Cheap Vinyl Records

What are the chances of vnyl records and turntables replacing CDs and MP3s?

A lot of people are switching back to vinyl. Is this part of a trend of abandoning newer technologies and our modern way of life and returning the technology of lifestyles of yesterday? Here’s an article…..

The 30-year-old iPod?

* Steve Guttenberg
* 14 Comments

Does anybody buying an iPod in 2008 expect to get more than a few years of use out of the thing? My five year old iPod still plays, but I can’t get it to work in newer iPod docks or iPod speakers. My iPod is too old.

Linn’s turntable has been around since 1972.
(Credit: Linn Products)

A good friend of mine plays his 30-year-old Linn LP-12 turntable almost every day. It was an expensive turntable in 1978 when it sold for around $1,200. But he’s gotten 30 years of use out of the thing, and even now listens to a lot more vinyl than CD. So his $1,200 investment works out to around $40 a year to own the thing. Can you imagine anybody buying an iPod today still using it in 2038? 2028? OK, how about 2018? Hmm, I don’t think so.

Linn still makes the LP-12 turntable, the model has been in continuous production since 1972, and most parts are readily available. How’s that for customer service? My Linn LP-12 is almost brand new, it’s just 13 years old.

OK, iPods aren’t high-end devices, they’re disposable technology. Fair enough, how much do you imagine you’ll spend on iPods or their equivalents over the next 30 years? There was one guy who responded to my “How many iPods have you owned?” poll who has already bought 26. So he’s already made Steve Jobs richer by many thousands of dollars. Over the next three decades he’ll spend a lot more, and still wind up with a closet full of useless junk.

I get it. Convenience trumps quality in most things. Fast food vs. slow food; fresh ingredients vs processed, which is pretty much the same deal with music. CDs, once the height of convenience and advanced tech are now viewed as archaic. CDs are too big, too easily damaged, and cost too much–so lower-fi MP3s and iTunes have put the CD on the road to oblivion. But to vinyl loving audiophiles LPs still sound better than any digital format. Everyone else couldn’t care less about the sound quality their music, it’s just not all that important to them.

Or is it that people are so busy now they simply don’t have time for quality. Strange, our affluence makes us go for the quickest, lower quality option every time. Back in the day writers would use the same typewriter for decades, but now we have to toss out our computers every three or four years. We’re living in a disposable culture, so we need to keep buying new, ever cheaper stuff, but if you have to keep rebuying it, is it really cheaper? High-end audio can be expensive to buy, but not to own.

I’d like to hear from you guys about your turntables, have long have you had yours? Is yours even older than my friend’s 30 year old Linn?

Vinyl records hanging no marks rock on?

cant build a new wall needs to be cheap and that would be way too much and time is a factor
ok so i have gotten some records from my dad and im living with my grand parents and the are really anal about keeping the walls clean so if someone could tell me a way to hang them with out leaving a mark on the wall i have a pretty big room and a lot of wall space but two walls are concrete and i want to hang the sleeves i have other plans for the records themselves

thanks in advance
~rock on~

Which do you prefer more: Vinyl LP’s, 8-tracks, cassette tapes, or CD’s?

All of these have their ups and downs, but which one do you prefer most? Personally, I’d prefer LPs since you can find them everywhere and they’re really cheap. Some of it’s only downs are that you have to be dragged through the whole record without the option of having to skip a track if you want to, and you can’t easily put songs from an LP on your computer’s music library. So, which is your favorite and why? Thanks, your answers are always appreciated!

What is a good pre-amp for sampling from vinyl to computer for audio production purposes?

I need to be able to do it with no noise and 24/32 bit sampling if possible. Right now I have a PCI soundcard (ECHO MIA MIDI) and a cheap Xenyx 802 Behringer mixer. I have a $200-$250 dollar budget for the pre-amp alone but if I can get a great one for a $50-$100 bucks I will still take the consideration. I am just not sure how expensive I need to go.

Is the output from the turntable to pre-amp going to be rca? Can I do it with 1/4 inch plugs? I do not have the turntable yet but it will be a used TECHNICS 1200. I have produced for a while but never used samples this way but I have been meaning to break out my dads records and try it out. Thanks!

New records skipping on turntable?

I have a rather cheap turntable that I got for a 100 bucks, and I don’t have any problems with it with the exception of a few records of mine, which seem to skip constantly, and I can’t figure out how to stop this.

I know they aren’t scratched, because the ones that do were skipping when I’d first bought them brand new. I do notice that the ones that are skipping seem to be a bit heavier than my other vinyls (I don’t know much about the whole weight/thickness differences or anything), but does anyone know what could be causing this or how to fix it?

