I am moving to San Francisco and thinking about getting a turntable. I would be looking for cheap, say generally under $3, mainly classical records. So what is the scene like?
Would it be possible to amass a decent collection?
Goodwill is the only place I can think of. Don't rule out Ameoba (sp?) in Berkeley. ($4 bridge toll) But the best used vynil and CD collection I've seen in the area.
Of course Amoeba is also on (upper) Haight St. with possibly the widest selection of used and new vinyl in the Bay Area. There's also Rasputin, down near Union Square which is also good.
Classical lps are relatively cheap at Amoeba, except for the usual audiophile favorites (RCA shaded dogs, Mercury Living Stereos, DG tulips). The Berkeley store has a larger selection of classical, including a lot of dollar albums. Also check out Saturn Records on College Ave in Berkeley. They are more expensive but I've found some hard-to-find classical lps there.
I just bought 25lbs of vinyl at Ameoba for $98 including three new lps. Only one has excess surface noise and I got two pops in four hours of listening - I've bought new audiophile lps that perform worse than that. You can inspect the cheaper lps at the racks. Ameoba will open the more expensive lps ($10+) at the cashier. This was my first time at Ameoba and I'm very pleased.
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