Friday, September 13, 2019

A turntable recommendation

“Make sure you have the record player on at night”: I’m still not sure whether Joe Biden was suggesting it’s a good thing or a bad thing to have the record player on at night. This morning I’m leaning toward bad. But if you want to have a record player on at night, or at any other time, I would like to recommend the Audio-Technica AT-LP120-USB turntable. Best turntable I’ve ever had.

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In 2023, it’s there’s the Audio-Technica AT-LP120XBT-USB turntable.

[I thought that Biden was criticizing parents who might blast music while their children are trying to do homework. But if he was saying that young children need to hear the spoken word, why not suggest that parents talk to their children? Why invoke a record player? I acknowledge that my recommendation moves forward from the record player into the world of “components”: turntable, receiver, speakers.]

comments: 4

Anonymous said...

It's not a bad turntable but it is finicky. Mine is, at any rate. For example, it will not play RCA Bluebird LP's of the 1980's-90's--it just skates across the vinyl. Weird. I have no idea why. It is much more sensitive to light scratches or pops on used records and will skip where my cheaper Sony and Panasonic turntables will play straight through. (They also play those RCA's without any problem.) And finally: the needle did not last as long. I've never before had to change a needle that soon before (about three years after purchase).

Michael Leddy said...

I’ll have to try a Bluebird reissue to see what happens. Do you remember Dual? Worst turntable I ever owned. It was a minor miracle every time sound came from the speakers.

Chris said...

I had a similar problem with my turntable when CDs came out: the needle just skipped over them and wouldn't make a sound at all. Finally I threw the damn thing out.

Michael Leddy said...

I tried a Bluebird Fats Waller LP (1982) this afternoon, with a flaw in the vinyl, and it played through the flaw with a slight pop. Maybe the weight of the tone arm is a factor?