Turntable, Vinyl help................please

As Winegasman said, welcome back! The vinyl revival lives and grows. You won't regret it, though your bank balance might!

Scratches, unless they're truly Grand Canyon like, will wear your stylus only slowly. Not a big concern. Of course it would be better to find a clean copy of that record. Depending on what you listen to there's often tons of used vinyl out there.

I strongly agree with Lugnut and Sbank. A good record cleaning regimen is essential, and that means some kind of vacuum cleaning. This can cost anywhere from $50 for a DIY to $2K or more for a truly topnotch unit. You don't need to spring for one of the top machines, but you absolutely must spring for something. This is not optional.

Surface noise and deteriorating records are the reason many people (including me) dropped out of vinyl when CD's became available. Progress in the last 20 years has been phenomenal though, particularly in cartridges and cleaning machines. The cleaning machine is more important. Without one you damage your records with every play. The best rig and cartridge in the world won't make a damaged LP sound good.

Speed stability in a turntable is vital. Without it music has no life, no punch and instruments just don't sound real. This is why Psychicanimal pushes direct drive and/or idler wheel drive. At entry level price points those technologies do speed stability better than most belt drive tables. Some entry level belt drives are excellent of course, perhaps most notably the Nottingham Horizon. If you can stretch your budget to $1200-1500 for table and arm, a Horizon or Horizon SE with Rega RB-250 arm would be a huge improvement over an MMF-5.

Regards,
Doug

Winegasman,

Sorry if I inadvertently pushed some button, but while poverty is important raising it on this thread was irrelevant. Ev314 did not ask, "Should I buy a $600 turntable or donate the money to UNICEF."

Whether you like it or not, most rigs that retail new for $1K or less in 2005 dollars are entry level in audiophile terms. I also own one and that's just reality. It's not a bad rig but compared to my main rig it's - well - entry level!

We're on Audiogon, not the Walmart forum. Entry level here does not mean junk. Entry means the door is open. I suppose some few might still take that as a reason to despair, and to avoid getting back into vinyl altogether because they can't go out and buy a Walker Proscenium. But you, Ev314, I and most other vinyl-philes can and do take it as a challenge to get the most one can with the resources available. You had the good sense and inclination to maximise your dollars by choosing used equipment and refurbishing as necessary. Give other budding vinyl-philes credit for the same initiative you displayed. They won't disappoint you.