OK, so, how come many people that had expensive audio systems of the time also had AUTOMATIC RECORD CHANGER TURNTABLES, instead of SINGLE PLAY, MANUAL TURNTABLES?
These were not serious turntables for high end use. Mass market convenience product they most definitely were, and stacking 6 LP,s on a changer was NEVER considered good audio practice to the best of my knowledge. But, even manufacturers known for making GOOD turntables made record changers too! Brands like Dual, and Garrard made GOOD turntables, and convenience items too!
Somewhere in this country at the time, SOMEONE listened to SIX LP,s on a changer, through a Paragon, or a Hartsfield, you know they did.
scottyj
SOOOOOOOOO !!!! I now can take my pre 1970 JBL 375 HF drivers,,,Pop in a BrushWellman Be phram and WALLA !!!!!! I,m up to date sonicly,,,i dont think so,,,
I am not aware of an audiophile using a record changer. Certainly I never did.
Garrard did make a single play turntabe , it was very good. The changers were for the non serious listerners. I bought a Dual for my daughter.
Why would someone pay $3000.00 for speakers and $79.00 for a record player ? Of all the audio shows I attended there was never any mention
of that.
I have been a member of several car clubs and the serious car owners
would never even think of putting cheap tires on their cars. There are exceptions as in everything. I see here the exception is the general rule !
I am not aware of an audiophile playing 45in recordings. Plus they were generally $1.00 except for the extended play ones. They were a dollar in 1955 !
The Lp was the staple of audiophiles in addition tapes and FM music.
Most of the top end Turntables played 331/3 recordings only.
Sorry, but, NO! You may not have been paying much attention to what was popular, and YOU may not have had a changer in your $3000 system, but many folks did!
Alot more "CHANGERS" were sold, than "Transcription" turntables, and BIG business was NO different then, than it is today. Sell inexpensively made, convenience items, in high volume, to the "GENERAL PUBLIC", and they did, just as they do now!
scottyj
Just as in the old days you could put a crap cartridge on an otherwise excellent turntable, you don't have to have poor audio coming out of an iPod.
My iPod only has lossless files on it and in my home system I use a Wadia i170 iPod dock. This device pulls the digital stream out of the iPod and sends it to my outboard DAC. The result is that my iPod sounds better than 99% of the CD or multidisc players out there.
It isn't even all that expensive. The Wadia Transport i170 (iPod dock) lists for just under $400 and is regularly available for around $300 on Audiogon.
That said, even the analog output of an iPod sounds better than XM... as long as you store high quality files on your iPod. I find XM really irritating, with all of that flanging and dithered noise.
Widget
Now, since this thread has been used by it's author, to generalize the era's pre 1970 as being MUCH BETTER IN EVERY FACET OF EVERYTHING, and since I grew up around BOTH the good and the mediocre of the pre 70,s, albeit, NOT AS pre 70,s as you, I saw MOST pre 70,s turntables had THREE speeds! 33 1/3 rpm, 45 rpm, and 78 rpm!
And, umm, was the 33 1/3 rpm LP designed for HIGHER quality of it's time, OR for the CONVENIENCE of fitting MORE music on the 12in LP disc? LP does stand for LONG PLAY, if I am not mistaken!
ANY 12in vinyl disc that has 6 tracks on each side, is inherently LOWER in quality than a single sided 12in 45 rpm vinyl disc, due to the fact that the faster spinning disc offered better S/N, and a single sided 12in allowed the record pressing plants to cut deeper grooves, thereby offering better frequency response, especially in the low frequencies. AND they knew this back then, too!
So the 33 1/3 rpm LP was also a convenience item, not necessarily designed for the highest possible playback standards the technology had to offer, even then!
And not only that! It has long been known, and acknowledged that open reel tape, especially, 1/2 track 15ips TROUNCED even the best available vinyl!
EVEN IN THE 50,s! Sunday, Monday, HAPPY DAYS! Tuesday, Wedensday HAPPY DAYS!
scottyj
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