Tuning into an Analog state of mind

[hydra]

I'm thinking of testing the vinyl waters and I'll most likely be getting a Rega RP1 within a month.

I decided to start a new thread (rather than post in an existing thread) as I think I will need quite a bit of hand holding along the way. I have absolutely no idea how to go about doing anything yet, and I'm just reading a lot and getting the hang of things. I will be asking a LOT of questions and I hope you folks will be able to put with silly questions also (I tend to be a bit of a stickler for getting things right to the smallest detail). I promise to be a good learner

Don't ask me why I decided to start a vinyl setup. I'm not really completely sure myself. I had started saving some money for a speaker and amp upgrade, but frankly, the more setups I've been listening to nowadays, the more happy I am with my current setup. I don't want to upgrade just for the sake of upgrading. So I thought I'd do a sideways upgrade and experience a new way of listening to music. I basically want to learn about and experience the analog side of things by doing, rather than just reading.

I don't own a single record, and I plan to start off by buying a few new ones once I have the TT setup at my place.

I'll start off with the first thing I'll need advice on:

I'll be using the TT with the rest of my current kit. My amp (NAD c326BEE) does not have a phono input, so I'll need to get a phono preamp. I'm considering the following ones:

1) Pro-ject PhonoBox MM

2) Pro-Ject Phonobox S

3) Musical Fidelity V-LPS II (I'll also consider the first and older version which is probably cheaper, if I can find one).

I don't have plans of digitizing any of the LPs I'll be buying, so I don't really need the USB facility. I don't at all know if I'll be upgrading the TT later, but I'd like to think that I might take things up just a notch later, so I'd like to get a Phono stage that can scale up by just a bit if I do upgrade.

I plan to buy the Phono preamps online, from the UK. Most probably from Amazon.co.uk. I'd love to know of any alternative sources (within India also). My budget for the preamp is limited (about INR 5K to INR 8K, not including shipping and customs) but expandable by a bit depending on utility and sound quality.

I'm tending towards the Pro-ject Phonobox S, as it has "Precise RIAA equalisation" which the V-LPS II also has, and lots of feel-good things have been written about it on the product page . Does the "Precise" RIAA Equalisation really matter in real world conditions?

Should I consider any other Phono Preamps? Will the first option be quite adequate for my needs? (I'd be happy if this were the case, heh, heh).

If you got this far, thanks for looking in

 

[hydra]

I'm now considering the Graham Slee Gram Amp 2 Communicator also.

Is this overkill for a Rega RP1 (and maybe one more level of upgrades)?

I'm now tiring to decide between the Musical Fidelity V-LPS II and the Graham Slee Gram Amp 2 Communicator.

Please help me out here, folks! :sad:

 

[stevieboy]

Hydra,

Between the vlps and the Graham slee I'd go for the Graham. If you've decided on the rega then do some reading to figure out the carts that you can upgrade to. Most should go with the Graham since you won't be buying a low output cart with the rega. Though if I were you I'd start off with one of the many good second hand TTs available locally. You would have to struggle with the non vta adjustable rega arm.

Regards


Torque ain't cheap but it sure knocks yer socks off

 

[hydra]

Thank you, stevieboy! I'm getting a pretty sweet deal on the RP1, and that's why I'm thinking of getting this particular TT. I'm also checking out how much extra the RP1 performance pack (Rega Bias 2 MM Cart, better belt, 100% natural wool mat and O ring for counterweight adjt.) is going to be.

About the non-vta adjustable arm, is that a problem because it limits my future cartridge upgrade options?

 

[iaudio]

Hydra, nice to know that we ll soon have a good tt setup to listen to nearby!

 

[stevieboy]

Hi Hydra,

If you're getting a good deal then definitely makes sense. The arm is fixed height but you can get around it by putting in an arm height adjuster later on. The are freely available on ebay. Basically the height of rega carts matches the height of the tonearm so you just put the cart in and it is parallel to record. Any other brand cart might make the tonearm go higher or lower at the cart end and the tonearm won't be parallel to record then.

Enjoy your vinyl journey!

Regards


Torque ain't cheap but it sure knocks yer socks off

 

[Sean de Silva]

I'm thinking of testing the vinyl waters and I'll most likely be getting a Rega RP1 within a month.

I decided to start a new thread (rather than post in an existing thread) as I think I will need quite a bit of hand holding along the way. I have absolutely no idea how to go about doing anything yet, and I'm just reading a lot and getting the hang of things. I will be asking a LOT of questions and I hope you folks will be able to put with silly questions also (I tend to be a bit of a stickler for getting things right to the smallest detail). I promise to be a good learner

Don't ask me why I decided to start a vinyl setup. I'm not really completely sure myself. I had started saving some money for a speaker and amp upgrade, but frankly, the more setups I've been listening to nowadays, the more happy I am with my current setup. I don't want to upgrade just for the sake of upgrading. So I thought I'd do a sideways upgrade and experience a new way of listening to music. I basically want to learn about and experience the analog side of things by doing, rather than just reading.

