If you would like to see the second instalment in my New to Vinyl Journey see here ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-mDJ_hYJXItQ.html If you would like more details and links to all the products in the video please see my video description box, also make sure you check out my factory tour video at AVID, its a great video with lots to see and learn. Hope you enjoy cheers
Vinyl is one of those mediums that require you to *want* to work for it. You mentioned the unexpected satisfaction of simply watching the record cleaner suck up the water, well...cleaning records, watching the platter spin around, in short, appreciating the tactical/mechanical aspect of it, is one of the big reasons to get into vinyl. The sound is different...not better or worse, just different...but honestly it's the inconvenience that makes it special. I know that may sound counterintuitive, especially if you're someone who just wants to pop something on in the background and forget about it, but vinyl doesn't allow you to do that, and that has a special appeal. It's a lot like working on old cars. You don't do it for the convenience, it's a labor of love, and you have to want to labor on your love. I'll never understand people who get worked up over trying to prove which medium sounds better, as music is such a visceral experience. Listen to what you like, how you like.
Ditto that man. You nailed it. I've always preferred vynal and is a labor of love. Turntables; well, if you got the bucks to set up a system so as to hear that fly buzzing in the studio, more power to you and so true of the stylus. Whether you're spinning a three hundred dollar table or a three grand, it still comes down to that tiny little diamond etc. etc..
Welcome to the vinyl money pit. 😁 Two tips on the Project record cleaner. 1) You’ve said you dilute 1.1 to 1.2. InStead it should be 1 to 10 or 1 to 20 for not so dirty records. So, for 100ml of cleaner solution you get 1lt of liquid. I recommend to use deionized water. You can find it cheap at the supermarket where they sell it for ironing. 2) Instead of using the cap of the container, just get a liter of water bottle and punch a hole on its cap with a screw driver. Works like a magic. Much better controlled dispersion of the liquid and less waste. 😁
@@bobb.9917 That’s the whole point Bob. I got into vinyl only a year ago because the streaming process (as good as it is) got boring for me. The physical formats (CDs included) are more engaging and fun from shopping to cleaning and playing. And when you don’t feel like it, you still have the streaming to fall back on.
I've been into the audiophile hobby since I was 16 saving up for some HD650s. I got a basic turntable two weeks ago to try it out. I was instantly hooked and after listening to my first record I immediately went to the local record store and bought 15 used records
Hi Terry.Ive been at this now for over 50 years..!! Into Rega products.Have an Rp8 turntable. Love it. Enjoy your journey. You will have a great time..!!
I know what you mean about digital, it can be easy to flick between tracks. I’ve recently begun actively choosing to listen to albums, by adding them to favourites and searching albums rather than tracks. I like the process of selecting an album and listening all the way through, means you can just sit back and enjoy the music rather than being distracted looking for the next song. I can understand that appeal with vinyl where you have little choice, but for now I’m still all in on streaming and CD.
This is GREAT…I have recently decided NOT to go vinyl, but to improve my streamer and go I2S into my external resister/ladder DAC. You are convincing me that I have REALLY made the right choice for "me". I can live vicariously through your journey and see how things compare for you between digital & vinyl. I am definitely curious about it, but all the expense (🕳🐇), time and fussing with arms, motors, records and etc…etc…etc…is just not for me at this point in my life. Also, I really enjoy the sound from my system these days. THANKS for making me truly appreciate what I have, Terry!! 😃
you can have both , He just happens to be OCD about what he does/or how he listens to music. I started listening to vinyl first and after 10 years I bought a Dac because I dont have the space or money to keep buying records. So spend 3k on a DAC and AMP to justify not buying records for long while. I
Welcome to the vinyl jungle! I recently got back into it after a long haitis and updated from an old Rega Planar 3 to a Rega P8 which is also a mostly plug and play turntable setup when added to a phono stage. Almost forgot how organic sounding vinyl can be. Clean records make a HUGE difference! Good luck.
Congrats Terry! Absolutely beautiful system right there. Also, remember sometimes when you get pops or crackles it's just down to the record's manufacture and not lack of cleaning.
I am happy for you. I have been on the vinyl journey for most of my life but I love that there is always something fun to explore and I love it along with streaming and CDs . To me it has always offered something different and special and has been the method of music playback that has engaged my kids the most. The mechanical nature of it engages a part of our brains that really creates a new and different experience. Happy Listening!
That looks like a lot of turntable for the money. The thing with vinyl is there are loads of stuff that is not available on download or CD. I use all 3 formats and I enjoy them all. That Avid cartridge looks like a re badged Audio Technica budget one which is a giant killer but maybe you could get even better performance by changing it later on for something with a better stylus profile that would get every last bit of information out of the groove. Audio Technica’s ATVM95 series are excellent and don’t cost a fortune.
It's crazy how expensive some of the turntables equipped with budget styluses can get. I think this one is actually quite conservative, and the sound likely isn't going to be much better than a cheap AT-LP60 equipped with the same stylus. It certainly looks lovely, though.
I watched a interview with avid president you can find it here just search avid interview, he gets into so much detail a real learning experience. He makes a statement about how much more info you can get out of a cheap cartridge with all the vibrations put in check therefore allowing the cartridge to track properly
Great to see you joining the club Terry👌 Please ignore any negative opinions and know- it- alls, I certainly do 😉. At the end of the day it's YOUR enjoyment that counts. Jim 🏴 ☺
I am staying digital…but I do not have any negative opinions (I hope). I think that we can both agree that playing vinyl at an audiophile level is a 🕳🐇. I have decided to make my digital experience better, which is its own 🕳🐇…LOL!….but I am DEFINITELY sitting in the bleachers and enjoying watching Terry on his journey and (since he has an experienced, deeply digital background), looking forward to his reports on vinyl vs high-end digital as he moves forward thru his journey
That is a beautiful turntable! A suggestion: When cleaning your records (Good Job on that, getting a record cleaner straight away) When the vacuum finishes doing what it does, lift up the vacuum brush before you turn off the vacuum and turntable. This will avoid the thin line of dust particles that will be present where and when you take the brush off when the record is stationary.