Again, most of my records have no problems, but my newer ones (and the ones that tend to be larger in weight) are skipping like there’s no tomorrow. Should I get a new turntable? I’ve heard the whole penny-on-the-arm thing is bad for your records, so I don’t really wanna do that.
Yes, they do still make records. I just picked up The White Stripes and The Beatles on vinyl at Fred Meyer, some stores do still sell them. Anyway, my new Beatles record plays fine, while my White Stripes record won’t stop skipping (however, the Beatles record is much thinner/lighter than The White Stripes record). Is there any correlation between the record’s weight and it’s susception to skipping?

Where can I buy all of Green Day’s LP’s?

-I was looking for vinyls
-Doesn’t have to be new
-I mainly want the covers of the records
-Cheap

Which cheap microphone should I use for vocals and ukulele?

I am just learning a bit about how to play the uke and how to work audio specific programs. I have been using Vegas for a while and I am quite familiar with multi-track recording, but all this microphone, home studio stuff is pretty new to me.

I’ll be doing vocals recording later after building a mini-sound booth for myself out of a hoola hoop (or two) and some foam (likely with a vinyl outer shell.

However, the microphone selection around here is awful.

There are some cheap ‘line in’ microphones and a handful of Philips karaoke mic’s and knockoffs, but between the poor selection and much of the details being written in Chinese, it’s tough to make a choice.

Many have recommended a Logitech USB mic, but I have been to 17 stores and not found a single USB mic by anyone. All plug into a line in jack with a 3.5mm end.

What characteristics should I be looking for?
What brands could you recommend?

I am not looking for ultra-high quality, just average or slightly better.
I gave this a try already by purchasing a small and cheap clip-on mic that is very small. I put it in the sound hole and clipped to the side of the hole with the wire out of the way. The mic does not bang against the sides, but I find the quality poor. Additionally the mic doesn’t have much dynamic range, so from soft picking to hard strumming, I bang against the ceiling quite easily. I am currently learning its limits and trying to play within them.

Ideally, I’d like to move the mic outside of the instrument since it will likely sound better there, but I couldn’t think of a better way to really cut out ambient noise (quite a bit of that here 24/7) and have the mic listen carefully to the instrument.

For now, I am not actually singing, just working on getting good quality recording straight from the instrument. I will overlay vocals later.

I am using audacity and have Kristal recorder as well. I don’t much care for either, but Audacity is enough for now.
Well, that’s a great answer for a mid-priced or expensive microphone. Yeah, I have known for a long time that Shure are good mic’s.

Around here, they cost around 5 times more than what I was hoping to pay though… I have such a hard time believing that it would be necessary. I’m looking for something to record myself in a mini-studio.

True, I may end up getting a Shure, but I am currently looking for OTHER options, you know, CHEAP options.

There is a significant premium with Shure for the casing and the name. Neither of which I would like to pay. I’d rather put that money into another instrument. This is just something for practicing and maybe sharing some stuff with my family overseas.
I’m not looking to get into the industry. Oh and btw, where I live, people buy things new. There is virtually no second hand market for anything. I live in Taiwan. With a population of 23 million in an area the size of vancouver island, the second hand market here isn’t even close to that of Victoria with a population of 350,000.

How can I transfer vinyl record music to CD?

I bought a Philco turntable to play my records on, but I would like to copy them to CD, to play in my car. Can anyone tell me the cheapest way to do this. Also I would like to crash my hard drive on my Toshiba laptop. Does any one know how to get step by step directions to do this. I have photo, and documents I want to save . I am not not very god at computers, but am easy to directions.
Tink

Does vinyl sound better than CD?

I bought a record player last week just for the nostalgia effect, and it was cheap. I grew up in the CD age, so the only thing I can play is my parents’ old LPs, like Aerosmith, Fleetwood Mac, Creedence Clearwater Revival, and all that.

Anyways, in listening to them, I feel like vinyl sounds better than CDs. I told my friends this, and they are like “That’s impossible, CDs are digital”…but I can swear I hear a difference, and the vinyl sounds better. Does anyone know which of the two are a better medium?

And I’m kinda sneaking in a double question here, but how long does an average stylus last?

Where/What would play my 60s, 70s, and 80s albums?

I have a some vinyl records and I was wondering what system I should get to play it. I was told to go to the exchange and I can get a nice one for cheap. I don’t really want to order one online so could I have a link to the store or whatever? I only have like 50 albums. I was going to get a 60 dollar one at Walmart and I was told that the sound might not be too good. I might just go with it and if it doesn’t work just take it back and complain if I need to. I just wanted some of your wonderful ideas!