Hi Lost:
I can't speak from personal experience so no brand/model recommendations but I have done a little research on 78 playback. There are four areas of concern.
Cleaning - because of the shellac, do not use any cleaning fluid with alcohol. Stay with pure water or solutions formulated for 78 cleaning.
Speed - prior to about 1940, what were called 78s were recorded at speeds from high 60-something RPM to about 80. If you will be playing only post WW2 78s, a standard 78 turntable should be fine. If you find older records you will need a variable speed table.
Stylus - you will need not only a mono cartridge (no vertical pickup so it will reduce noise) but you will want at least a 3 mil tip. Serious listeners will have a selection of tip sizes to better match individual records.
EQ - the now standard RIAA was not adopted until about 1955 (and not implemented by some LP labels until a few years later) so no 78s will sound their best with a modern phono stage. Some vintage preamps included a few selectable EQ settings but those were mainly for LPs. 78 records had an even wider range of EQ so for best results selectable turnover and rolloff will be needed.
Here is the single best reference I've found -
http://geocities.com/[email protected]/mixphono.htm
Have fun.
I can't speak from personal experience so no brand/model recommendations but I have done a little research on 78 playback. There are four areas of concern.
Cleaning - because of the shellac, do not use any cleaning fluid with alcohol. Stay with pure water or solutions formulated for 78 cleaning.
Speed - prior to about 1940, what were called 78s were recorded at speeds from high 60-something RPM to about 80. If you will be playing only post WW2 78s, a standard 78 turntable should be fine. If you find older records you will need a variable speed table.
Stylus - you will need not only a mono cartridge (no vertical pickup so it will reduce noise) but you will want at least a 3 mil tip. Serious listeners will have a selection of tip sizes to better match individual records.
EQ - the now standard RIAA was not adopted until about 1955 (and not implemented by some LP labels until a few years later) so no 78s will sound their best with a modern phono stage. Some vintage preamps included a few selectable EQ settings but those were mainly for LPs. 78 records had an even wider range of EQ so for best results selectable turnover and rolloff will be needed.
Here is the single best reference I've found -
http://geocities.com/[email protected]/mixphono.htm
Have fun.