I’ve been back to records a few years now. I never play any record without washing, often this includes ultra sonic cleaning. Good to see you finally going for it
Hi Terry, Regarding disc quality - it's a bit of a lottery. Pressings can vary in quality greatly during the course of a pressing, some pressing plants seem to (generally) produce "quieter" discs (lower/no unwanted surface noise) and others might produce (generally) noisier discs. Another somewhat common issue you might spot with modern vinyl is "dished" records, where the record has set into a slight bowl-type shape. Isn't really a big problem (unless the dish is severe), and minor warps seem to be somewhat common also. Again, with a minor warp it's not usually a big problem (unless the warping is severe). There are 3 record flattening devices/machines out there; the most affordable being the Vinyl Flat ($140~$210, ordered from the US not incl. shipping), and a couple of more expensive Japanese machines intended for commercial application (ie record shops) - The ORB DF-01a (a little over £1,200 in the UK) and its fancier brother the Furutech DF-2 (closing on £2,000) - I personally intend to get the Vinyl Flat eventually (as I now have a fair few records that either have slight warps or slight dishing) but I'm putting it off for now as none of my records are unplayable. The "sound" of a turntable is the result of all components, and therefore changing any part could have a discernible impact on the sound, but the most obvious change will come from a change of cartridge type/manufacturer. Comparing turntables is, I suspect, a minefield for a reviewer - how much of what you're hearing is down to the cartridge rather than the rest of turntable? Should you test them with their included cartridges or should you standardise by fitting the same cartridge to both? (probably both tests need to be done) And many many more related considerations. It might be an avenue you wish to explore one day or you may decide to keep vinyl listening for your personal downtime just for pleasure. I would certainly understand if you opted for the latter 😉 Most importantly... enjoy!
I really don't have problems with modern 180g records , and I buy a few a month , but if I have an older dished or warped record , my Michell record clamp presses them down onto my platter , which also damps them of any needle chatter .
Congrats on your interest in vinyl. I love it, finally got a decent turntable some years back, a classic vintage Technics 1200 series. Yes cleaning can be a bit laborious without a machine, but it feels so rewarding to playback my clean record. After initial cleaning with minute quantity of non residue liquid dish detergent and warmed demineralized water mix and rinse, I then use a microfiber cloth for drying in the direction of grooves only. After waving in air to dry I apply to turntable and run my carbon fiber brush with Aluminum handle. I ground my one hand to the back chassis of my amp while squeezing the brushes aluminum handle with other hand, I then spin the record under power and slowly bring the brush perpendicularly from outside to center of the record with light pressure. I also keep a soft small flat horsehair model brush nearby to brush any fuzz off the needle. I simply raise the small brush up to the stylus and pull it through the brush the direction of the bristles. I never ever use any liquid to clean the stylus in fear of the needle from becoming unglued. My tonearm requires adjusting the counterweight for proper recommended stylus tracking pressure per manufacture, as well as adjusting my anti-skate control with my special no groove record. I absolutely love the character of the vinyl analog sound, even with an occasional crackle. Sounds less harsh and more natural to my ears, imho. Enjoy my friend. ✌️😎👍
This turntable looks amazing. The cartridge they include is good, but not the best, it's a rebranded AT3600L; I'd go ahead and upgrade to at least a Nagaoka MP-110 cartridge, which is very affordable and sounds fantastic 😀
What a treat to watch you discover vinyl. I think you've made some great choices in equipment--Avid makes great gear. Now for the real fun: bin diving at your local record stores, thrift shops, and other dimly lit dens of musical nirvana. Then there's cartridge swapping, experimenting with VTA, tracking force, and azimuth and other tweaky stuff. That's part of the beauty of analog: you can have an active role in adjusting the sound to your liking. It will be fun to watch you go through all that madness.
Seems a decent TT, and Avid is a good company, but at approximately the same price point than the Rega P6, it has a P1's tonearm with (most probably) the same cartridge.
Understandable. I had previously said the same thing... now I own ~250 records. I rip them in 24/192 .FLAC for ease of playback when I don't feel like spinning them. It's thoroughly enjoyable, and I NEVER thought I would be into vinyl ~6-7 years ago.
Bless you mate. I've had in the past a Rega P2, Rega P3, Manticore Mantra, Linn Sondek.. then finally a beautiful Townshend Rock. I've been pro DJ since 1988. Going through 4 sets of Technics over the decades. Now I have just one Technics SL1200 MK3 Japanese only version with the nasty transformer removed and upgraded. I use this to listen to Be Bop Jazz, Raw Funk, Northern Soul, Afro beat, Dub etc. Its not as good as my old reference TT, but it's close and I guess it's the DJ in me that loves the old wheels of steel. Enjoy your journey mate. Playing records is still a treat for me I love it. Don't become a boring purist snob.
Great video Terry. Welcome to the obsession! Avid well respected, I’ve never heard one though. Records have been my main source of listening since a teenager (50 now), I recently went up scale to a Kuzma system, which I’m really amazed by. I recommend the Ryan Adam’s live at Carnegie hall record it’s very atmospheric and sounds great. It’ll be a good indication of how quiet your background noise is, but overall it’s a really enjoyable listen.
