Anyone spin the vinyl?

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I have been thinking of getting a turntable for my room. I have one in the lounge but its big and clunky.

Just wondering how many of you prefer to play Vinyls over CD/MP3s etc.

I'm just concerned about space, and they weigh tonnes.

But nothing beats the feeling of arming the stylus, watching it whirl and listening to the crackles!!

Digital glitches in MP3s really annoy me, but crackles, pops and imperfections in vinyl do not. My (dads) copy of Eagles - Desperado has a dodgy bit where the volume drops, I just see this as characteristic.

Vinyl is totally ftw!

Especially with bands like Led Zeppelin and Beatles, that natural sound of instruments just aint rippable to cd or mp3.

Yes I love my vinyl collection
I have some Japanese half speed mastered stuff that makes most digital recordings sound sick.

Vinyl is great and the sound is much better than a CD - however, you are hurting the record slightly every time you play it and they take up a fantastic amount of space.

I have a relatively small vinyl collection (when compared to my digital/CD collection). I'm not sure I prefer it over CD/mp3 because it is a pain to store and keep in good condition but the sound is a lot clearer. I also like that it's a bit more 'interactive' than other media - cleaning the record, setting up the amp etc.

I prefer vinyl to digital formats.

Reasons include:

* I think it sounds better than any other format.

* Records are actually more durable than CD's; one scratch will kill a CD while it takes some significant scratching to have a noticeable effect on a record, especially the thicker ones.

* Big, fun packaging.

* Option of getting into nerdy stuff like limited pressings, rare pressings, mistake pressings, etc.

* If you get really nerdy about it, sites like eBay will consume your time and money.

* Shelves full of vinyl look nicer than shelves of CD cases or blank walls.

* On smaller labels, and in general, vinyl records are slightly less expensive than CD's.

* Just about everything is still pressed on vinyl, but you might have to order it online.

Proper Vinyl & Turntable Care:

* Change your needle at least once every 3 years - that way you won't damage the record every time you play it.

* If the turntable mysteriously stops working, open it up and check to see if the belt is broken before taking it to a shop; belts are cheap and easy to replace at home, and they tend to break every so often.

* Make sure both your needle and record are free from clumps of dust before you begin to play (I remove these dust clumps with my fingers - quick and harmless if you're delicate about it).

* Store your records vertically; do NOT stack them for extended periods of time because this will hurt them.

* Hold the record by its edges -> no finger grease on the parts that store the sound.

* Put it back in the sleeve right after every use, don't rest the record directly on anything other than a turntable or record sleeve (kind of goes without saying but anyway . . . )

* Try not to expose your records to heat or sudden temperature changes. They will warp. Interestingly, the majority of my warped records play just fine, but I don't know what effect this has on the turntable.

* Don't get upset if you accidentally scratch a record a little or buy one with obvious scratches; it takes a lot to actually affect the sound. Repeated playing with a dull needle does more damage than the odd scratch, in my general experience.

And I should know because I'm a record collector nerd, as is my small social circle.

You'll find weird stuff like that on old records that have been played a lot and handled improperly. I got one at a garage sale once than had a cigarette burn on one side! Playing that side could have hurt the needle, but fortunately, the other side worked all right.

The volume drop thing is interesting because I've never encountered that in my 15+ years of vinyl collecting. I wonder what affected it - temperature, someone accidentally pressing down on the arm while the record was playing . . . who knows!

Thanks for the info! That was most useful.

No idea how it got that flaw. I remember listening to it one day and then heard it and thought WTF? Then my dad just said, oh its always been like that.

He wasn't a big music fan, so i guess he never looked after stuff like this. Even if he only had 1 or 2 albums, im grateful for them because it has stuck in mind since childhood.

And reiterating what someone said above that it hurts the vinyl everytime its played. Desperado to this day still sounds 10x better than the CD.

I wonder what the difference between a CD mastered album and a recording from vinyl to CD is like.

I know there are groups out there who convert vinyl to CD/MP3 such as the Beatles bootlegs. They sound awesome, but I wonder if that is due to the post processing rather than the vinyl source.

This is called "digitization" and it is a growing field within the information sciences. Analog materials are being converted to digital (usually mp3 or other formats you can access from your computer) for the sake of preservation and access. Analog and digital have somewhat inverse advantages and disadvantages so it naturally makes sense to make digital copies of analog materials for preservation.

These digital copies can also be made available online so that they can be accessed by people everywhere, as opposed to, say, people who own cylinders and the equipment to play them. Copyright laws afford little to no protection for older sound recordings, and many that are being digitized are old enough to be in the Public Domain anyway. Search and you will find all kinds of digitization projects.

I would never be without a turntable if I could possibly help it!

I have a large collection of vinyl, with a lot of rare Pink Floyd stuff. The reason I like to 'drop the needle' is that every LP has a distinct sound. The vinyl reflected the place the recording was made, and gave it 'ambience'. Digital media erases all ambience. Try a simple experiment of listening to any older Stone's vinyl versus the same digital file. The vinyl sounds great!

And it's completely true that you can spend a fortune collecting them ! !! I have a mate who makes pretty good money buying and selling old R & B stuff. He's completely obssesed, and his house if full of albums ! ! (And reel-to-reel tapes!)

Ah, someone who understands the obsession . . .

He's off the deep end, he is ...
I didn't mention that he's fifty-something, never married, lives in a rundown house he never fixes (or dusts), has more albums than he can count, and looks like a bum most of the time....

Managed to wire up my turntable this morning. Forgotten how good it sounds!

Was listening to Bob Dylan and it really sounds alive on vinyl. I have just ordered Neil Young's Harvest.

A question. If I want to give a disc a quick wipe before listening, whats the best way to do it?