All Things Vinyl - Records That Is.

[becca]

I've had my ex-DJ bros vintage Technics and Toshiba turntables to play with for years but sadly his mixer was busted long ago which I used to make some sweet mixtapes with 'back in the day (when casettes ruled the world). I've managed to keep one of the direct drive turntables working (Toshiba SR255), and I also have a lower budget RCA belt driven turntable with built in pre-amp which still seems to work after dragging it by boat from Alaska several years ago. What I do with vinyl I want to listen to a lot is to transfer it direct to a CD-R with either a Lite-On DVD/audio recorder through RCA jacks, or the pro Tascam CDRW-5000 burner. Then I edit on PC in wav format with Nero if I need to remove a click or it's just a crap piece of vinyl to start with and I'm desperate. I do as little messing with as I can past cleaning the record under scrutiny.

I have some old DJ cleaner fluid with a fuzzy black padded thing on wood for cleaning, no idea where the original packaging went. Except for crap vinyl I use a mild soap and water solution just to see what it sounds like. I don't go through all this as much as I used to but I still do projects for friends.

I have hundreds of LPs and 45s, my BF has even more. I do tend toward playing the CD-R copies (with nice inserts showing the LP or 7" graphics such as they may be), but do enjoy having vinyl sessions, especially of modern Sundazed and Norton type reissues and various small label new releases like State/13 O'Clock, Acid Jazz, Market Square, Dionysus etc.



I have most Fleetwood Mac on vinyl by the way, some I've had since the 1970s. I don't have some of the Welch era or past Mirage on vinyl though. I have various solo/related things like Mick's The Visitor and agree the large liners and art are great for something important to you. I'd have to keep the 1975 LP for the great lyrics and penguin cartoons insert, and the same for the Rumours photos foldout! The quality of the Then Play On artwork and inside photo hasn't been quite all there in the two CD versions I've gotten of it so have to keep that around.