Terry, such an enjoyable video. This video will motivate others to get into vinyl. I stream, play CD’s and play vinyl, for each of these methods there is the right occasion. But vinyl is certainly the most enjoyable for all the good reasons you mentioned. I am no psychologist, but truly believe that our emotions heavily influence the we are hearing the music. Therefore naturally for for those that love seeing a turntable doing it’s work, enjoy looking at the great cover arts and information record covers provide and the fact that you listen to the entire story the album has to tell vinyl simply boosts my perception of listening experience.
If you are getting into vinyl, you really need to get a proper record cleaner (like the VPI record cleaner). It makes a huge difference. Yes, they are expensive, but after you get over the sticker shock, you will be so glad you bought one.
Great video! Welcome to TT ownership. The blue Milty anti static gun is the final step for me. Hold the vinyl in your hand when using the gun BEFORE placing on the turntable. Cracks and pops will go down 90%. But sadly, brand new vinyl pressing are crap these days. I buy mostly older albums nowadays. 😉👌💯🎼✨
Yessssss. You will definitely hear the difference. I am totally the opposite. I stream about 10% or less and not really into the digital domain. There is definitely a ritual involved with playing vinyl. Congrats on your beginning journey. Just think of it. You will have the best of both worlds.
Hi Terry, Lee here from Extreme Detailing. We have never met, but Adam at Nintronics has mentioned about us meeting several times as I am based near Welwyn. Welcome to the Vinyl money pit. There is plenty to tweak, plus with careful planning, you can actually make money on some vinyl, but overall, it's an expensive media. I've been a vinyl fan for 40 years and my system has slowly progressed, the latest iteration being the Phono stage for the Mola Mola Makua preamp. Personally, I would look into a new cartridge, the Denon DL105 would be a good call. Happy to sit down with you and show you what it sounds like as I do have a spare. One I am planning on modifying further down the line.
TT looks interesting, though cart looks like an AT 3600L (???) odd “choice” given the rest of the perceived build quality. Congrats on the vinyl journey! Starting with a record cleaning machine puts you well ahead if the learning curve.
I think the arm is the rega RB110 as it has the counterweight stopper and the RB220 doesn't have this, so the cartridge would most likely be the rega carbon
I think the Carbon is a rebranded AT, likely 3600L. Indeed, an oddly cheap option to put on such a TT. I would give a high priority to upgrading that, the improvement would be massive. The best Hana or Nagaoka you can afford or the trusty old Denon 103 come to mind. Nagaoka allows you to stay in MM, Hana has some good high-output MCs, even though a low output one will be better, and the Denon is just such a classic.
Brilliant Terry. Just took delivery of my ingenium on Tuesday there, although I got the upgraded aluminium platter and I asked the guy's at the shop to put a goldring g1042 mm cart straight on it..that I has bought previously.lovely table.
.....And you need to seek out Black Country New Road's "Ants from up there" it's a analogue recording Terry and sounds absolutely gorgeous on the format, preferably the deluxe box edition if you can get your mits on it....I think I said to you previously about this album and it's dr score of 18 on roon....it's the finest alt indie recording I've heard since pj Harvey's dry and rid of me albums.
@Abe Froman Have you got a Avid ingenium? Or just a Rega fan boy...I just don't get it when people try and defend whatever they bought like they own the company or something. The video was about Terry's first turntable mate, I don't recall him asking whether the Rega turntables were a better buy or whatever.
Congrats Terry! Yes, I think you made a great choice for a first one. Looks amazing. BTW, you're partially to blame/thank for the reason I have a new REL S/510 showing up at my door today. All in my pursuit for the (semi)perfect system. Cheers from across the pond. Enjoy the new gear.
Congrats! I have the exact same turntable by Avid which I got about 2 years ago. By now it has been heavily upgraded and its performance kept getting better and better with each step. It is a tremendous value for money. Things I can suggest to do in future is to upgrade in this order: 1. Cartridge. 2. Tonearm (something like Rega RB330 or RB880 is a straight forward drop-in replacement) 3. The heavier aluminium platter that Avid offer as an upgrade. Obviously also make sure you have a decent external phono stage too but the one you have already is plenty good enough for now! Once you upgrade those things the sound will transform completely. Also a higher grade cartridge with a more advanced diamond tip like microline or shibata will not only reduce the inner-groove distortion that elliptical styli exhibit but also generally give you much quieter playback (less clicks, pop and groove noise). But for now just enjoy the ride! :D
Nooo! Enjoy what you have, Terry, and spend the money on LPs!!! Plenty of time to worry about upgrades once you have 100+ LPs and the bug has fully dug its teeth in
@@mikepriest3340 Hi there. Technically there is a way to adjust VTA and it is quite simple. There are spacers available for any 3 point mointed Rega tonearm and they are available in different heights. Very easy to install one and there's really no room for error. For eg. when I had a Nagaoka MP-110 on there I had a 2mm spacer on the tonearm to achieve a good VTA. In terms of cartridge recommendations it is quite a big market and some of it will be down to personal preferences... For sure I can recommend the AT-VM95 series and particularly the Microline and Shibata models. You can even start with super cheap VM95E model and upgrade just the stylus later on as they all use the same cartridge body. Very hard to beat in terms of value for money. I have been using the VM95SH for over a year now and don't have any wish to change it for a more expensive one any time soon. You will be amazed how a fairly "budget" MM cartridge can sound like when setup properly on a high quality tonearm/turntable combination. The Nagaoka MP series also has a good easy to live with sound although everything except the MP-500 has a simple elliptical stylus which I'm not generally a fan of and don't recommend to people that both care about preserving their record collection pristine long term and want to hear the best sound possible from those grooves. If you were to go with a Nagaoka I'd suggest the MP-200 and getting it Paratrace retipped eventually. The MP-110 is also a decent starter cartridge. There's few other worthy ones to consider in this price range but the performance they will offer will be more or less the same until you upgrade the tonearm to something like the RB330 or better. From there on literally any high end cartridge will 'sing' on that turntable :D
@@werk4408 thank you for this. I have an Ingenium arriving next week and was a tad miffed to discover that the tone arm/cartridge were pretty basic. But it sounds like if I pick up a 2mm spacer I should be able to install my Ortofon 2M Blue and get a decent level of improved quality. The other cartridges you mentioned also sound like they should offer a nice variety to play around with until I can justify splurging on a tonearm upgrade. Would it be worth putting an RB303 on? (I have an older Rega RP3 that I could repurpose it from) or better to just put the money towards a 330 or 880? Btw, is there anywhere online where people are actively discussing this turntable? I couldn't find much of community with my googling. Thanks for the assist, I'm pretty excited for it to arrive and get it set up!
