Interesting, I’ve just looked up the unit and that is very clever and impressive, but my concern would be that it changes the sound in other ways and potentially adds its own character, introducing another variable to an already complicated chain. I’d certainly like to hear one in action though, but I think I’d more than likely just accept the clicks and pops outside of what the RCM can remove. As Richard and indexical said, that is part of the LP history.
An expensive bit of kit too - that’s a lot of new and used records!
Agreed, new records benefit from a clean as well, to get rid of the static that seems to plague so many of them if nothing else.
When I bought mine I did have a look for pre-owned but it seems that once you have a RCM you keep it so there aren’t (m)any on the usual auction sites.
Buy from anywhere I can find - shops, record fairs, eBay, Discogs, donations etc.
And I will hunt them out during trips.
Had some good finds, some great deals and some disappointments, but isn’t that the part of the chase?
Hoping to find that rare 1st pressing overlooked by the seller at a record fair, as you go through all the boxes?
Checking a purchase into Discogs and finding it wasn’t as advertised, but in fact the version with “The Garrod Lofthouse Credit On The Down Flipback”, so making it earlier 1st pressing!
Cleaning - much discussed in other threads - all secondhand purchases get cleaned before ever going near the turntable. In fact they get a 1st wash in Keith Monks " BreakTheMold™. a DeepClean Antifungal Pre-Wash Concentrate. Then 2nd wash in L’Art du Son, diluted with Lab Grade Purified water (obtained from a biochemical testing lab). This is all on a Keith Monks RCM.
All records are then stored in Anti-static inner sleeves, normally Nagaoka. There was a break in supply, about 20 years ago, so Tonar ones had to be used instead.
Cob Records is a great shop - they seemed to have gravitated more to CDs in the Porthmadog shop in recent years, but last time I visited (last Summer probably!) they did seem to be growing their vinyl section again.
Grey and Pink Records in Chester have a lot of good quality used vinyl, would highly recommend.
I am ashamed to say that I did not go to any record stores (FNAC excepted but I didn’t buy anything). I have about 30 LPs (a bunch of Tone Poets, a bunch of Newvelle and some other bits and pieces) sitting there that I am unable to bring back as we inevitably overshop and have no space left. My wife has agreed that the LPs will take priority next trip … I’ll do my best to keep her to her word. Covid permitting, we should be back in Paris around the end of September.
15 to 20 years ago it was so much easier with second-hand vinyl. Around my way there were stores like Avid still open, well stocked with rarities and the occasional unexpected gem e.g. Eric Dolphy ‘Out To Lunch’ Mono orig Blue Note for £10 ! Those were the days…
That one was on display on the wall. Same store had a Mobley ‘No Room For Squares’ mono orig. in the cheap bin for £2 ! The vinyl was pretty trashed but on reflection might still be playable as those things will take lots of punishment.
Yes some of those old records can be quite durable. I recently was very surprised with a first press Mono With The Beatles that was given to me as a kid by my uncle. It looked pretty knackered lots of marks and scratches, run it through my RCM and surprise surprise it plays like new, not a single tick or pop despite how it looks.
I posted it on the First Vinyl You Bought thread a while back.