I don't own a single record, and I plan to start off by buying a few new ones once I have the TT setup at my place.

I'll start off with the first thing I'll need advice on:

I'll be using the TT with the rest of my current kit. My amp (NAD c326BEE) does not have a phono input, so I'll need to get a phono preamp. I'm considering the following ones:

1) Pro-ject PhonoBox MM

2) Pro-Ject Phonobox S

3) Musical Fidelity V-LPS II (I'll also consider the first and older version which is probably cheaper, if I can find one).

I don't have plans of digitizing any of the LPs I'll be buying, so I don't really need the USB facility. I don't at all know if I'll be upgrading the TT later, but I'd like to think that I might take things up just a notch later, so I'd like to get a Phono stage that can scale up by just a bit if I do upgrade.

I plan to buy the Phono preamps online, from the UK. Most probably from Amazon.co.uk. I'd love to know of any alternative sources (within India also). My budget for the preamp is limited (about INR 5K to INR 8K, not including shipping and customs) but expandable by a bit depending on utility and sound quality.

I'm tending towards the Pro-ject Phonobox S, as it has "Precise RIAA equalisation" which the V-LPS II also has, and lots of feel-good things have been written about it on the product page . Does the "Precise" RIAA Equalisation really matter in real world conditions?

Should I consider any other Phono Preamps? Will the first option be quite adequate for my needs? (I'd be happy if this were the case, heh, heh).

If you got this far, thanks for looking in

Nova Audion in Mumbai is the India dealer for Project Audio! - 9820284641 - Mr.Sushil Anand

 

[reignofchaos]

I'd recommend the CA 640p over all of these. For under 10 grand, it has no peers. For a higher budget, I'd recommend you look at the trigon phono preamps. I'm trying one right now and its absolutely excellent.

 

[sachu888]

Musical Fidelity(older version) has got good reviews.

Regards,
Sachin

 

[SaurabhK]

I'm thinking of testing the vinyl waters and I'll most likely be getting a Rega RP1 within a month.

I decided to start a new thread (rather than post in an existing thread) as I think I will need quite a bit of hand holding along the way. I have absolutely no idea how to go about doing anything yet, and I'm just reading a lot and getting the hang of things. I will be asking a LOT of questions and I hope you folks will be able to put with silly questions also (I tend to be a bit of a stickler for getting things right to the smallest detail). I promise to be a good learner

Don't ask me why I decided to start a vinyl setup. I'm not really completely sure myself. I had started saving some money for a speaker and amp upgrade, but frankly, the more setups I've been listening to nowadays, the more happy I am with my current setup. I don't want to upgrade just for the sake of upgrading. So I thought I'd do a sideways upgrade and experience a new way of listening to music. I basically want to learn about and experience the analog side of things by doing, rather than just reading.

I don't own a single record, and I plan to start off by buying a few new ones once I have the TT setup at my place.

I'll start off with the first thing I'll need advice on:

I'll be using the TT with the rest of my current kit. My amp (NAD c326BEE) does not have a phono input, so I'll need to get a phono preamp. I'm considering the following ones:

1) Pro-ject PhonoBox MM

2) Pro-Ject Phonobox S

3) Musical Fidelity V-LPS II (I'll also consider the first and older version which is probably cheaper, if I can find one).

I don't have plans of digitizing any of the LPs I'll be buying, so I don't really need the USB facility. I don't at all know if I'll be upgrading the TT later, but I'd like to think that I might take things up just a notch later, so I'd like to get a Phono stage that can scale up by just a bit if I do upgrade.

I plan to buy the Phono preamps online, from the UK. Most probably from Amazon.co.uk. I'd love to know of any alternative sources (within India also). My budget for the preamp is limited (about INR 5K to INR 8K, not including shipping and customs) but expandable by a bit depending on utility and sound quality.

I'm tending towards the Pro-ject Phonobox S, as it has "Precise RIAA equalisation" which the V-LPS II also has, and lots of feel-good things have been written about it on the product page . Does the "Precise" RIAA Equalisation really matter in real world conditions?

Should I consider any other Phono Preamps? Will the first option be quite adequate for my needs? (I'd be happy if this were the case, heh, heh).