Nice video personally I wouldn't go with the cleaning machine but thats jus me. I think it's great that you have got into vinyl, I'm 52 now an when I was a kid it was jus records an tapes with cds jus comin in, from teens through to mid 30s I was all about cds as vinyl was dying but over the last 5 or 6 years my vinyl collection has grown to over 900 albums an nearly 700 singles I think the last few years is the best time to be listening to music with all the fantastic equipment around an all the different formats I use all formats to play music, streaming is the most convenient but I believe vinyl is the most rewarding, enjoy your vinyl journey..
Welcome to the wonderful world of vinyl Terry, I have the big brother to your project record cleaner the VC-S2, they are both very good and all you'll ever need, most vinyl audiophiles don't use an enzyme cleaner like the project one, we use a recipe of 20% isopropyl alcohol into 80% pure distilled water with a small amount of ilfotol wetting agent about 10mls mixed in a squeezy bottle. Also the records that have more surface noise than others after cleaning is probably not that you haven't done it correctly but probably just a poor pressing, unfortunately with vinyl it's luck of the draw if you get a good pressing or not from the same batch. Enjoy your journey 😁👍
I was wondering if maybe its a bad one, Its my current favourite album as well so maybe I will get another copy and return the worst one but I was planning to clean it again first because I might have done something wrong. I think I had the brush on it maybe a bit too long or something like that. At the moment I am doing things because I think I should rather than for a specific reason where I know why I am doing it if that makes sense
Welcome to the analog rabbit hole, a truly enjoyable method of music reproduction and to me superior to digital with the right gear...like Avid. Enjoy Terry!
As an audiophile of somewhat longer standing ; I can hark back to the days of shellac ( my mother's and my grandfather's records , and we even had an uncle with an Edison Graphaphone , which played cylinders rather than discs ! ) as well as my own 50 or so years with vinyl .At different points I had , alongside my other turntables , a Goldring GL75 with a pickup for 78rpm and a B&O turntable with variable speed up around 78 and a 78 stylus for the B&O cartridge ; I also had an HH Scott Valve amplifier with so many different EQ settings for the different record labels , but mostly it played into my Quad 33 which had the excellent Quad filter system, designed for shellac playback . My starter turntable was a Pioneer PL12D ( mark 1 ) , Then a Transcriptor Hydraulic Reference , before getting my Gyrodec , which I still have some 30 or so years on . While I have only owned three turntables , having spent my youth working in the industry I have used and set up so very many and had them home for extended tests . Pickup arms , cartridges , power supplies , different motors , and as you alluded , placement and support can all make huge differences . We had a good few budget turntables back in the 70s , Connoisseur BD1 , AR turntable , the various Japanese belt drives ( of which the PL12D seemed the best , hence I bought one ) Gerrard 401 , Thorens TD 125 , Dual , the endless selection of Japanese direct drives , then the Linn LP12 , Fons CQ 30 and Ariston RD11 which were similar designs ; Transcriptor then Michell Reference turntables , then they brought out the budget Focus 1 . Many of these turntables left you to choose an arm , most people bought the SME 3009 S2 , others went for the Hadcock , Mayware formula 4 , Regas , Grace 707 or numerous others . Because I was always trying out different cartridges , I bought an SME Series III , which came with a modular counterweight and fluid damper , making it compatible with cartridges of differing masses and compliances ... possibly the most universal of pickup arms ; also had Rabco tangential trackers and the B&O Beograd 4000 through my hands . Cartridges ? Great budget cartridge was the Shure M75 EDII , Audio Technica also made some fine MM cartridges ( and superb MC ones too ) , We sold a lot of Stanton , and in the 70s the 681EEE was up there with the Shure V15III as one of the best , also had an AKG p9ES for a while . But then I got into MC cartridges ; had a classic Linn/Grace G707 / Supex SD900E home for a while , with a Boothroyd Stuart Meridian Pre/power combo which had MC stage ... sound was too 'laid back' for my taste . My first MC was the high output Ultimo DV10E which worked very well into my then Quad 33/303 system ; later I got an Ortolan MC20 with transformer . Although I tried so many amplifiers ( Sugden , Naim , Meridian , Arcam and others ) I liked the Quad sound and eventually upgraded to the 44/405 , it sounded great , with resistors in , through my ESL57s , but not so good with my IMF TLS80s which actually had worked better with the 303 ( in retrospect the better amplifier ) . One area where I might take issue is the business of cleaning records ; my take , having a collection spanning 50 years and several thousand albums , is that prevention is better than cure . Other than in the case of a very few secondhand records which were less than pristine , I have never felt the need to clean records . I handle them carefully , use my Zerostat pistol before playing , after sweeping over once , use my Michell sweep arm to collect any incidental dust which may fall during play , and again sweep before putting away after playing ; also I always play with the lid closed over my turntable - this modern day fad of having turntables without lids just escapes me - why expose your