Zeppelin 3 was the first proper record I ever bought, aged 14 in 1972. Still my favourite Zeppelin album.
Last edited by ktmog6uk; 3rd May 2018 at 09:08.
Zeppelin 3 was the first proper record I ever bought, aged 14 in 1972. Still my favourite Zeppelin album.
My setup, which has been in storage last 2 years, just getting life back together and should be coming out to play very soon
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No idea what that deck is but it looks gorgeous.
Just had Fanx Tara, by Sad Cafe, delivered today.
It was mentioned on Danny Baker's excellent 3 part 'great album showdown' on BBC 4. Well worth checking out on iPlayer.
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Running Eclipse TD712z Mk2 a full range single drive unit, not to everyone’s taste style wise but great detailed sounding speakers. They do a sub which is superb but also ridiculously priced.
The Music First pre amp I no longer have, wish I never had parted with it, excellent piece of kit and will definitely replace at some time in the future. Johnathon from MF is s great and talented guy to deal with
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[QUOTE=LRB255;4743603]Running Eclipse TD712z Mk2 a full range single drive unit, not to everyone’s taste style wise but great detailed sounding speakers. They do a sub which is superb but also ridiculously priced.
The Music First pre amp I no longer have, wish I never had parted with it, excellent piece of kit and will definitely replace at some time in the future. Johnathon from MF is s great and talented guy to deal with
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Better picture
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Nice set up, but cable management!
If I took full picture its even worse :)
I've just got part system back out of storage as was missing it badly however moving house in a couple of weeks so am saving everything for new place, back on rack, speakers suitably spaced with cabling and sockets looking tidy - don't want a visit from HSE and prohibition notice thrown at me :)
Those are interesting speakers and not ones i have come across before. Agree, the MF TVC's are excellent, I have used a Bent TVC for well over a decade that utilises the S&B transformers that MF made under that name before they cut supply off to Bent and started making their own amps under the MF banner.
Still working through the old vinyl collection, usually cranking up the volume when wifey’s out.
Dug out my copy of ChangesonesBowie, a compilation of Bowies early stuff. I’ve always been a big fan of Bowie, got most of the good stuff on CD.
Despite a few spits and crackles this album sounded superb; Young Americans track sounded awesome and it’s yet another example for me of how much better a decent vinyl system sounds when compared to a good CD. There’s an energy about the sound from vinyl that CD doesn’t seem to capture, hard to put into words really. Maybe I’ve just got lucky, the Goldring 1042 cartridge/Thorens TD 160 combo sounds brilliant to my ears.
It makes me wonder why/how we were all sucked into CD in the late 80s. It’s frustrating to think of all the vinyl albums lost in the mid- 90s when I had the domestic re- alignment, at the time I didn’t really care but 20+ years later it’s really pissing me off!
Paul
Last edited by walkerwek1958; 22nd April 2018 at 22:34.
For some reason I bought Soundgarden A sides yesterday when I don't even have a turntable anymore. Then again my wife bought Bowie Welcome to the Blackout so she's just as bad lol
The Vinyl v CD debate is complex, the more I read the more I begin to realise this. Digitally Remastered is almost treated as blasphemy by the vinyl diehards.........I’m trying to keep an open mind and open ears!
Anyhow, all my recent vinyl v CD listening tests have resulted in resounding wins for the vinyl. Tonight I dug out an original copy of the Clash’s ‘ London Calling’ album on vinyl and gave it a spin. This is one of my favourites, I’ve had the Remastered CD for a good few years and always enjoyed it, ‘ Revolution Rock’ is a track I’ve used for listening tests when comparing equipment etc.
Having given the vinyl version a spin I was disappointed, sounded a bit flat and lacking in dynamics. This is a record I had given a few years back so I’ve never played it before.
Switching to the Remastered CD confirmed my impressions, the CD sounded every bit as sharp as I remembered before I swapped my speakers, and it beats the original vinyl by a very significant margin. Arguably, the remastering has changed the sound and moved away from the original, but to my ears it’s made the listening experience much better.
Horses for courses?
