# phono preamp and LP to MP3 questions



## jwh7399 (Feb 17, 2008)

My father-in-law recently dug out his old turntable and boxes of LPs, but realized that his Marantz receiver didn't have a phono input. Knowing that I spend alot of time reading the audio forums, he asked me what would be a good preamp and the best way to convert his LPs to MP3 format. Since I have no idea, I thought I'de ask the pros here. Any advice?

Does anyone have any experience with this?
http://www.dak.com/reviews/2020story.cfm?Ref=G&PM=PHPA&type=GSrch&Srh=phono_preamp_GSug&gclid=CM2en86Yp6cCFcfe4AodQBWADA#in
Thank you,
Jon


----------



## jackfish (Dec 27, 2006)

Your link doesn't work.


----------



## jwh7399 (Feb 17, 2008)

sorry, should work now.


----------



## WooferHound (Dec 8, 2010)

Vinyl albums are noisy, especially if they are old. So you don't need super duper preamps to do this conversion. I have used Radio Shack preamps and they sounded great, very clear and lots of bass. 
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2573420
You would then feed the output of the preamp into the Line-In of your sound card and record it that way. Your sound card may have come with some recording software, or you could get Audacity and record with that, it's free.
http://gofree.com/download/Audio/Sounds/audacity.php?gclid=CMey5L7xp6cCFQGe7QodFjmbCw


----------



## jackfish (Dec 27, 2006)

If one was to spend $30 for a phono preamp they might as well spend an extra $14 and get an Audio Technica AT-PEQ-3. But for a relatively inexpensive LP digital conversion system I suppose there could be worse choices than that DAK system.


----------



## davidsrsb (May 15, 2011)

Try to use flac instead of mp3, disk space is cheap these days. Digitising the LPs is a slow process, so you only want to do it once.
You can always make mp3 versions from the flac lossless files at a later time, you cannot go the other way and restore information lost with mp3 compression


----------



## Elliott Studio (Mar 15, 2008)

I've been doing this for years. A good phono pre is essential for good results. There is plenty of good ones out there for under $100 bucks. Avoid the USB turntable! Your dad's old one from the '70's (guessing here) is probably better then any flimsy plastic piece of garbage they sell at the bust-buy with built in preamp and USB.

Clean the vinyl really well (lots of ways to do this) and you will be surprised at how good it can sound, especially with a good cartridge and preamp. Some records are worth the extra effort and it is rewarding to get a good clean digital copy.

I use my Thorens TD125, a tube preamp, a used Roland UA-5 USB ADC-DAC ($50.00 on ebay) and Audacity software. Record at 48khz so you can edit with no glitches and convert the files to FLAC, as suggested above.


----------



## JoeESP9 (Jun 29, 2009)

I 'm with Elliot Studio. Record at 48KHz and store as FLAC files. Large capacity hard drives are ridiculously cheap so crippling sound by going to MP3 files doesn't make sense.

Categorizing LP's as noisy is painting with a very broad brush. In my fairly large collection of LP's very few are noisy and age has nothing to do with the amount of noise. Some LP's that I purchased new in 1968 sound cleaner and quieter than new LP's I purchased last month. When archiving LP's to a digital format the most important thing (other than using a decent TT and phono preamp) is thoroughly cleaning before transcribing. As has already been posted, USB TT's are not worth buying. If you're budget conscious a used TT is the way to go. I also second on the AT-PEQ-3. It's a pretty good phono preamp regardless of price. At the selling price it's an absolute bargain.


----------



## rongon (Aug 23, 2012)

Old thread, but I'm moved to answer the allegation that "LPs are noisy." Like anything else, junk is junk, so if you're used to those awful plastic record players with the P-mount cartridges from the dawn of the CD age, fed through the phono preamp in your 1980s rack system, then yes, I suppose you'd get the idea that LPs are noisy. 

You'd probably be amazed at how good a really fine record playing system can sound. I remember when my downstairs neighbor came up and I had a record playing. He was amazed that it was a record. He said that it sounded as good as a CD. Personally, I think it sounds better, but I took the compliment. 

Your recordings can only be as good as the original source material. Records can sound amazing. Put together a really good LP playback "front end" and invest in a good phono preamp, then feed that to a good A-D converter of some kind. You might be really, really surprised. 

--


----------



## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

A question for the LP transcribers/listeners: If someone was buying LP gear today, what are the phono turntables, cartridges, and preamps that give the best bang for the buck?


----------



## JoeESP9 (Jun 29, 2009)

There is no hard and fast answer. First, it depends on your budget. After that, a lot depends on the condition of your LP's. Also how many LP's do you have and how much effort are you willing to expend.


----------



## rongon (Aug 23, 2012)

> If someone was buying LP gear today, what are the phono turntables, cartridges, and preamps that give the best bang for the buck?


Short answer: 

Turntable -- I'd look used, and I would be very _picky_ -- Look for a big, heavy, 1970s era, direct-drive Japanese turntable (Technics, Denon, Kenwood, Pioneer, etc.), or a classic belt-drive by AR, Thorens or (maybe) Yamaha. Usually the heavier the better. Avoid that flimsy P-mount 1980s stuff. Be very finicky about condition. Platter bearings and tonearms are easily damaged. 

Cartridge -- Grado Black, Shure M97xe or Denon DL110. 

Preamp -- Hagerman Bugle, http://www.hagtech.com/bugle.html ($159). If you need cheap, try the Behringer PP400 for a whopping $20. 

It will take some effort to put all of this together, and especially to align the cartridge in the headshell, balance the tonearm and situate the turntable on a stable, level and non-resonant platform. 

Analog is fun! 
--


----------



## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

Here is a link to a Kickstart-funded, simple, all-manual turntable being developed for market. I believe you can get in on their introductory price through the end of January, $150 with cartridge.


----------



## Elliott Studio (Mar 15, 2008)

That TT looks fantastic! I would spend the extra $100 and get the acrylic platter version - you can't beat the price, especially given that it comes w/ a cart already installed. I hope this project gets off the ground!


----------



## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

A minor correction, their pledge cut off is 21 January, Monday. After that the price might be higher, FYI. Better go to their site for details.


----------



## JoeESP9 (Jun 29, 2009)

If I was in the market for a TT I'd be all over that kickstart project TT. I'd also spring for the $250 version with the acrylic platter.


----------