records to 25 or more minutes of airborne dust during play ? My earliest records bought 50+ years ago have simply been handled and cared for well ; never been played on bad equipment and all are as good today as they ever were . What you say about pops and crackles ; I noticed this decades ago - it does NOT come from the records . This is a symptom of a playback system that is less than it might be ; a pickup that is not quite tracking correctly , or static in the records . This always used to be a problem with mid range systems where tracking was not all it might be , or cartridges where secure tracking wasn't their greatest strong point . Take something like a Gerrard 401 with a SMEII and V15 or a Stanton ; these noises just don't happen ... not ever ( unless you are unlucky enough to have a damaged record ) . When setting up a pickup , I always set towards the upper end of the tracking weight range ; then there were widely available test records , like the Shure Audio Obstacle Course , or the Hi-Fi News HFN69 and HFN75 test records which had highly modulated sine waves to test for accurate tracking ; I still have mine , you could probably obtain samples of unknown quality on eBay , but unless you know them to have been used sparingly , it is a bit iffy . Incidentally , my AT-OC9 tracks superbly in my RB700 arm ; I never get clicks , pops or crackles . And I mean never . All I get is music . For a while I was distracted into the world of AV , and bought a huge system of Japanese electronics , based around the Sony TA-E1000ESD preamp , SDP-EP9ES AC-3 decoder , 5x TA-N55ES power amplifiers ( very low source impedances , running as mono blocs they kept the IMFs tightly under control ) B&W DM2As for the rear and a home designed and constructed centre speaker using the same KEF B110 mid units and Coles/Celestion 4001/HF1300 units as both the IMF and B&Ws ; oh and besides Laserdisc , S-VHS , Hi-8 and U-Matic , I had a Sony VPH 1270QM 7" CRT projector . Later , when DVD came out I bought the sony 'reference standard' player the DVP-S7700 . But after a while I tired of it all and went back to my roots ; sold all the AV kit but still had my Gyrodec , my numerous Revox , Uher , Nakamichi tape machines , and bought a complete Quad 77/707 system with the ESL 63s ( I had missed my ESL 57s ) and once again I had audio bliss . Gone were the two 42U racks in the corner of my living room ; in came a marks & Spencer Sonoma 3 door sideboard ( you can still buy them - a very substantial piece of furniture and more than capable of holding an audio system ) ; the spousal approval factor went through the roof ; previous stuff was merely tolerated . I never really got into CD , or digital audio of any kind ( and pre CD I did have experience of digital recording with the Sony PCM-F1 / SL-F1 system , then the 8mm EVS 600 PCM multi audio system , but I stuck with my high speed Revox most times , or Uher 4200 Stereo Report Monitor for outdoor recording jobs .... later I got into video production , but that's another story . So , for me , vinyl and analogue in general , has never gone away - at home I am generally found listening either to records , or to BBC R2 FM : I can't believe Quad seem no longer to make FM tuners ! FM radio , to me , remains one of the best sources available , and in particular BBC broadcasts ; I have a decent aerial on a rotator but the massive ERP from Blackhill makes all the difference BBC radio is just so good and nice to listen to , whether in the home or in the car .... forget DAB , it is rubbish . Upgrade paths for me ? maybe an Orbe platter kit , SME V , ESL 2905 or 2912 , and maybe 909 mono blocs to drive them ( I just wouldn't use anything other than Quad amplifiers to drive Quad loudspeakers , they literally were made for each other ) ..... I really am pretty happy with what I have and as far as hi-fi is concerned spend my money on records .
Nice TT and welcome to the world of vinyl. As a vinyl enthusiast for the last 40 years I would heartily advise placing your TT on a dedicated wall shelf, it makes a noticeable improvement to the performance.
On vinyl I really like Foxbase Alpha by St Etienne and Margarine eclipse by Stereolab. I don’t think you will be disappointed with either Terry. Congratulations on your new turntable 😎👍🏻
It looks like you've jumped in with both feet! That looks like an excellent choice of turntable, and the record cleaning machine is a great accessory to have. Upgrading the preamp will likely come first. Back in the day, I used a New York Audio Labs hybrid tube/mosfet phono preamp feeding straight into the amps. Vinyl is fun.
Avid makes outstanding tables and I hate that we don’t have any dealers that I can think of here in the US. We use to have Music Direct in The US. Avid tables are made like SME turntables, but I think SME are made to even tighter tolerances. Thanks for sharing your experience with us Terry. You have chosen correctly with your first table. Terry it’s always that potential and your OCD will make you go further, but it is worth it in the end. It is good to see that you have entered the fold. You will be eventually upgrading the phono stage in the future. Vinyl makes you listen and take note. Wait until you start comparing your Digital and Vinyl sounds. Good luck.
Hi Terry. Oh dear, you’re in. Off the bat. You’ll need to replace the cartridge to an MC cartridge and better phono stage. I won’t say which ones as I know they’ll come your way. Cheers
Great to see you getting in to vinyl . Very nice table but you should get a better cartridge something like a Audio-Technica AT-OC9XML moving coil as you have very good phono stage. With that type setup it will blow away digital.
