My "good" CD player (Proceed) died 10 years ago. Haven't replaced it yet because LP's keep me so musically involved. Fed up with the constant changes in Digital along with the rising cost of really good players, I decided to concentrate on just improving my LP playback while I ride out the digital storm. Now, once again, all digital as we know it will be outdated as we move on to streaming, flash storage, etc, and a bunch of other schemes I probably don't even know about, let alone understand. I now no longer have a budget for pricey HiFi, so digital will have to wait. I tried out a Music Hall CD 25-2... yuk. Bought and modified a Sony playstation 1 and that is all I need to satisfy me for the CD's I care about. For now, I've settled in with a Well Tempered Super table/Grado Master 1 and George Wright phono pre. going direct into vintage Fisher EL84 mono amps. Sweet, rich, colorful-but not too colored, transparent, clear, liquid, and... fun! Not your typical High End system, but very capable for the cost involved. In another room I use the same AR table I bought in High School back in the early seventies along with a Cary SLP 90 pre. and another pair of the same Fishers. This humble set up also delivers the musical goods. It's different, and obviously not quite as good, but every bit as involving and enjoyable. I'm so used to the extra effort required to live with vinyl that I don't even notice the difference. I grew up when that was all we had, so it just seems normal. I'll admit though. that setting up a new cartridge is getting less enjoyable than it used to be.
Who listens only to vinyl?
WHY, and what turntable set-up are you choosing to live with?
(This is NOT a vinyl versus digital thread, it's a lifestyle thread!)
Recently, I'm heading in this direction, mostly I think because I have never invested enough attention and money to bring up digital listening into the pleasure zone. I also like messing around with record cleaning and arms and cartridges, and worrying whether my TT belt needs replacing. And the sound of course!
If you are one of these vinyl-only people, how did you get there, and how do you feel about living with restricted access to a lot of newer recordings, both classical and other genres? Is it an issue for you?
[Pro-ject 2 Xperience with Shure v15 type IV-JICO SAS stylus]