Comments on Profile Post by Cspirou

I'm taking this and running with it. My wallet thanks you.

Same reason my grandpa's collection remains untouched as yet, and I've not yet invested in an ADC. Sigh, someday, when I'm not so lazy that I stay on with digital :P

How cheap?

I got a free Pioneer PL-S30 from a local friend and a free phono from @Biodegraded. Also got a record for $1 to help me setting things up. However my friend didn't do a good job securing the tonearm during transport and I feel like the cartridge got damaged. Everything sounds super scratchy and distorted.

So I'm not sure if it's because of the cartridge or if I need to clean records better or a countless number of other things. Luckily @Biodegraded included another cartridge and stylus so I plan on switching that out.

All of this is a bit ahead of schedule as I wasn't planning on doing vinyl stuff yet, but the draw of free is hard to resist. I still have speakers i haven't setup yet, which I would rather do first.

Yeah hard to say until it's set up correctly. Fwiw, my experience with vinyl had me spending a fair chunk before it didn't sound shit compared to my digital system. Having said that, I kind of regret sinking so much into it as, don't tell anyone, but digital + EQ sounds far better imho.

Even as bad as it sounds, I still notice some hints of what this can be. The dynamic range is far better then any digital file. I'll set the volume during a quite passage and then notice it blasting super loud later. I almost never adjust the volume for my digital stuff. There was also a magic point during playback of undistorted audio that sounded really good, and then it entered back into chaos.

Presuming the needle isn't damaged or the cantilever bent (magnifying glass), the cart might have been knocked out of alignment. Whether you use the existing one or fit the OM, find a protractor and enjoy the 'fun'!