Tag Archives: USB turntable

Should I Buy A USB Turntable? Turntabling Reader Questions

gear, , , , ,

Pros and Cons of USB turntablesTurntabling gets reader questions about vinyl, turntables, DJ gear and more, so it seems only right to answer them for all to see to spread the knowledge–or in this case, opinions–to help other people with the same issues.

One recent reader question came in asking about USB turntables. As in, “Should I buy a USB turntable?”

Transparency alert–I own nothing but USB turntables except for one or two consumer models like the one you see here to the left.

My current turntable of choice based on price, purpose, and performance is the Audio Technica AT-LP-120-USB. It’s got a pre-amp for DJing (which adds to the overall weight and heft of the damn thing), switchable output, variable tone control and other things I like.

Is it the BEST turntable out there? No, but it’s the one I currently own three of and I have no complaints. But back to the question. Why a USB turntable?

Well, for no other reason than that’s the way the industry is going. Yes, you certainly could avoid going USB if you reallllly wanted to, but most people seem ready and willing to digitize at least some portion of the vinyl collection and USB is the way to go for that, unless you really want to use those RCA plugs into an analog-in interface to your Mac or PC. Some desktops do have such interfaces built into the sound card…

I’m naturally biased in favor of the USB-in because let’s face it, if you’re going to MP3 anyway there’s a certain amount of audio loss you’re going to live with and if you’re really into audio fidelity, perhaps you should stick with listening to the vinyl records themselves.

There’s a lot to be said in favor of music portability.

SHOULD you buy a USB turntable? It depends, really. Is your old gear on its last legs? Or is your current gear functioning well? Are you happy with your current setup? If so, you could simply purchase a USB interface like the ones Numark makes to run RCA cable into a converter box with a USB out. These start at about $35-$50 and would be more cost effective than buying a new USB turntable in many cases.

Here’s one such Numark product

There’s a stereo line in plus a dedicated phono line in. You can also use this as a line OUT from your computer into a mixing board to run audio into a mix.

So if you are happy with your current setup, consider adding the converter box instead–there’s no need to shell out for another turntable unless you simply want one that will plug into a laptop or desktop PC apart from your stereo setup.

That’s my preferred method of converting–if I didn’t already own six turntables I’d purchase a separate one strictly for converting vinyl to MP3.

–Joe Wallace

PS. Ask YOUR question by leaving a comment or by e-mail: editor (at) turntabling (dot) net

ION Audio Profile Flash Turntable

gear, Media, , , ,

Here’s another consumer-grade turntable you can use to convert vinyl to MP3 portability. The ION Audio Profile turntable has a slot for a USB or flash drive, and the entire process seems as simple as starting the turntable and hitting “record” to get the process moving.

The chief draw for the ION Audio Profile turntable is that you don’t need a computer to record the audio. I haven’t used one of these yet, but in doing my research on this unit I discovered several favorable reviews stating that the audio quality is good for the average user. Some complain about rotation speeds on this unit and others like it being different that “true” 33RPMs, but typical listeners won’t complain, based on what I’ve read.

My main complaint with all these vinyl-to-MP3 recorders is that a degree of babysitting is needed to make them work properly. There’s either no silence sensor to split an entire album side into separate tracks without user intervention, or what is there isn’t really accurate or even able to be calibrated. I’m naturally coming at this from a busy/lazy person’s perspective–most users probably don’t mind the small amount of manual labor needed to break the recordings up into tracks.

All in all, I’ve seen this model get mostly favorable reviews and I’m contemplating a purchase of this simply because it’s got the computer-free recording feature. The built-in preamp lets you connect to most RCA stereo line/aux inputs, and it’s got a handy 1/8in stereo line in for recording from other sources–a nice touch.

What I’m most interested in is a hands-on, top-to-bottom review of this unit and others like it from a hard core vinyl junkie (not necessarily an AUDIOPHILE, mind you). If that’s you and you want to contribute a review of this or any other model turntable, please get in touch as I’d love to have some guest blog posts or even regular contributions from passionate vinyl lovers.

Drop me an e-mail at jwallace (at) turntabling (dot) net.

–Joe Wallace

Stanton T92 USB Turntable

gear, , , , ,

Stanton-T92-USB-turntable

After you’ve purchased a couple of Goblin LPs and the Escape From New York soundtrack on vinyl, if you’re put the cart before the horse and need a turntable to play them on, you should give serious thought to a USB turntable like the Stanton T92. Yes, you can purchase turntables made in the old school mode, with just a couple of RCA outs, but why when you can get the Stanton T92 USB turntable with its USB plus SPDIF outputs.

Yes, the Stanton T92 has RCA outs, and they’re switchable between line and phono. Add to that the pitch control and direct-drive motor and you’ve got yourself a sweet little deck you can use for converting the vinyl to MP3 (including those dusty old 78 RPM vinyl records), doing a DJ battle or just chilling out to the Deep Red soundtrack.

The Stanton T92 USB turntable is not yet a part of the Turntabling gear rack, but the price is right and the high-torque direct-drive and SPDIF out is making not getting one a bit difficult. We’re just waiting to hear from a user or two to throw a review our way and cinch the deal. If you’re in the know, drop a comment and give a review–we’d love to know what you think.