Paul
a Lot depends on the original mastering and production, as well as the pressing standards of the time. With many albums it's worth doing a little research on the best available pressings, as an example Led Zep's physical graffitti, i have two pressings with very obvious differences, one even has the dialog at the end of In My Time Of Dying missing. There is a reason people look for words like "porky" and "pecko" in the runout grooves.
ktmog6uk
marchingontogether!
I remember seeing Porky and Pecko Duck in the runout grooves of early 70s records!
I have 2 copies of Zeppelin 1, one was bought in 1973 and is pretty knackered from being played on crap equipment and generally being mis- handled by the 15 yr old youth I used to be. The second was bought around 1991 and it’s in excellent condition because it’s hardly been played. What struck me was the difference in weight, the early one weighs in at 165 g whilst the later one’s 122g. The cardboard sleeve’s thinner too!
I also have the remastered CD version too, that’ll make for an interesting comparison.
I have a first press zep 1, and also the recent remaster deluxe edition, the sound is very very close on the new remaster. i've had a few 70's and 80's pressings that were very flat sounding.
thickness of vinyl is actually a bit of a misnomer, RCA did a series called Dynagroove which got a lot of flak because they were 90g, but they were virgin vinyl at a time when recycled vinyl was the norm and they actually sound really good if in decent condition. a lot were warped by overtight shrinkwrap during shipping and storage though. They are so thin you can use them as a wobbleboard! I remember reading somewhere that for most turntables 140g is actually the preferred thickness relative to arm height but that might be cobblers.
ktmog6uk
marchingontogether!
Agreed, the guys that did the vinyl master had some latitude for tweaking the sound (remember LPs are in fact compressed to the extent that RIAA equalisation is used). I think this is why some CDs of earlier recordings don't sound great, they are just transfers of the master tapes and miss the tweaks done during the production of the vinyl master.
Interestingly Paul albeit I haven't listened to my copy of London Calling for a while I remember quite liking how it sounded on vinyl, but my CD version is not the remastered one so maybe I should get that and see how they compare.
Love the fact that sometimes when at the end of the record I forget that it's not CD due to the clear sound from my system. Of course depends on the vinyl and if any static etc.
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ktmog6uk
marchingontogether!
The story is that post oil crisis - 74/5 onwards - the quality of vinyl plummeted. Ironically, just as the studio production was greatly improving, the materials used were very inferior. By the 80s most vinyl was floppy garbage. This suited the industry anyway, as they wanted to push us on to lower cost alternatives ie tape, CD.
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another variable is how early in the press run your lp came off the stampers. If it's early on you are fine but often the plates were changed after say 500000 pressings and if you get number 49999 etc that also affects things. again though it's easy to get involved in listening to the records rather than the music.
ktmog6uk
marchingontogether!
If London Calling is one of your seminal albums Paul, this is the version you need:
https://www.discogs.com/The-Clash-Lo...release/470912
Distinguisable by "CLASH-3" on the spine, white CBS labels and"timtom" insignia in the deadwax. Much of the time the differences between the two mediums are down to the mastering, as you will observe if you decide to buy a copy of this pressing. It is stunning.
I would definitely recommend the remastered CD based on my experience, the difference to my ears is big, not what I expected on recent experience but that's what my ears are telling me.
Years ago I bought Zeppelin 2 on CD and I was always disappointed with the sound quality, it almost sounds distorted in places. When all the Zeppelin stuff was remastered and re-released I bought the remastered version and the difference was huge.
Another recording that benefitted from remastering is Deep Purple In Rock. I bought it on vinyl way back in the 70s and even by the standards of the day it sounded like a poor recording. My remastered CD sounds far better, although it's not something I listen to much thesedays.
I`m still working through the vinyl collection as and when I get chance for a proper listen.
Paul
Looks like Garrard name has been bought by SME new 301/401's?
SME brings Garrard audio brand back to the UK
https://search.app.goo.gl/asNdG
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Are these going to be in the "price of small car" field like Linn. I love the 1950's styling but a lot of cash for playing records for a few hours a week.
Would like to upgrade and am going between Project and Rega or doubling up for a new Technics which by all reports is being hand built in Japan.
