vinyl or cd upgrade..?

Since you've just dug the vinyl out I'd enjoy it as is for the time being. I'd look elsewhere to spend your money, some examples: VPI record cleaner (about 400 quid); Is your room good acoustically? If not, look at some RPG products; Do you have your mains sorted? If not, please do; What does the deck sit on? If not something good, howsabout a Mana Ref Table?

Alex

Do you have the QC power supply for the gyro? 1st upgrade if you haven't.

You could get the RB300 'Origin lived'. new cabling etc. Not expensive and apparently makes a big difference to the arm. Other options in terms of the arm are much more expensive i.e changing it, so I would do this 1st.

Hi-caps on the 82?

Cartridge change. Advice given so far is spot on. Another option could be an Ortofon. Kontrapunkt A or B fits well with the RB300.

I'm amazed !
So far the advice has not involved too much money !
Alex - the room has a seperate phase all to itself, and auralex acoustic foam splattered all over - much to Kates disgust..
A record cleaner sounds like a brilliant idea, and one I hadn't thought of !
Stand is Quadraspire ref, and the motor is the old one, so, sonofcolin, I will get me a qc..
82 has one hi cap - maybe the origin mod , cartridge and a cleaner will be top of the list, but keep any ideas coming, please !
Thanks all !

Steve

I see the steve part of this is a builder; I guessed foam and phases but needed to make sure. Poor kate part :> )

I don't actually have a record cleaner. I preach well but practice bad and until recently always found it easier to spend my cash on the next box in the line. This is foolish. Whenever I buy a s/h record from Reckless I have it cleaned for a pound. Unless its a real dog it plays better than any of my others, including new ones. I think they use a Loricraft somethingorother, costs about 1K. They said the VPI cleans just as well but is a bit more bothersome to use.

Alex

So, how did you guess my occupation..?
The use of the "Blimey" word..?
It's not only us builder-types that go through phases, you know, or find uses for bits of foam..
As for the "poor Kate" bit - if I tell you that her side of the music collection extends from David Soul to Phyllis Nelson ( remember "Move Closer"..? ) Poor Kate my builders cleavage type bum..
But, despite her lack of taste (she married me..) she has had to admit that the foam made a huge difference to the music room's sound - her main complaint has to be that it is the only room in the house that is finished - strange that, huh ?
But, on a serious note, does cleaning an lp make such a difference, and how bad can an uncleaned disc look before it's not fit to buy - I am over in London for a few weeks work from glorious Spain, so may just pop into a second-hand record shop - is Reckless in Islington, up close to that theatre/pub (can't remember the name )?
How long does it take to clean a record ?

Got to go - got 3 clues left to finish the Sun crossword...

Steve

I have an incredible gift for guessing what people do (just for confirmation I sometimes read their profiles).

The best Reckless to go to is in Berwick St since its surrounded by even better shops like Selectadisc.

It takes just long enough to clean a record to overshoot the parking meter and get a ticket, so my last record cleaning cost £41; its good, but not that good.

Alex

So I forgot that I had put up a profile ( wasn't worth remembering was it - dull...
Will head off to Berwick Street as soon as work allows, on the tube, therefore saving pounds already on parking tickets - see, I can be clever too !

cleaning records is a tedious and worthwhile chore that can reap a nice reward for a mediocre outlay.

My advice FWIW would be to buy a Moth kit and build yer own cleaning m/c.

It's kinda like a grown up Airfix kit. Good therapy too in a basket weaving kind of way.

All you need to do is carefully follow and then totally rewrite the instructions.

Good grown up fun for masochists of all ages

P - Not the man from Delmonte again!

"Source first" junkies will argue that a cleaner is the ultimate "s.f." move. A friend who used to work in a hi-fi shop felt a meager US$200 cleaner would yield more improvements than a US$700 turntable, arm, or cartridge upgrade.

M

Hi guys,

So how hard is this kit to put together? Do you need any extra bits (container, lid etc) or is it complete as it comes? (Seems a lot cheaper than the built item, hence my question). How much does the kit weigh roughly? I'm thinking of sending one to Australia if it makes sense.

Cheers, Jens

No, it's not that hard to put together.. I managed it. It contains all the bits except for the "container" which you need to construct from veneered MDF, you need a drill, hole saw and a jig saw is useful. Although, as stated above, the instructions would not be out of place in a cheap 80's Jap video recorder. The kit weighs a few kg but is fairly bulky because of the lid.

Simon

Dear Steve (and long-suffering Kate:)

I've just upgraded my Gyrodec. I had a QC-powered AC motor with the old-style motor-on-plinth arrangement. So I also had to have a new plinth. I also took the opportunity and changed the suspension units for the new ones. These make life a lot easier in terms of setup as well as sound better allegedly.

The result? The new deck is much improved over the old. I'm not sure which item (DC motor or suspension units) was the more worthwhile since I did the whole lot in one go. The deck has far better timing and definition (tighter and faster in the bass, sweeter and better detail in the treble, midrange seems unchanged). I strongly recommend you look into this as your first upgrade. Please Note: I'm using the crappy power transformer power supply, not the super-duper VC! If it's too expensive, I have a QC gathering dust that we can negotiate a price on if you like.

Regards,
Frank.
All opinions are my own and do not reflect the opinion of any organisations I work for, except where this is stated explicitly.