If you got this far, thanks for looking in

Ill be following this closely Hydra

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

I bought the V-LPS II to use when digitising (when I get the urge: I do a couple of albums and then forget it for months ). It seemed to me to be a reasonable investment for something that, whilst it was going to result in archive files, was probably never going to be part of a hifi playback system. I'm too lazy to shift stuff around and do a test of the MF against my Cyrus's built-in.

MF's own marketing blurb says that 70% of the cost of hifi equipment goes on the case and the cosmetics. If this is true, then the whole V series has to be remarkably good value! Is the V-LPSII, in fact, equal to MF's own much more expensive but bigger-boxed unit?

I suspect that both this and the GS are powered by fairly simple wall-warts (mine is). In both cases, an upgrade to a better power supply might be worthwhile.

My feet are firmly rooted in the days when, simply, music meant vinyl --- or "records, LPs," as I prefer to think of them. I probably never lived with anything as good as a Rega, or even a Pro-ject deck, but there is a long way between that and the exotica that is high-end record playing.

Even now, I'd be very happy to own a deck from either of these companies. It's unlikely that my old Dual will ever be replaced when the couple of decades of cat fur that must be inside its works eventually bring it to a halt, but if it was, one of those would be its successor.

I'd say, don't sweat it! Keep it simple. Make the thing level and be sure it is out of danger from vibration, turn it on --- and enjoy the music*.

I don't know about this "precise" RIAA stuff. I guess no company is going to advertise that it's phono eq is imprecise! :lol:

I plan to buy the Phono preamps online, from the UK. Most probably from Amazon.co.uk. I'd love to know of any alternative sources...

I bought my V-LPSII from Divine Audio in UK. Nice people to deal with; a bit more personal that Amazon! The sell Graham Slee too. Being a real hifi store, you could probably even get advice and information from them.



*A philosophy that Rega themselves seem to share, judging by the pleasantly simple and straightforward 2-page set-up guide


,

 

[jls001]

How about the DIY MM phono pre that sachu888 organised? I believe he has the kits. And reported beats the CA 640. Which reminds me I need to pay him for my kit.

Regarding the Rega RP1, as stevieboy said, VTA adjustment devices are available if you should change cartridge later. Most cartridges have a height of 16-17 mm and should work without adjusting VTA, though the ability to fine tune is always welcome.

 

[hydra]

Thank you very much for the replies, folks!

@stevieboy and @jls001: I now understand about the possibilities related to the cart upgrade part, thanks to you guys.

@jls001, santosh did indicate to me about sachu888's DIY preamp. I think I will be going in for it as it will be a nice, cheap and great-sounding way to start off. I was going through the thread this morning, and I've just got half way through it, but I now have an idea about how good the DIY CNC Preamp seems to be.

@sachu888, thank you! I will most likely trouble you for one of those CNC Kits of yours

@Thad, I did remember about Divine Audio and your purchase. In fact I was looking at their website yesterday, and I think they might be a better source than Amazon if I'm buying online. I'm not (currently) looking to digitise the records I'll be getting, so the USB part will be wasted on me. But as a Phono Preamp itself, the V-LPS seems to be a good option (though a bit expensive for me).

One of the things that attracted me to the Rega RP1 was the unbox it, level it, isolate it, play it philosophy. As a newbie, I couldn't ask for anything better to start off with!

Luckily for me, I have something of an integrated wall cupboard, made out of a concrete slab, fashioned into a hollow/shelf, close to the rack where the rest of the kit is kept. It forms a hollow inside the wall, and it is an enclosed space with just one opening. I think it will be ideal to site the TT and the phono preamp. Since it is a concrete shelf built into the wall, it should be pretty much isolated from any external vibration. I'm just concerned about whether a 2 meter RCA interconnect (it will need to be that long) from the phono preamp to the amp is going to be a bit too long and degrade sound quality.

@RoC thanks for the tip about the CA 640p. It looks like a great option. I'll probably start out with sachu888's DIY kit though (It makes a lot of money sense, and there's no international payment/shipping involved).

@seandsilva thanks for the contact and the number. I'll definitely use it if I consider a Pro-ject Phono Pre later.

@iaudio, yep. I hope the setup will be good enough to beat my digital source. You should come over once it is setup.

@SK, heh, heh, I knew you'd also get bitten by the analog bug sooner or later.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

There's no USB option on the V-LPSII, it's just a simple mm/mc phono preamp, analogue in and analogue out. I use my sound card. Pro-Ject do some combined phono/DAC units, probably others do too, but the V-LPSII is not one.

One of the things that attracted me to the Rega RP1 was the unbox it, level it, isolate it, play it philosophy. As a newbie, I couldn't ask for anything better to start off with!

And, maybe, to get you through the next twenty years? Don't get upgrade fever before you've even unpacked this stuff!