Congratulations, Terry, on popping your vinyl cherry. I decided to return to records after 20 years, with no intention of going to the extremes of my first foray, which involved a Linn LP12. So, it’s only on my second system, whilst my primary system is, and will remain, CD based. The deck was meant to be a bit of fun, being a return to my first turntable in 1979, in the form of a Sansui SR222 MkII. Trouble is, when I examined it, the plinth was much worse than it looked in the photos. Thank eBay! So, I stripped it down, replaced the electronic components and rewired the arm with silver litz wires. Everything was then cleaned and lubricated and fitted to a brand new, custom made plinth of vastly superior materials to the original. It’s mounted on sorbothane feet and fitted with an audiophile mains cable via an IEC socket. The signal is generated by a Goldring G1042 cartridge, with Mogami interconnects, feeding an ifi Zen Phono, with linear power supply. Purists will claim the cartridge is too good for the deck, and I can’t disagree, however, the sound is amazingly good. As regards cleaning your records, I bought the same Project VC-E as you did just last week and it has transformed the records I’ve picked up from antique shops from noisy and unplayable, to mostly silent. A brilliant purchase. Don’t expect to clean each disk that often as they’re played with the cover down on the deck and stored in new Mobile Fidelity sleeves. Enjoy your record journey, Terry.
Got the very same turntable. Nothing wrong just the way it is. The cartridge is the unbadged Rega Carbon, and the arm is a newly designed Rega Rb 110. This all confirmed by Avid. Avid feels that the turntable itself plays a much more important role when it comes to the sound quality, as opposed to sticking an expensive cartridge on a cheap turntable. The biggest bang for the buck to improve this turntable is the Avid metal platter upgrade. This too was confirmed by Avid when I spoke with them. You need to be very careful if you decide to upgrade the cartridge, not that it really needs to be, in that you need to be sure to get a cartridge that is of equivalent height. The reason being, there is no VTA adjustment on this tonearm, neither is there on the more expensive Rega arms. Secondly, since the tracking force or VTF is at a set value when counter weight is against the stop (about 2.2 grams), you will need a cartridge that is happy tracking at 2 grams. Same goes for the anti skate, which is built into that tonearm. A very good cartridge for this configuration is the Hana EL or EH. It is close in dimensions to the Rega Carbon and tracks right at 2 grams. Avid stated to me that many a customer has tried the Hana on the Ingenium with fantastic results. One tip to adjust the distance of the motor is to place it close to the frame, and then take the belt and gently pull on it to take up the slack without actually stretching it. Then adjust motor until the outer diameter of the pulley is just making contact with the belt. This is THE position for the motor. Next, you now stretch belt over pulley and onto the groove of choice, 33 or 45. In this way, you are assured the proper belt tension and the most accurate speed. The tonearms effective mass is 11 grams according to Avid, and so is considered a low mass arm, or a very low mid mass arm. The Hana is of a medium compliance 17* 10-6. It weighs 5 grams, 6 or so grams with hardware. If you punch in 11 grams for the arm and about 6 grams for cartridge weight ( includes hardware) into a resonance calculator, say at vinyl engine, you get a resonance frequency of about 9 hz...so it is a good match for this tonearm.
Interesting post this, thank you - what phono stage are you using / did you use with the original cartridge out of curiosity please - I am trying to work out if the iFi's gain is good for this cartridge, I am wondering if its a little low and if I should be looking for an alternative, nothing to do with quality just gain level
The best reason why buying a turntable now, is the fact that it is back BIG time. And slowly u will find out the many differences in production and sound. The more expensives Audiophile records, u will be amazed how good vinyl playback in fact can sound. The Avid can handle it for u, if needed? 💪✌️❤️🇩🇰
Welcome to the fun! My turntable is king of my sound system. I can't get HD streaming to sound as good. And it's an upgraded Rega RP6, so not ultra high end. Tweaking and futzing with these things is fun. My only advice is ditch that cartridge like it has a highly contagious STD!! Treat yourself and Get a Dynavector or a Hana. Spend $700 (US) or more. A cartridge that comes with a plug and play is a NO. You will thank me later.
Regarding pops and crackles. I learned the hard way that some records are simply pressed very poorly. Some albums I had to buy multiple times to eventually get one which is silent to an at least acceptable degree.
Great to see you enjoying your new record player. Some of my favorite LPs are the Beatles Esher demos from the White album, Beatles Red double album(only one from master tapes) Doors Soft Parade, CCR’s self titled first album, Love Forever Changes, Chess The best of Muddy Waters, Chet Baker My Funny Valentine, Monk plays Duke Ellington, Duke Ellington Piano in the Foreground. Liked the Nirvana Unplugged album in the foreground. Arguably the best piece of music from that decade.
nice1 and congrats. Like many here have said, first you need to change is the cartridge to something that will compliment the tonearm and work nicely. Other than that everything is superb😎
I loved how you said you felt perhaps more relaxed with listening to vinyl. For me, that's the magic over digital, not just the listening, but I'm so much more passionate about the collecting and physical aspect also. It's a wonderful medium which by all rights should be a pain in the arse, but there is something so satisfying about having to take that much care and research into.
@@earl007 that's the point though, CD collecting never got me excited at all, was t interested in the jewel cases at all or the artwork. Vinyl is so much more unique, each copy has it's different highlights and some are works of art with etched records, unusually designed sleeves, or really special metal or perspex boxsets, every one gets me excited.