I had a Garrard direct drive deck in the early 80s, it lasted a few years then started giving problems with motor speed stability. Eventually it died completely, that put me of direct drive decks for life! That’s when I bought my Thorens deck in ‘88, I’d just bought a detached property and my first priority was to buy some new hi-fi stuff..........I was happy to make do with the carpets and curtains etc that the orevious owner left!
Definitely got my priorities right.
Much as I’m enjoying the vinyl again there’s a limit to what I’m prepared to spend on a turntable etc, but I can understand why people spend far more. Even if a nice system doesn’t get much use it’s nice to know it’s there. This principle applies with classic cars and watches too, even if the xherished item gets little use there’s pleasure in knowing you own it. Some folks think this way ( I’m one of them!) and others don’t.
Paul
I had a DD75 I bought cheap from Comet, was't hard to see why they were cheap after a while! Of course the 301s/401s weren't direct drive, they were idle driver and it will be interesting to see if any new offerings go down that path - some say idler driver is superior to belt perhaps due to not suffering W&F due to flex in the belt. We shall see. I still have a GL75 Lenco in the loft that I plan to do something with one day, they are supposed to give great results when re-plinthed and married to a modern tonearm.
I have a flexidisc, as I think they were called, of Hunky Dory.
The thickness of vinyl is no indicator of its potential for sounding good. 180gm vinyl is just modern marketing gone mad and another example of where marketing trumps science in audio. I blame Classic Records, a now defunct US label for starting the whole 180gm hype back in the early 2000's. It went on to become an adopted standard for the marketeers. The thicker the LP the more chance it will be warped and thess less likely you are to be able to flatten it.
Your Ziggy probably sounds great because it is mastered well and pressed back when vinyl was king on 140 or maybe even 120gm vinyl. Great album!
That Ziggy is probably a Dynaflex RCA pressing, which whilst very thin (might even be 90g) they did use high quality virgin vinyl so often these sound excellent if not warped. The main problem I with these is warp caused by over tight shrink wrap on leaving the factory. Many plants in the 70’s used recycled vinyl especially during the oil crisis, thickness is no indicator of good sound.
ktmog6uk
marchingontogether!
Decent article:
https://supply.cratesishigh.com/blog...rth-the-weight
Fair enough, I could demonstrate it to you but no point trying to convince you in words on a forum. If I count the number of 180gm records I own that arent flat it would be a high percentage. Wow and flutter produces a lot of distortion so if the LP is not flat then any perceived gain from the weight is lost. Buyers are convinced they need 180gm so there is no going back now :(
The 80's MFSL LP's are not considered reference quality for the most part, many have what is often referred to as smily face EQ. Collectors desire first pressings of bands from their country of origin, often because they have the best sound and are closest to the master tapes. None of these are 180gm or anywhere near it.
Cheers
Mfsl will have been pressed on virgin vinyl, probably half speed mastered and produced with care, that’s the difference. With modern 180 they are often produced from digital sources and the care and attention or lack of is missing at the pressing plants, so unless you do your research it’s a real lottery. There are also a hell of a lot of dubious repressings of so called classic lp’s out there especially on eBay.
ktmog6uk
marchingontogether!
I would have at least 100, some sound fantastic while others are a bit meh, they are not a guarantee of anything unfortunately. The revived MFSL has a much better success rate than the original 80's company.
The fact they were used for demo is to be expected, they are targeted at audiophiles so a bit of expectation bias is always welcome in an audition :)
Psychology no doubt plays a part in the MFSL experience, but my 2 editions certainly didn't put me off the idea they were worth it. Had I bought any of their lesser releases, I'd no doubt have a different view.
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I am 14 again !!!20180506_122155.jpg
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Clearing out at the weekend and I have three vinyl cleaning accessories going cheap/free!
Hardly used... maybe two or three times before deciding a move back to vinyl after 20+ years wasn't for me:
1. VP dust buster stylus cleaner sticky stuff.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Unknown-Dus...=vp+dustbuster
2. Next a carbon fibre disc brush
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Acc-Sees-An...40EQQ1YFD3X9FK
3. LAST stylus brush.
tbh not sure where this came from but it's still in the cellophane it came in!
All items free with UK post to the first reply. A donation to FR would be good but that's up to you.