Records are better. I actually heard it


Just went to a friend's house whose dad has a (somewhat low end) audiophile system. He had on a couple CD's in the background, but once we started talking audio stuff, he plopped on a record.

And I actually heard with my own ears how much better records sound than CD's! Granted, maybe his CD player was crappy, but really so was his record player. He bought the table at the swap meet for like $50 (supposedly great for bargain tables and records as well), and added a $200 MC cartridge.

But the music, oh the music. I had always just assumed it was going to take a ridiculously expensive system for me to be able to hear the difference. But no. The music was alive. Like it was right there, that's the only way to describe it. And it flowed. The highs seemed effortless and non-fatiguing. The record even had some scratches or whatever in it so that it crackled and popped a bit, but even with this I still preferred it.

I need to find a way to make room, but I don't think I'm going to be able to hold off on getting a turntable for very long. Is there anyone who thinks it would be a big mistake to follow in my friend's dad's footsteps and buy an old table at the swap meet for $50 and add a nice $200 MC cartridge to it? He's picking up records at the swap meet for $1-$2 apiece. That's an entry cost of like $300 for sound that appears to kill CD sound.
matt8268

Showing 1 response by xiekitchen

I'd start at a minimum with a Rega P-3 and cheap MC benz or Rega MM cart.. you can always upgrade this in various ways.. if you buy a cheap turntable now, in a year or two you'll be asking yourself why you didn't start off with something better. But if you buy used and cheap, buy an old Dual and put a new Grado on it. Plug that into an old Marantz 2000 series receiver from the 70's, a pair of old Epicure or original Advents and you're ready to roll.