Vinyl Records & Turntables

Vinyl Records & Turntables

Author
Discussion

BazzaH

Original Poster:

307 posts

191 months

Monday 6th June 2011
quotequote all
Right being 22 and never having the chance of listening to vinyl records using a turntable, and my recent obsession with northern soul it seems to be a new interest to keep me entertained for a while.

The problem is however, i have absolutely no idea about them at all.

Such as, how often do you need replacement needles?
What happens when the record ends and you don’t lift the needle?
Why are there different size holes in the middle of some records?

So any advice much appreciated.

Cheers

rhinochopig

17,932 posts

197 months

Monday 6th June 2011
quotequote all
Jesus I suddenly feel really old hehe

Answer 1 - depends on the turntable, tone arm will either auto lift and return to cradle, or the needle will sit in the last circular groove until you manually lift it.
Answer 2 - The big holes are for a Juke-Box, you'll need an adapter to play it on a home turntable.
Answer 3 - no idea re: needle replacement. My player has always been moved on before it's needed replacement.

StevieBee

12,795 posts

254 months

Monday 6th June 2011
quotequote all
Another feeling old here!!

Needles shouldn't need replacing that often. Much depends on the quality of the one you fit in the first place and how clean the record is (i.e. lacking is scratches).

You do need to check that your amp accepts a turntable source as it's not always a case of hooking up the phono leads from the turntable to the amp. Some modern amps need an analogue / digital converter.

Yoda.

2,260 posts

247 months

Monday 6th June 2011
quotequote all
If you don't lift the tone arm when the record has 'ended' the stylus will just carry on riding the groove (baby!). There will be a click at each turn of the turntable. No harm should be done really.
Auto-return turntables will solve this, however they may jerk the tone arm/stylus when being mechanically lifted off the record. Many audiophiles don't like this 'unnecessary' labour saving aid.
Manual lifting of the tone arm is generally more 'sympathetic' wink

audidoody

8,595 posts

255 months

Monday 6th June 2011
quotequote all
Ditto with the "Jesus, how old am I?" comments.

Don't forget to play the run-out groove of Sergeant Pepper backwards to receive mystic messages

audidoody

8,595 posts

255 months

Monday 6th June 2011
quotequote all
Ditto with the "Jesus, how old am I?" comments.

Don't forget to play the run-out groove of Sergeant Pepper backwards to receive mystic messages

audidoody

8,595 posts

255 months

Monday 6th June 2011
quotequote all
Ditto with the "Jesus, how old am I?" comments.

Don't forget to play the run-out groove of Sergeant Pepper backwards to receive mystic messages

Edited by audidoody on Monday 6th June 19:09

Evangelion

7,639 posts

177 months

Monday 6th June 2011
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audiodoody, I think your record's stuck!

Meteor Madness

403 posts

201 months

Monday 6th June 2011
quotequote all
BazzaH, if you're becoming obsessed with Northern Soul vinyl, your problem of needles, run-out grooves and spindle adaptors will be dwarfed by that of your diminishing bank account.
Trust me, I collect obscure rockabilly 45s, and Northern Soul buyers pay even sillier money.

lockhart flawse

2,040 posts

234 months

Monday 6th June 2011
quotequote all
As it happens I am using my turntable as I write this to play The Associates first album - The Affectionate Punch (highly recommended). I have a Pro-ject turntable but need a Cambridge Audio phono pre-amp to make it work through my Cyrus amp.



L.F.

davepoth

29,395 posts

198 months

Monday 6th June 2011
quotequote all
I once did a DJ set with 7"s. that was pretty damn intense, they were all about two minutes long and since I'm a crap DJ it was taking about a minute and 50 seconds to cue up a record.

Great fun though.

jet_noise

5,630 posts

181 months

Tuesday 7th June 2011
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Dear BazzaH,

maybe a grandmother egg sucking tutorial but there may be less need than you think for vinyl, unless you're doing it for the sound/feel of the item/obsessive collector.

If you're just looking to have the tunes then there are a large number of Northern Soul compilation CDs.

My musical tastes at the time went mostly from glam to prog but the occasional northern soul tune did impinge e.g. Wigan's Chosen Few's version of Skiing in the Snow.
I find Craig Charles funk+soul show on 6 records to be a useful suggester. Then just search for the compilation which has the song! I haven't failed yet smile

I still play my vinyl regularly. If you're buying old stuff then a cleaner is essential - Knosti Disco Antistat is excellent VFM. Also be aware of the silly cost and the easy to fall into spiral of system upgrades. I've just bought a new cartridge - Goldring 2100 which is not expensive by any means (£100).
I'm glad I did, it beats the Linn K5 which I've had for ages by miles - there's so much more information coming out of the groove (er, baby) biggrin

Apart from that cartridge I've bought all my stuff on ebay - Rega Planar 3/RB300, Audiolab 8000A, Rega floorstanders,

regards,
Jet

GAjon

3,721 posts

212 months

Tuesday 7th June 2011
quotequote all
Dont forget the thruppney bits to hold the stylus arm down.

