“inherited” some of my old man’s vinyl collection, and would like to get a turntable so I can listen to some of his collection…..problem is being a yoof I know nothing about vinyl (part from I used to get shouted at for scratching records trying to load them as a kid 😉

I have seperates, can I just buy a turntable & plug it in like I would a CD player? I’ve seen pre-amps etc for turntables and its left me a bit confused. ALso seen the MP3 ones that plug into your computer, but dont think I’ll ever use that feature, so not really fussed.

Anything else I should look at?

Thanks

linn lp12.
sit down before you check the price though.
seriously, go to a hifi shop, they’ll let you listen to it before you buy.

Your amp may have a phono input, if not you will need a pre amp.

Plenty sh turntables available on eBay i’d have thought, projekt (sp) stuff is good value.

Or you could spend £20K on a Zarathustra Soliliquey (sp)

Lp12s are the stuff of the Sunday Supplemen reader. Proper hi fi nuts know better.

I’d recommend researching old Thorens turntables.

I’ve an Acoustic Research EB101 on offer?

second hand but make sure it has as good quality arm as possible and linn are suoerb IMHO
Aim to pay circa £200 ish possibly more you will get your money back if you sell

Most hi-fi equipment outputs at a similar “line level” so CD players, radios, cassettes etc can all be plugged into one of the line level inputs on your amp. Record players output the signal at a much lower level so need a bit of a helping hand getting it to “line level”. This is what a phono stage is. If an amp has a phono stage it will look like all the other inputs, but it is not the same internally. If your amp does not have a phono stage there are good separate units that can plug into your amp, some of which are not very big either.

As for the deck itself, you are wandering into nerdy geeky territory where everyone will have an opinion…and everyone else will be wrong 😉

The Project decks are good value and I think Richer Sounds may still sell them if you don’t want to buy S/H but don’t want to venture into Linn price brackets. But your ears will know best, so try a few auditions. Most good shops should let you take your kit in.

You could do a lot worse than a Cambridge Audio 640P if you need an inexpensive but decent phono pre-amp

http://www.rega.co.uk/html/p1.htm
Rega P1

Michell Engineering and you’ll maybe need a phono stage as mentioned above.

You’ll need a phono stage for one so if your amp hasn’t got one then that’s the first point of call. As for the turntable a Rega 3 will be ideal. I know there’s the Linn LP12 and I even own one but most second-hand ones are bodged ones, especially those on ebay and they do need careful setting up to work well. New they are ridiculously expensive so don’t even go there as there are better for the money. The Rega as a fabulous arm in the RB300 and you won’t break the bank buying one.

All the above suggestions are fine IF you want to get into vinyl in a big way. You may find you can’t really be arsed in flipping the record over every 20 minutes!

If on the other hand you just want to give it bash and not spend a lot of money, do what I did.

Pick up a second-hand Project or Rega turntable of ebay and get a budget pre-amp – I got one of these…
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000H2BC4E/ref=oss_product

…and picked up a Project Genie II in very good nick and that pre-amp for under £100.

If you like it then splash a load of cash on it!

LP12s are brilliant, but they dont travel well and need a lot of setting up after being moved about too much.

Get a second hand project and a cheap phono pre amp and see how it goes.

For ANYONE who wants a Linn LP12, call Cymbiosis and have them service it and set it up – after that it will travel very well. There’s too much bull about Linn’s and their inability to travel well but basically once it’s done well by someone like them there’s no problems at all and I’d recommend them to any Linn owner too. It isn’t rocket science to do either and is just like setting the suspension up on your bike, take a bit of care and time and you’ll manage it no problem. I’ve owned 3 Linns and I really like the sound but for your needs and a smallish lp collection a s/h Rega Planar 3 would be perfect and even if you didn’t enjoy the vinyl experience, when you sell it you’ll still get most of your money back.

I had a Rega Planar 3 for about 15 years. It only got a new belt in that time. Bombproof and great sounding too.

Sold it for not much less than I paid as well.

Buy a decent one, enjoy it and then when you sell it on you’ll get most of your money back. Long run its cheaper than a cheap one.

Project. The Essential for ~150 new, or Debut for around ~200, with cartridges. I’ve had a Debut for around 5 years, and it does the job well for me, but I’m no audiophile. Cheaper secondhand, and the Ortofon cartridge is economical.
Regas are a fair step up in price.

I’d recommend researching old Thorens turntables.

If anyone wants to buy a TD 124 MkII, I could do with a grand or so….

For the casual listen, maybe a NAD 533. Secondhand you could get one for £100 (might need to get a new cartridge, mind you).

If anyone wants to buy a TD 124 MkII, I could do with a grand or so….

ha, yeah perhaps a 124 isn’t ideal for a “budget” purchase. Could get a decent 125 for a fraction of that though.

Technics SL1200. Rock steady.
Had Rega, Linn, Thorens and they were fine until I compared them with the SL1200, after which they sounded slow and unstable. To get similar stability from a Linn will cost loads.

There too much rubbish and myth attached to Rega and Linn turntables perpetuated by middle aged men in slippers who don’t get enough sex, avoid getting sucked into it like I did.

The Project stuff is OK, but there is no Quartz lock so the speed stability is variable. Their Phono Pre-amps are OK though.

Technics 1210 & a decent pre amp, if your amplifier hasn’t got a phono amp built in.