Turntable Reviews

Ahh yes, vinyl. I may be old and senile, but I still remember when they were the best we had (that is, unless you were a high roller and could afford pre recorded reel to reel tapes). My tired old brain also remembers the horrid product sold to us. Records sold new to us full of clicks and pops, even after cleaning. ( I finally broke down and bought my first CD player after paying extra for what I thought was a quality classical label record of a Mozart piece. Despite my Thorens turntable and a high end cartridge connected to McIntosh amps, and in turn were connected to Infinity IRS Beta speakers, it sounded awful. I tried to return it but the record store manager finally said that all of that release came back and to just take the cash instead of another.) I also remember skips and jumps, and unplayable records. Kiddos, ever leave a record in the car on a warm summer day? We did that too, more than once I might add. Digital files are unlike anything on vinyl, they totally rock. No hiss, no groove noise, no clicks, pops, jumps. No cleaning. Full dynamic range. Nothing but clean pure sound. Is something missing in a digital signal? Of course, but can your ears hear the difference? My old ears are not like your young ones, but I think I can still hear the improvement that 40 years of innovation has given us. Do I still spin records? Sure, once in a while for nostalgia. What I remember at those times is being young, and how different the world was then, but that warm mushy feeling does not make records superior in anyway to modern digital signals. It is just a fad, just like too many tattoos, or getting your nose pierced with a big ol bone so you look like a jungle head hunter. This soon will pass, like this grumpy old man will.