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Greetings, wanting to learn more about records


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Hello,

I've decided I'd like to own a copy of one of my favorite records instead of listening to it digitally. I found a seller and have chosen an entry level record player with built in speakers. I have some questions though about general record use and how to make sure my record lasts a very long time.

First, is this a good record cleaning kit for just cleaning before and after playing? Do I have to apply the cleaning solution every time before playing and after or will just when its kinda dirty suffice? Can I clean the microfiber cloth by hand with just plain water?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00B29N1NG/ref=ox_sc_act_image_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ANJM0X7R8Q95P

Second, how do I know when to replace my needle? I understand I may hear more frequent cracks and pops and lower quality sound if the needle is worn.

Lastly, will one of the inexpensive Jensen players suffice for casual listening to at most three or four records? Probably only 5 times a week maybe. Not looking to spend over $100 total.

Sorry if these are rather stupid questions, I read through the FAQ and got a good bit but still had some more specific questions. I'm very new to this and just want to make sure my records lasts a long time.

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Hello,

I've decided I'd like to own a copy of one of my favorite records instead of listening to it digitally. I found a seller and have chosen an entry level record player with built in speakers. I have some questions though about general record use and how to make sure my record lasts a very long time.

First, is this a good record cleaning kit for just cleaning before and after playing? Do I have to apply the cleaning solution every time before playing and after or will just when its kinda dirty suffice? Can I clean the microfiber cloth by hand with just plain water?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00B29N1NG/ref=ox_sc_act_image_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ANJM0X7R8Q95P

Second, how do I know when to replace my needle? I understand I may hear more frequent cracks and pops and lower quality sound if the needle is worn.

Lastly, will one of the inexpensive Jensen players suffice for casual listening to at most three or four records? Probably only 5 times a week maybe. Not looking to spend over $100 total.

Sorry if these are rather stupid questions, I read through the FAQ and got a good bit but still had some more specific questions. I'm very new to this and just want to make sure my records lasts a long time.

You're going to get a lot of sarcastic, incorrect answers, dude.

 

I'll start by saying that you'll never get a recommendation to use an "all in one" player from anyone on these boards.

 

Just wet cleaning stuff with a microfiber cloth and cleaning fluid won't remove any dirt/grime from within the grooves, just scoots it around. A vacuum system is best for cleaning records.

 

You're not going to get anything that will properly play your records for $100 or less unless you get a heck of a deal on some vintage equipment that someone doesn't know what it is worth.

 

Never use just plain tap water to clean your records.

 

Records wear down. If you're listening to your few records multiple times per week on a turntable like you've described they will wear down more quickly.

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Be nice, dammit.

OP you don't have to clean your records every time you play them, just give them a glance and if they seem dusty give them a quick clean with the kit you mentioned. It's a good idea to clean new and used records the first time you play them, especially haze colored records because those tend to be "sandy".

Don't know much about Jensen players, our equipment board offers a lot of info regarding hardware.

Swapping needles depends on the table. Swapping a cartridge isn't very difficult, just loosen the housing and unplug the small cables attached, just do the opposite when putting on a new one. Honestly, if you're gentle with your tone arm this won't be a reoccurring problem. You can stretch the life of a cartridge/needle if you're gentle (no need to be precious, just treat your records/table with moderate care).

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Be nice, dammit.

OP you don't have to clean your records every time you play them, just give them a glance and if they seem dusty give them a quick clean with the kit you mentioned. It's a good idea to clean new and used records the first time you play them, especially haze colored records because those tend to be "sandy".

Don't know much about Jensen players, our equipment board offers a lot of info regarding hardware.

Swapping needles depends on the table. Swapping a cartridge isn't very difficult, just loosen the housing and unplug the small cables attached, just do the opposite when putting on a new one. Honestly, if you're gentle with your tone arm this won't be a reoccurring problem. You can stretch the life of a cartridge/needle if you're gentle (no need to be precious, just treat your records/table with moderate care).

Let it be known I tried to help instead of being snarky! :)
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Yeah let's all be nice....

As stated above an all in one player isn't optimal, but if it's what you got, it's what you got. There a thread here:
http://boards.vinylcollective.com/topic/88504-beginner’s-guide-to-turntables-hi–fi-read-1st-page-before-posting-new-threads-basic-questions/
about some of the turntables guys on the forums like. On the cheaper side are things like the Audio-Technica LP60/120 and the Numark TTUSB. A little above $100 but will definitely make your records last a little longer.

2) You only need to clean records when they're dirty. Clean a new record, especially if they come in a "haze variant" because they are almost sandy. You should probably dust out the sleeve of this kind too. Between listens however, you just need to use the brush to get off any hairs or tiny dust particles.

Hope you get into the liking of vinyl. I started collecting seriously about 8 months ago and have 100 items now. Definitely an enjoyable hobby. 

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Agreed to all of the genuine advice given above.

 

I'd just add, if you have a 100 dollar budget, you might as well not bother.

