging and Amazon is out until February 28 in terms of Prime shipping. Audio Advisor is out also and they ship some things for free to Hawaii. Thus it may be a bit, but I gratefully accept your offer and will indeed post photos :pray::rainbow:

I am sorry, but I do not understand what this means.

Ya let me know, and the vinyl shall be on the way.
When you get the turntable, shoot me the names of some jazz you enjoy and I’ll pull some that fall into that style.

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Listening is a very personal thing. Elk said HE didn’t find vinyl any more magical than other formats. That doesn’t mean you won’t. I have a decent vinyl and digital system and I enjoy listening to them both. It was suggested that you find a friend or dealer who has vinyl playback and go listen.

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