Looking to make the jump to vinyl - Page 4

you have a phono stage without a circuit board?

FYI if you are in Canada you might want to keep a look out for an older example of a classic Canadian built deck from Oracle Audio as these were made since the '70s and are probably going to be more plentiful and better value for money 2nd hand than anything imported.

Oracle Delphi's *rarely* come up for sale, but are great TT's if you can get your hands on one. If buying used, jump on any that have Brooks Berdan's upgrades (his upgrade kits are no longer available) and SME IV arm. I would pass on the Alexandria, as there are better options for the money.

To the OP, I'd like to reinforce that YES, you can enjoy vinyl sound very adequately with a cheap, used, vintage TT and a new cart.

I personally own a Dual 1237 from the 70's and just recently purchased a Grado Prestige Black cartridge for it. TT cost me 20 bucks and some elbow grease to clean it up from sitting in someone's basement for 20 years. Cartridge cost me $60 from my local hi-fi shop. The TT came with the original Audio Technica cartridge still mounted, and while it got me by for a month or so while I researched new carts, when I put the Grado on, it sounded like I had a new TT. The sound was 100% better. Like everyone else is saying, it may not be "audiophile" quality, but it will be MORE than awesome to get you started, and far, far better than the sound you would get from a brand new TT at that budget.

Vinyl Engine | The Home of the Turntable will likely have a pdf manual for you to download for whatever table you end up finding.

Search flea markets, garage sales, resale shops, donation shops, etc. for good brands. Sony, Pioneer, Denon, Onkyo, Dual, Technics are all made great turntables in the 70's and 80's and tons of people in North America owned them, so they should be fairly easy to find. With a little bit of looking around you should be able to find something that works.

Also, keep in mind that if you do not have a phono input on your amp/receiver, you'll need to purchase an outboard phono amp. My NAD C340, does NOT have one, so I bought a this: Needle Doctor 1-800-229-0644, Esoteric Sounds Rek-O-Kut Professional Phono Preamp MKII

Again, likely not an "audiophile" quality phono amp, but more than serviceable for my budget setup.

Lastly, and I can't stress this enough, look into and spend some time researching different methods to clean your vinyl records. You're likely going to be buying a lot of used vinyl, and the cleanliness of those records will have the largest impact on the sound quality. Whether you buy a $500 record cleaning machine, or read up on the many ways you can clean them for free in your bathtub, do it. You'll really appreciate it, and it'll help build that relationship to your music and enhance that "vinyl experience" that all of us vinyl junkies really love.

Good luck.

Just wanted to put my story in this thread:

Just have my budget vinyl rig for about a month. Got the turntable without needle for €10 (lenco l75), Put a new cartridge on it for about €28 (audio technica at95), a real budget phonostage for €30. Just to get to know some vinyl. I really enjoy it, even with this cheap setup.

Now on the buying list are some new sleeves for my vinyl, a carbonfiberbrush, a DIY mat and a DIY vacuum cleaning device. (yes I hope DIY can be a way to save some money, or to get MORE upgrades!) Almost forgot! Gonna change the cable coming out of my lenco, it's really just too old..

I already know that down the line I'm going to upgrade the arm, cartridge, phonostage and plinth. Next on the list will probably be changing my current amp and headphone, but that's way in the future. The welcome message here at head-fi really isn't a joke :s..

FYI... there was a Thorens TD160 listed in the FS forum for $130.00. This is a great starter table. I have fond memories of a TD160 Super with Sumiko MMT arm, Blue Point Special cartridge, Audioquest platter mat and Mod Squad IC connection interface. Cheap and value oriented mods that took a competent table to another level. You cannot go wrong with this in stock form for the modest price.

Good thread.

I'm also looking to make the jump to vinyl and I want to set up a budget rig for my room. I will be using headphones only, no speakers. I have read a lot about guys going for vintage players as they are of good quality and cheap but I have no idea what to look for. A list of brands and models would be great. Also amp recommendations would be good. I'm looking at spending $1000 AUD max for everything (not including headphones).

you should get an SE2 Labs ITC1. Products // SE2 Labs

The receivers I'd look at (for real) are the Outlaw and the Rotel.