Great video. Love the TT, next upgrade - cartridge then tonearm. Then on to Phonostages and MC's. 😬 yikes! It's a money pit but the rewards are worth it when you get it right. Next you'll be looking at better quality vinyl records from Analogue Productions and Mobile Fidelity etc. Welcome to the VC your wonderful journey has just begun. 👍😉
Quite a few people have recommended the better vinyl, mofi wow expensive analogue productions is a little better but the music selection is limited. There is no old school 90s dance bangers on there
An excellent choice for your first turntable. There's nothing worse than setting up a tt incorrectly then being disappointed with the playback. You will find some new vinyl marked and scuffed as the quality of the finish isn't as good as it used to be but it usually plays/sounds ok. Most thin vinyl from the 80s plays fine so this 'remastered 180g' is usually a selling point, not always a sign of quality. The Abbey Road Studios remasters are excellent.
I think that's a great starting point Terry but you are on a journey now mate and the starters gun has sounded lol I've been playing records since I was a DJ in the 80s and I'm still learning. To be honest I don't think you ever stop learning and that's probably a great thing. I've got an acoustic signature turntable now with a hana moving coil cartridge wait to you get into the moving coil cartridges now that is a slippery slope,🎧😁👍
Just found your video and subscribed to your channel...For a first Turntable that's a very good one. I have an "Avid Volvere mk4 with an SME Series 4 Tonearm and Ortofon Kontrapunkt C mc Cartridge", I have owned that since 2006 when the Turntable was a New model. I dealt with Conrad Mass over the phone a few times as I was the very first purchaser of this new version!...Great Turntable system in every way. I too have a Record Cleaning Machine it's a "Nitty Gritty" model which is American..bought because some of my record collection had Mould on them, plus I bought Lot's of Vinyl from Charity Shops (have a few thousand now!!). Enjoy the Vinyl experience as I have since 1968 !.
Hi Terry ! Im sure after many month of listening your table , you will find just like I did that there is no such thing that vinyl sounds better than digital, it all depends on the recording , some times digital will kick the vinyls butt, other times vinyl will sound much more musical and live ,but now you have a choice , maybe the best and most rewarding upgrade is the cartridge replacement , maybe ortofon 2m black is a good way to go . all the best .
I just googled the Sig 12 I thought I might have seen that a few years ago when I visited the UK Distributor for them but notI haven't, its a very interesting design, seems very elaborate but I do like the display for the speed. Thats the digital audiophile in me saying that haha
The turntable, arm and cartridge all work together as a system. To really get your head around what each part contributes you have to swap these parts in and out. It has long been common practice for turntable manufacturers to bundle a cheap audio-technica cartridge and Rega arm with their expensive turntables as a starter package, I would take any claim by Avid that this P'n'p is a 'complete record player' with a pinch of salt, Rega use this arm and cartridge on the £300 Planar 1.
Watch out for dodgy pressings, (some discs are now pressed directly from cd)! which defeats the object entirely. Some were out of the Eastern Bloc. Deutsche Gramaphon, CBS, Atlantic, RCA, Blue Note, Capitol and a few others are usually very reliable recordings.
This is a expensive rabbit hole once you go down this path! I see all sorts of tweeting of tonarms, expensive cartridges, external phono stages etc. I have heard rumors that even a decent vynil setup with give $$$ digital setups a run for their money 😀
Yes, got a Clearaudio Concept MC, with Lehmannaudio phono stage into Synthesis Nimis integrated class A tube amp. Haven't heard anything digital that was even close.
Looks remarkably like the Rega Carbon/ Audio Technica AT3600 cartridge. Not the worlds best cartridge, but an excellent cartridge for the money. Enjoy your vinyl journey - i've been enjoying mine for nearly 50 years now...
Well you started with a perfect preamp for what your after. Major praise for the ifi Zen phono preamp. Try it with a VM95ML. I have rips on my channel.
LOL!!! I grew up with LPs and phonographs (born in 1953). Once digital music reached maturity, I couldn't leave them behind fast enough. I love the absence of pops, clicks, and scratches, and hassles of cleaning and having to get uptown to flip the album over half-way through. The ONLY thing I miss is the big beautiful album covers. I have no desire to go back. I'll take digital thank-you very much.
@@PursuitPerfectSystem LOL! Look at it this way, in the 40 years I listened to vinyl, I had all the fun I could stand. But I am glad that you and so many of the later generations have chosen to explore the medium. I wish you many hours of listening pleasure.
What a great first turntable set up with the ifi Zen, I have the Black Label 3 as well as a Pass Labs XP17. I also own Avid's spirit level and plinth although a CD player is on top of that. You won't want for much more other than a new cartridge for some time with these superb system components.
Congratz to your new vinyl addiction =) bought the “new “daft punk album. It sounds soo good and has a nice warm sound. Think it’s has a reissue,hope that sound great too. Can be little expensive otherwise.
Congrats! Looks like a great start down the slippery slope. Only suggestion is to not over clean the records. Just vacuum enough to clear the solution. Brushes and vacuum can build static and is often the cause of ticks and pops. The industry would lead you to believe that you need a dust free sterile environment. You don’t.
