Does anyone still use or like vinyl?

[Dave2002]

Bristol had its own currency too - the Bristol Pound https://bristolpound.org/

Not sure if the new idea will be like the Bristol Bitcoin. I never understood it but you could pay your bus fare with the £B.

On Topic: I have a number of vinyl records and occasionally play one as I have very few duplicates on CD.

How do you find them?

I believe you bought a turntable to play them a few years ago. I have some LPs which are probably not obtainable on CD, but they languish, along with some 78s.
I'm sure that the performances on some of them - or indeed the recordings - are much better than any recent transfers either to CD or to streaming services ....
but life's too short to bother .....

Just cleared out one of my email "junk" folders - seems I'd been promised all sorts of goodies, including Bitcoins!

Ha - all scams almost certainly.

[french frank]

How do you find them?

I believe you bought a turntable to play them a few years ago. I have some LPs which are probably not obtainable on CD, but they languish, along with some 78s.
I'm sure that the performances on some of them - or indeed the recordings - are much better than any recent transfers either to CD or to streaming services ....
but life's too short to bother .....

My music listening is like my wine drinking: not an audiophile, not an oenophile. Cheapo turntable, no bells and whistles. Probably couldn't make any LP sound good but there is more to a musical work than the sound it makes. If there are too many clicks etc (I inherited the LPs) and that's affecting my enjoyment, I stop playing them. It's usually some whim, something crops up and I think: I've got an LP of that (which I may never have listened to). So I get some idea to connect with whatever it was that was the trigger.

[Andrew]

Totnes also has it's own currency, I believe - The Totnes Pound. Pound of what, I'm not sure - hash, woo, whatever

Got it! NOW I know what you're on about! Yes, Totnes is, in the words of my 2 year old grandson, "weird"!

[teamsaint]

Got it! NOW I know what you're on about! Yes, Totnes is, in the words of my 2 year old grandson, "weird"!

thank goodness for weird places I say.

[gradus]

I wish I could get my turntable to connect to the amp without mains buzz. I assume an earth loop is the problem but with separate earth wires for turntable, pick-up arm, turntable speed control box (old Systemdek) it's a problem knowing what to earth to what. There are earthing connection terminals on the turntable, the control box and the amp. I think I've tried every possible configuration but the buzz remains. Beats me.

[mikealdren]

The earths should be connected together in a chain, not individually to the mains to avoid loops. i.e. connect the turntable earth to the amp earth. There may be issues within your turntable - if the arm is integrated with the turntable this should be ok but separate items may need connecting.

I have resuscitated my record deck and occasionally use it for playing LPs where I don't have a CD equivalent but, with the improvements in CD reproduction over the years, CD wins almost every time for me (well digital as I have all my CDs on a computer).

[Dave2002]

The earths should be connected together in a chain, not individually to the mains to avoid loops. i.e. connect the turntable earth to the amp earth. There may be issues within your turntable - if the arm is integrated with the turntable this should be ok but separate items may need connecting.

This page gives some suggestions - including the one NOT TO TRY. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ground_loop_(electricity)

Do not disconnect the earth wire connection from any of the kit to the supply sockets.

If possible try to have all the kit connected to the same mains socket or extension block. If there are screened cables in your system and both ends are currently earthed, try disconnecting the earth of the screen at one end. [That should be OK as the screen should not carry any current - if it does have anything significant, something has gone wrong]

Look to see if any of the signal wires pass close to mains wiring. If they do, try to physically separate them, or else ensure that they cross at right angles if physical separation is not practical. Any signal cables which pass close to mains cables should be screened.

Do not try to be tidy - by routing signal cables along the same routes as mains cables. Signal cables and mains power cables should be kept apart.

Solutions such as putting in isolating transformers are probably not necessary. You might find that moving some of your equipment improves the situation quite a lot - by minimising any induced currents.

If you use a turntable to digitise LPs it is relatively easy to remove small amounts of induced hum from the digital copies - but ideally make sure it doesn't happen in the first place.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Got it! NOW I know what you're on about! Yes, Totnes is, in the words of my 2 year old grandson, "weird"!

The Totnes pound is just a way to encourage people to buy locally. Having said that, it's a very expensive town, so "the pound in your pocket" is worth less...

[gradus]

Thanks to Mike and Dave for thoughts and suggestions which I will follow up.

[EnemyoftheStoat]

Oh how I love no longer having to play with earth wire connections and other such divertissements.

[Bryn]

With the relative resurgence of vinyl discs and Compact Cassettes, how long before we see VHS or Betamax staging a comeback?

[smittims]

Bryn evokes 'Videoman', a delightful Swedish comedy film about a VHS collector adrift in a post-VHS world. It's sobering to think how short their vogue was .

It would be nice to be able to get new VHS players. I have a lot of tapes which, as far as I know , are not available on DVD: mostly railways stuff.

[teamsaint]

With the relative resurgence of vinyl discs and Compact Cassettes, how long before we see VHS or Betamax staging a comeback?

VHS is still alive and kicking here…….

Anybody got a Squarial ?

Planning to get a new turntable for my birthday.

[Keraulophone]

how long before we see VHS or Betamax staging a comeback?

Comeback?...it never left here: the (expensive) first Sony Betamax HiFi-Stereo model which could record Radio 3 VHS and BBC 2 simultaneously before the advent of stereo TV broadcasts in the UK. IIRC the Boulez/Chéreau Ring was one such simulcast on VHS/TV. It still plays those tapes beautifully! Also addicted to my LP collection, I admit to being a bit of a dinosaur.

[LHC]

With the relative resurgence of vinyl discs and Compact Cassettes, how long before we see VHS or Betamax staging a comeback?

Have you not heard of VideOdyssey, the VHS Rental store that opened in Liverpool a couple of years ago and is still going strong?