Best set up for 78's ?

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.

The comment to get a 78 variable speed table, cartridge is right on. All else will be disappointing. To do justice to the playback, you need something like the new VAS pre-amp which is a knock off of an old HK Citation I. It as all the 'curves'. The mono LP at least needs its own cartridge and that may mean a dedicated TT also. I have some LP's that I have the mono and stereo versions and the mono played with a stereo cartridge does not sound good. Hope you have space for all of these TT's

I could use a recommendation also for a specific inexpensive rig I could add to my system to play back some old 78s that have been in my family for years?

I already have the CD recorder I need to get them to CD from there, just need something to hook to my system and play'em.

Anyone tried this digital solution where you play the 78s at 45 rpm and let the software program do the cleanup and conversion?

http://www.dak.com/reviews/2020story78.cfm?Ref=G&PM=78Con&type=GSrch&Srh=78_rpm_turnable&gclid=CMWC7O7Oo5sCFcZM5QodeWuBCw

A pretty inexpensive, but s/b very good platform to start with would be the Audio Technica PL-120. It's a 24-lb. direct drive turntable. Not only does it have 78rpm built-in, it has the Technics-inspired dual-range pitch adjuster, giving you +/- 16% speed variation. That translates to a range of 65.5 to 90.5 rpm. You can get the PL-120 for around $200, give or take $20 and market conditions.

The next step up would be to get a KAB-modified SL1210 M5G with 78rpm speed control and fluid damper.

Both of these machines have removable headshells, so it should be very easy to install a good 78 rpm cartridge/stylus, a Grado perhaps? Then there's the Gram Slee Jazz phono pre that has addresses the non-uniformity in equalization.

Being able to dial in both the precise speed and the proper EQ curve on a mechanically accurate and solid platform should go a long way toward extracting the best sound from each 78.