Welcome to the vinyl community. Your TT would greatly benefit from a dedicated stand and a good electronic speed control which would avoid changing the belts position to change speeds. For TT's the problem isn't so much macro-vibrations, but the myriad micro-vibrations in your environment, and your concrete floor will not prevent these. Your listening pleasure would also greatly benefit from changing out the cheap MM that comes with the table with either a higher level MM, or better yet, a good MC cartridge. Clean the pads on your cleaning machine after every record. You don't want that dirt scratching or spoiling the next record you clean. Frankly using an Orbitrac or a Spin Clean before using your vacuum cleaner is preferable for getting surface dirt off your record before a deeper cleaning. Understand however, there is no better or deeper cleaner than ultrasonic cleaners. However, the Loricraft vacuum cleaners do the best job of all vacuum cleaners. Unfortunately both ultrasonic cleaners and the Loricraft are for most, prohibitively expensive.
I grew up with vinyl...listened to it every day. fun memories...actually, more fun because I now have VASTLY SUPERIOR audio because it's digital. Playing a 'vinyl' is like a tea ceremony....it's good, and all...but it's not coffee. :)
I notice they have two options, one with a metal platter. Did you get the metal platter? And if not, what's the platter made out of if not metal? They don't seem to specify. Thanks.
Enjoyed the turntable video/review. Back in the day I had a high end Bang and Olufsen Beogram 4004 which I still use but I probably need to replace the Cartridge which would cost me about $1,000 so instead I purchased the Fluance RT85 which was strongly recommended in by several of your peers. I paired it with the Schiit Mani2 and the sound is incredible. So I don’t think I will be replacing my B&O Cartridge.
Interesting turntable but that cartridge is really holding it back - basically a cheap AT conical stylus. Get your dealer to fit an AT VM95ML and it will make your TT sing for about £155 - same tracking weight but probably the best MM cartridge below £200. And get Clapton's I STILL DO - a 45rpm double album with really lovely blues and astonishingly detailed - at least with my Rega P6 and the cart I recommended. Good Luck and enjoy the ride!!
I'm propably not the only one that thinks the cartridge is an unbranded Audio technica atn 3600. Nothing bad. Just means you can enjoy slowly upgrading your cartridge. Check out Bill Withers his ultimate collection. It's a recent released collection album that is mastered very delightful and sound great on vinyl.
Nothing cleans better than ultrasonic cleaning. I got one from Amazon for less than $300 US and can clean 7 LPs at one time. And trust me its light years past any other form of cleaning. I have cleaned hundreds of LPs and there is no lint residue left, no static and I since I keep them in sleeves I have not had to reclean any of them once treated in the ultrasonic cleaner.
The ifi Zen is a good way to enter this hobby, but it's worth trying out other stuff. In the UK, I would definitely take advantage of the loaner program of the UK made Graham Slee phono stages. The Reflex is reasonably priced, but good enough to be the last phono stage you'll ever need.
Wonderful. Thumbs up. Hope you are going to do well, and succeed further; and collect more vinyl that is recorded well. Myself, I've been buying, and listening to records from the end of the 1970s; mostly rock, and pop music more from the late 1980s, and nineteen nineties. By the way, I have that Madonna record you held up; and almost every record, and CD by Madonna! She - Madonna, is one of my favourite musical artists. Madonna, and nineteen eighties music is one of the main reasons I got into listening to music more; and began buying more hi fi audio equipment. Listening to CDs is mostly from the 1990s, and up to today; 2000s, 2020s. However, I've collected a couple of more records than I've got CDs; and collect mostly used records. Anyway, I bought a used harman kardon T25 belt drive turntable with an AT70 phono cartridge in good condition from the 1980s, then I changed the stylus. I adjusted the cartridge because the previous owner had the cartridge positioned out of alignment. Then I very recently bought a used Denon DL80A Moving Coil, elliptical stylus, in good condition. I'm very fortunate because it was not very expensive, and is a high output cartridge. Underneath the turntable I put a half inch board of MDF that sits on my stereo cabinet. My phono preamplifier, or phono amplifier as you English call it, is a FX AUDIO BOX02 (that's zero 2) bought this year connected to my Sony AV Receiver of 85W (2012) that I only use for hi fi audio. I use an Audio Technica AT6011a record cleaning anti-static brush for light cleaning, and removing static from my records. More rare is that this Denon MC cartridge enables the stylus to be replaced! I found the user, owner manuals for the HK T25 Turntable, and Denon DL80A MC on vinylengine dot com; be sure to check out that very fine, helpful web site out, Terry. Anyhow, listening to music from analogue sources such as from a record on a turntable that is designed very well does have its advantages. Anyhow, I prefer the music from the nineteen seventies, to the end of the 1980s; when I was a kid, youth, and a very young man. Especially pop, rock, and rhythm and blues during that time of the nineteen eighties is some of the best music there is that's recorded; my opinion, anyway.🔉🎵🎶
mission 770’s I could tell these were not originals as large port and not clear woofers, quick look and I see these are being made again. Amazing speakers of the 70’s. And yes, nice designed turntable.
They are the brand new Mission 770 actually these are pair serial 00001 as well - here to learn all about them ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-yIkEbu8XyKg.html
@@PursuitPerfectSystem Thanks I will have a look. I really regretted not buying these at the time, as I could only afford the one below, my mate had these. Now I have Monitor Audio Gold 300, BIG forgiven sound.
Well done mate, was wondering when you were going to step over to the dark side. I've been using my Oracle Delphi mk vi turntable, Air Tangent arm and both Lyra Delos and Koetsu Black K cartridges for a good number of years and derived years of listening pleasure from this combination. I hope you get as much enjoyment.
@@ChrisTaylor-dz6nk I know it well. A good friend in Walthamstow, East London had one and I promised myself that when I made enough money to be comfortable, I'd get myself one. I also have the Oracle 2500 cd player/ transport and Nagra DAC combo that sounds gorgeous.
