A turntable is an extremely popular tool for playing music among real audiophiles. Vinyl is valued, first of all, for the ability to transmit the feeling of live sound and high quality playback of tracks.
What is a turntable ? How to choose a good retro stereo? Let's try to sort out these issues together.
Characteristics
High-quality modern turntables must comply with the following parameters:
- Weight is about 10 kg and more, which confirms the production using reliable metal components.
- The presence of an adjustable tonearm and a massive cast rotary disk.
- Well thought out drive.
- Built-in corrector and sound amplifier.
Base
The basic element of any vinyl player is the table on which the functional components of the stereo system are placed. The key to obtaining high-quality sound is the presence of a reliable base, which can ensure the stillness of the player during operation.
Disk
A rotating disc is the base where the vinyl record is placed. Usually, an elastic mat is contained between it and the audio data carrier, which provides adhesion of both elements.
It is recommended to purchase a turntable for vinyl records, which has a rather massive and heavyweight rotating disc, since the level of vibration during operation of the system directly depends on these characteristics.
Manual or automatic player?
"Turntables", which are driven by manual lowering-raising the tonearm, are revered by true connoisseurs of quality sound. Such designs contain a minimum number of parts, the mobility of which can cause additional vibration when playing records. Such models include, mainly, Soviet turntables and retro models of Western production.
In turn, automation allows you to start the process of playing an audio recording with a single click of a button. This option is suitable for music lovers who are only involved in the tradition of listening to music on vinyl.
Pickup needle
When choosing a turntable for vinyl records, priority should be given to the installed
pickup needle, because the overall quality of playback depends on its nature.
The cheapest are spherical needles. They are used in the production of budget models of players. The main disadvantage of such means of playing music from vinyl is the insufficiently accurate passage of the grooves. Repeatedly playing the plates using a spherical needle leads to the appearance of small scratches on the surface of the plate and, as a result, its damage.
Elliptical means for reproducing are devoid of the above drawback. In addition, their use can improve the sound quality of audio recordings. However, buying a player for vinyl records with an elliptical needle will have to spend a lot of money, since the price of such systems is much higher.
General recommendations
What questions should a seller ask when choosing a turntable? How to choose high-quality new or used equipment?
At any point in the sale of audio equipment, you can stumble upon a frank "trash", whether it is a new player or a used system. On the other hand, the ability to attach importance to important points will not only save money, but also find a truly high-quality, reliable tool for reproducing sound from vinyl.
So, when buying a player, you should ask the following questions:
- Does the system work for playing vinyl records.
- How long has the device been in use?
- Is the seller the original owner.
- Whether the system was used by a DJ (it is not recommended to consider such options, since in this case there is a high probability of severe wear of the components of the device).
- In what condition is the needle, pickup head, engine, drive belt.
Getting confident answers to these questions significantly increases the chances of getting a truly decent vinyl record player. If the seller frankly avoids communication, it is worth thinking about considering other available options. Finally, choosing a used system, especially on the Internet, it is worthwhile to be puzzled in advance with the question of the possible return of low-quality goods.