I'm just concerned about whether a 2 meter RCA interconnect (it will need to be that long) from the phono preamp to the amp is going to be a bit too long and degrade sound quality.

I don't think so. That will be at line level. Mind you, I'm a cable sceptic who has used interconnects much longer than 2m! But...

Since it is a concrete shelf built into the wall, it should be pretty much isolated from any external vibration.

Solid tiled floor? You should not have much problem anyway. Compare with a UK house full of dancing hippies on a wooden floor: if the turntable shelf had not been attached to the wall it would have been a non starter! (Ahhh... memories!)

 

[hydra]

There's no USB option on the V-LPSII, it's just a simple mm/mc phono preamp, analogue in and analogue out. I use my sound card. Pro-Ject do some combined phono/DAC units, probably others do too, but the V-LPSII is not one.

Good you pointed that out. For some inexplicable reason, I'd thought it had a USB output all along, duh!

And, maybe, to get you through the next twenty years? Don't get upgrade fever before you've even unpacked this stuff!

I definitely hope I'll be happy with it for the next 20 years! hyeah:
I just have this problem of thinking one extra step forward (even where I don't really need to) when I plan my equipment purchases.

I don't think so. That will be at line level. Mind you, I'm a cable sceptic who has used interconnects much longer than 2m! But...

That puts my mind to rest. I already have a 2m pair of relatively cheap RCAs (Bandridge) and I'll use those. I'll play it by ear once everything settles in.

Solid tiled floor? You should not have much problem anyway. Compare with a UK house full of dancing hippies on a wooden floor: if the turntable shelf had not been attached to the wall it would have been a non starter! (Ahhh... memories!)

Those sound like really good memories, heh heh. Looks like those were fun times, eh? hyeah:

I'm on the 1st floor of a new-ish building, and the floor is marble. I guess I'll be ok there in terms of vibration. I'll probably need to shift my WiFi modem, though -- it sits on the shelf where I'm planning to site the TT and the Phono Pre. There won't be too much wiggle room on the shelf once the TT comes in, and now I'm concerned about electrical interference from the modem. There's also a small UPS on a glass shelf just above (1.5 feet above the concrete shelf) and I hope that won't cause problems either.

 

[sachu888]

Good you pointed that out. For some inexplicable reason, I'd thought it had a USB output all along, duh!



I definitely hope I'll be happy with it for the next 20 years! hyeah:
I just have this problem of thinking one extra step forward (even where I don't really need to) when I plan my equipment purchases.



That puts my mind to rest. I already have a 2m pair of relatively cheap RCAs (Bandridge) and I'll use those. I'll play it by ear once everything settles in.



Those sound like really good memories, heh heh. Looks like those were fun times, eh? hyeah:

I'm on the 1st floor of a new-ish building, and the floor is marble. I guess I'll be ok there in terms of vibration. I'll probably need to shift my WiFi modem, though -- it sits on the shelf where I'm planning to site the TT and the Phono Pre. There won't be too much wiggle room on the shelf once the TT comes in, and now I'm concerned about electrical interference from the modem. There's also a small UPS on a glass shelf just above (1.5 feet above the concrete shelf) and I hope that won't cause problems either.

Hi,
My suggestion to place TT on wall shelf and keep away from any transformer.Cable length from TT to phono pre should be as short as possible.I am using wall shelf for my TT to avoid any feedback problem.
By [URL=http://profile.imageshack.us/user/sachu888]sachu888 at 2012-01-21[/URL]

Regards,
Sachin

 

[hydra]

^^ I don't think I'll be able to manage a wall-mounted shelf quite like this one, because of space issues

The shelf I plan to put the TT on is a shelf built into the wall, so I hope it should do all right. I'll be removing everything that has a power supply, or does some kind of power conversion, from at least 3 feet around the TT.

I'll post pics once I get the TT and get it sited. I will need advice about whether I'm doing things right

About the Phono Pre, I've finalized on sachu888's DIY battery-powered CNC Phonostage. One of the big-hearted FMs has graciously volunteered to build it for me. The Vinyl Brotherhood rocks! :clapping:

 

[sachu888]

About the Phono Pre, I've finalized on sachu888's DIY battery-powered CNC Phonostage. One of the big-hearted FMs has graciously volunteered to build it for me. The Vinyl Brotherhood rocks! :clapping:

You won't be disappointed.

Regards,
Sachin

 

[santhosh]

The Vinyl Brotherhood rocks! :clapping:

+1. The Vinyl brotherhood always gives a warm welcome to new entrants and brings them up to speed very quickly




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[hydra]

Well, I can't thank you enough for the tips and for your voluntary offer of help, Santosh!