 

Save it up and sit on the idea for 3 months and save even more money. If you still feel the urge to pursue record collecting, give it a go with a bigger budget.

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No point me talking about cleaning frequency or the downsides of modern all in ones or anything with USB in the name as it's been pretty well covered above apart to say sadly your Jensen is basically a Crosley, there's any number of these things using basically the same parts in different cases and with different badges.

 

But with $100 budget do your research and buy something vintage, for a complete noob proper separates (turntable, amplifier, speakers) will be a bit daunting but some of the 70's all in ones (music centres as they were called) could be quite good and can be picked up quite cheap.

 

Go for weight as its a very good sign of quality with 70's kit in general and for the turntable it needs an S shaped arm, adjustable weight at the end and a removable headshell at the front of the arm, a Hitachi SDT-400 is a good example so if the arm doesn't look that chances are it's no good. Lastly have a good read of the beginners thread in the equipment section. Make sure you listen to it and everything works as it should and unless it's had new fitted then factor in replacing the needle/cartridge and belt later on down the road as you learn more and they get used up.

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Collecting records can be a really sweet hobby.  But like every other hobby, it can become expensive really fast.  Everyone is giving great advice but my own 2cents is that if you want a cheaper player, buy a cheap player.  You might get terrible sound quality and you might damage your 4 or 5 records but if that's what you want, I say go for it.  

 

Crosley's are often in your price range and do all the things you want them to.  Not a popular sentiment around here, but that's because everyone here has already moved on to the expensive serious hobby part.  You'll find the same sort of response if you decided you wanted to go mountain climbing, went onto a forum about mountain climbing, and said that you wanted to spend $100 on climbing gear.  Except we're all probably a bit more pretentious.  That being said, stick around, there are some cool people and collecting is a pretty awesome thing to do.

 

anigif_enhanced-buzz-9815-1389905450-9.g

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Collecting records can be a really sweet hobby. But like every other hobby, it can become expensive really fast. Everyone is giving great advice but my own 2cents is that if you want a cheaper player, buy a cheap player. You might get terrible sound quality and you might damage your 4 or 5 records but if that's what you want, I say go for it.

Crosley's are often in your price range and do all the things you want them to. Not a popular sentiment around here, but that's because everyone here has already moved on to the expensive serious hobby part. You'll find the same sort of response if you decided you wanted to go mountain climbing, went onto a forum about mountain climbing, and said that you wanted to spend $100 on climbing gear. Except we're all probably a bit more pretentious. That being said, stick around, there are some cool people and collecting is a pretty awesome thing to do.

I agree with this 100%. Not everyone's an audiophile that needs a $500+ system.

Particularly if you're just starting out, use whatever you have or can afford to have and enjoy the music. Don't beat the hell out of your vinyl and at some point in the future if the opportunity presents itself and you want to upgrade to something nicer, go for it.

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Guest Secular Haze

First the SCOTUS upholds gay marriage and then Ghost of Randy Savage responds to a "n00b thread" with friendly, helpful, advice. What a day to be alive!

...and Relapse is 10% off.

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I started out with this turntable and used it for about a year (mine didn't have the usb connection though):

http://www.amazon.com/Sony-PSLX300USB-USB-Stereo-Turntable/dp/B0015HOFZI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1435346845&sr=8-1&keywords=sony+turntable

 

not bad for a tight budget. it's fully automatic so you don't have to worry about manually placing or raising your needle (unless you want to select a track), and it's got a built in preamp so you can just plug and play with any speaker set. I connected it to my home theater system and it sounded great. obviously, not an audiophile setup, but for a small space/beginner table I liked it and never felt like it was poor quality or was harming my records.

 

I would go with something like that or a base model Audio Technica (http://www.amazon.com/Technica-AT-LP60-Automatic-Stereo-Turntable/dp/B002GYTPAE/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1435346845&sr=8-2&keywords=sony+turntable#customerReviews) before going with one of the all-in-one type systems.

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I started out with a Jensen (http://www.amazon.com/Jensen-JTA-460-3-Speed-Turntable-Encoding/dp/B004G08OO4/ref=zg_bs_3003611_15) and threw it out within 3 months. It started playing just slightly too fast and once I started collecting more expensive, harder to find records, that was the end of that. Looking back, I don't know what I was thinking buying that. Did I need my turntable to have AM/FM stereo, MP3 encoding and a remote? No. Just no.

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I bet we all started on a budget set-up with no knowledge about what we were doing or what to expect from it. If you wanna start cheap, do it, I did the same. My first set-up was a junk turntable with 10$ pc-speakers. Did I enjoy it? No. Did I figure out that I was looking forward to purchasing something better? Absolutely.

There's fun in upgrading your set-up from utter shit to a little less shit and almost not shit and so on. If you find yourself enjoying collecting and listening to records, step up your game from time to time (It took me five years for my first decent set-up and ten for the first great).

It's a great hobby to pursue, get lost in and go batshit crazy about. It also holds the potential to meet awesome people at record stores (or this beautiful place right here  :wub: ).

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