Life

[ssarm@mac.com]

Hey guys, the turntable is working out great. I've been on a record-hunting binge since I've got the thing. I was wondering what the average life of a record is, assuming that I take good care of them (cleaning with CF brush before every play).

[jrhymeammo]

Ahhhhhh... I remember you. Adcom preamp, jumper, mom in Boston, Technic guy, Right? Nice to hear you've been enjoying records.

I dont think anybody knows for sure on that topic. My advice to you is that you should always listen to your LPs from the beginning. Never ever ever ever ever ever ever ever QUE IN. Whenever I see kids doing that to records at the stores, it makes me wanna knock'em the F**k out. That creates major pops and clicks. Also, I never play the same side over and over. I like to give some time to let groove heal back into it's original shape. I play it once or maybe twice in one day, and wont touch it until the next day. If that 2nd part sounds crazy to you then fine, but I think you should at least try not to que in. That should preserve your records more than anything

[basite]

don't play records non stop too (i mean like a full day or something), switch between formats sometimes , and something of a HUGE difference: Make sure (very very sure) that your tt is set-up right, setting it up wrong can ruin your record, very fast.

[nobody]

Well-taken care of records last a very long time. I have LPs that are 50 years old that play very well. In fact, I have some 78s older than thet that are still in excellent shape.

I'm probably not as careful as the other posters. As long as you just sit the needle down gently or use the cueing lever, I see no reason at all why you can't start wherever you want. I have plenty of wuiet records that I've done so on. I mean, if you back-que or something, OK that can mess 'em up, and can trash your needle too if you're not using a model designed to do so. But, just playing from a song you wanna hear has never harmed any records I've done it with.

Most important is to set up your turntable properly...not as hard as some seem to think...and replace your needle before it gets worn. A worn needle will mess up your Lps really fast. I've heard people argue whether playing a record over and over damages it because of heat build-up, but haven't really seen anything definitive about it. If you switch records, I've never heard before of a problem with playing vinyl all day.

Don't get worried. As long as you are taking care of your records, they'll last you for a very, very long time.

[Dusty Chalk]

Also, watch your tracking force. You don't want to set your needle too heavy.

[basite]

question: how do you know a needle is worn out?

[SlumpBuster]

question: how do you know a needle is worn out?

Sound can be an easy indicator, but also not very precise. So this can be a cheap fix:

http://www.ppgift.com/30x_loupes.htm

A jeweler's loupe will allow you to actually see the needle. Depending on the needle, if it looks worn, it propbably is. 10x loupes can be had for a third of the cost.

Gosh, we're a bunch of tinkerers.

[jrhymeammo]

If you dont already have a cartridge protractor, try this link.

Free Stuff. No Ipod/promotion related please.

With a cart properly setup, you shouldnt be damaging your records excessively. Just be sure to follow the printing precedure.

[ssarm@mac.com]

All this stuff is good to hear, thanks!

[JoeE SP9]

The first LP I bought (1967) is still very playable. It's Running Out Of Fools by Aretha Franklin. Just don't play the same record over and over. As for cuing, you can start and stop any LP whenever you like. Just use the cuing lever and be careful! Have fun with LP's. Remember, vinyl is final, sound wise.

[Resident Loser]

...rule of thumb used to be 1000 hours...as timed by your Pickering Stylus Timer...you would then bring it to your local stereo shop, where friendly, knowledgeable types would examine it under a microscope for signs of wear...

jimHJJ(...ahhh, progress...)

[squeegy200]

Also, watch your tracking force. You don't want to set your needle too heavy.

When I was in college I worked for a major audio store.

We had demo turntables setup everywhere in the store. So oftentimes, they weren't setup optimally. I remember opening the store one morning to find a record that was still turning on a turntable. Someone had played an LP sometime before and the manual arm was not automatic and therefore stayed in the center of the record as it spun.

I don't know how long it was there spinning but when I shut off the table and restored the arm back in the holder I was surprised to lift the LP off the platter only to see the label remain on the table!

The tracking force on the arm had been set so high that it machined its way completely thru the vinyl effectively cutting out the center section of the LP.

Funny but True story

[squeegy200]

Ahhhhhh... I remember you. Adcom preamp, jumper, mom in Boston, Technic guy, Right? Nice to hear you've been enjoying records.

I dont think anybody knows for sure on that topic. My advice to you is that you should always listen to your LPs from the beginning. Never ever ever ever ever ever ever ever QUE IN. Whenever I see kids doing that to records at the stores, it makes me wanna knock'em the F**k out. That creates major pops and clicks. Also, I never play the same side over and over. I like to give some time to let groove heal back into it's original shape. I play it once or maybe twice in one day, and wont touch it until the next day. If that 2nd part sounds crazy to you then fine, but I think you should at least try not to que in. That should preserve your records more than anything

That makes A-B comparisons using the same track difficult.

Darn you. Ill have to buy duplicates of my vinyl collection.

[jrhymeammo]

Welel form waht I've been tlod by my vynil monetr, vnyil is nor sliod or lqduid. It's flariy etlisac.

[Dusty Chalk]

When I was in college I worked for a major audio store.

We had demo turntables setup everywhere in the store. So oftentimes, they weren't setup optimally. I remember opening the store one morning to find a record that was still turning on a turntable. Someone had played an LP sometime before and the manual arm was not automatic and therefore stayed in the center of the record as it spun.

I don't know how long it was there spinning but when I shut off the table and restored the arm back in the holder I was surprised to lift the LP off the platter only to see the label remain on the table!

The tracking force on the arm had been set so high that it machined its way completely thru the vinyl effectively cutting out the center section of the LP.

Funny but True story

I hate when that happens.

[ssarm@mac.com]

Wondering about my tracking, right now its set (factory original) on 3.6ish. That's how much pressure is put on the record, right? So I would guess high isn't good? How do you find "optimal" tracking for a specific cartridge?

[jrhymeammo]

Since I've never seen your turntable I'm just going to guess. Are you talking about the small dial (possibly) next to your tonearm base? If it is, then I believe that is for anti-skate. In general, you set that equal to your Vertical Tracking Force(VTF). But if you are talking about what you read off of what it says on the weight you have on the back end of your tonearm, then...

-I dont know about your anti-skate, maybe set it for 0.
-Then dial that counterweight behind your tonarm so that your arm w/ cartirdge will balance parallel by itself.
-If there is a plastic piece with numbers printed, dial into it so it reads 0.
If it's still balancing itself after that, then dial in according to your cartridges recommended tracking force.

But that's never accurate due to differences in cart weight. The cheapest way to get a measurement is to get a cartirdge scale by SHURE. I think it's about $25. No need to get a $500 digital scale, unless it's that important to you or dealing meth.

If I was even close to what you were talking about then, 3,6 grams of VTF is normally wayyyyyyyyyyyy too much.

BTW, did you print out that cartridge alignment tool?

-JRA