Someone will be along shortly to explain what a thruppney bit is.

BazzaH

Original Poster:

307 posts

191 months

Tuesday 7th June 2011
quotequote all
Thanks for the advice.

I already have lots of completion CD's and MP3's but as i have recently acquired a turntable and amplifier that is more than likely older than me, from a colleague who was about to throw it out, it seems a great idea.

I’m going to get it cleaned up and see if it is working tonight then the next quest is to find some vinyl.

StevieBee

12,795 posts

254 months

Tuesday 7th June 2011
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GAjon said:
Someone will be along shortly to explain what a thruppney bit is.
Aren't they boobies?

telecat

8,528 posts

240 months

Tuesday 7th June 2011
quotequote all
Quick guide to turntables....

Firstly they are not Needles!!!! Generally the cheaper cartridges will allow you to replace the Styli but the more expensive Cartridges will need to be re-tipped or Part-exchanged if they wear out.

Secondly there are two types. The Cheaper Moving Magnet type which produce a higher signal than the more expensive and usually better Moving Coil. There are a very few High output Moving Coil's though. The Amp you have if it is a budget one will probably have a Input for the Moving Magnet. If you have a more expensive type it will have a switch allowing you to use Moving coil's. DON'T try using the MM on the MC setting. It will blow that part of the amp.

Next the Arm on the turntable needs to be setup correctly. Most Arms are removable. The "hole" they fit in is either a Linn or Rega fitting. Unless you are planning on upgrading I wouldn't worry about this and even if you are you can get "Armboards" to convert most Turntable's.

The Arm needs to "rest" on the record and the weight at the back is designed to move back and forwards to get the best "balance". Generally the Styli should have a couple of grams of down force depending on the Makers recommendations. Make sure it is also tracking correctly. It needs to be straight in the groove not drifting. Lokking down on the record you need to imagine a straight line fron the spindle to the edge of the record. The Cartridge needs to have the front of the cartridge directly "on" the line. You can get the idea at http://www.turntablebasics.com/align.html.

Check the Drive belt. It should be fairly tight. If the sound is "wowing" it's usually the belt unless it has a bearing on the spindle that needs replacing or greasing. The Table itself should ride level which means that the Turntable itself should be on a level surface. If it is a solid turntable on squashy feet i.e. the Rega Planer's it's more important than with those which have a suspension like the Linn Sondek. If it does have suspension check it does level just in case the springs are faulty.

It all sounds a bit of a faff but once setup you can usually forget about it and enjoy the sound!!!!

GAjon

3,721 posts

212 months

Tuesday 7th June 2011
quotequote all
StevieBee said:
Aren't they boobies?
The name has been used as slang for boobs also, but I think in this application that may cause interference. wink

BazzaH

Original Poster:

307 posts

191 months

Thursday 9th June 2011
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UPDATE,

Last night i got the old turntable, amp and FM receiver up and running, i also have the tape deck but am planning on getting rid of this as it will see no use.

The turntable i believe is a SL-Q21, with a P38 needle/stylus/cartridge?

The FM radio works great, really clear but the turntable no so great.

I had a friend come round and it seems the auto return is not lifting the arm up properly when it ends, just dragging the needle back, after a bit of research today i have found there to be a screw that can adjust this so i will try that tonight.

Also there is quite a bit of crackling so would this require the needle/stylus/cartridge replacing or could that it be a different problem?

Cheers again!

SGirl

7,918 posts

260 months

Thursday 9th June 2011
quotequote all
BazzaH said:
Also there is quite a bit of crackling so would this require the needle/stylus/cartridge replacing or could that it be a different problem?
Does this crackling appear only when you're playing a record, or just when the turntable is switched on? If the former, it's probably down to dust on the surface and in the grooves of the record, or possibly on the stylus. If you're buying mostly second-hand records, you might well find that a lot of them are a bit manky and need a good clean.

BazzaH

Original Poster:

307 posts

191 months

Thursday 9th June 2011
quotequote all
SGirl said:
Does this crackling appear only when you're playing a record, or just when the turntable is switched on? If the former, it's probably down to dust on the surface and in the grooves of the record, or possibly on the stylus. If you're buying mostly second-hand records, you might well find that a lot of them are a bit manky and need a good clean.
No its only when record playing and it was a clean new record.