jms1
pfm Member
A seminal purchase back in ‘86 for the princely sum of £280 (complete with Moth RB250 arm) from Peter Ellis Audio in Newark, my Mk2 Rock turntable was the centrepiece of my teenage Hi-Fi system. All that summer work paid off as I poured my savings into the best turntable I could afford at the time.
Fast-forward a few years and I still have it. It holds more sentimental value than anything else and is still capable of spinning my limited 1980’s vinyl collection should the Wi-Fi drop-out. I keep meaning to treat it to a mid-life update but unfortunately it’s too low down on the list of life’s priorities at the moment so it will need to wait a little longer just yet.
The reason for this post though follows a random vinyl purchase which I made from Oxfam for the price of a cup of coffee. I already have the album on CD (now ripped) but nostalgia got the better of me. The particular album was also stamped with ‘Property of CBS, Demonstration Only, Not for Sale’, which made the purchase even more inevitable.
When I got it home I fired up the my Rock and took a trip down memory lane. Once I’d played the whole album (unusual for me given streaming and the propensity to skip tracks or select a playlist) I suddenly thought, how does it sound against its digital self?
A quick A to B comparison followed with astonishing results. The Rock (untouched for 30+ years, with its original belt; original silicone fluid, AC synchronous motor with no Merlin power supply (or DC motor upgrade for that matter); and aged Audio Technica AT-F5/OCC MC cartridge) sounded pretty much on par with its digital facsimile!
If I’m being critical the vinyl sounded ever so slightly coloured and the soundstage a tad less expansive; however, we’re splitting hairs here and I was consciously trying to analyse and detect the differences. The overall pleasure derived from listening to the songs with the volume cranked up was not diminished in that slightest and the turntable sounded great.
I can’t help think that it’s so easy to get all get caught up chasing so called perfection in the vinyl replay chain, without really befitting from the £1000’s spent. Thanks to decks like the Rock however, good quality music replay is readily attainable and the trough is easy so easy to manipulate once you’re used to it.
Now what does need upgrading is my old mini-Mac, as it can’t cope with running Roon and Tidal properly
Happy listening.
Current system:
Townshend Rock/RB250/AT-F5 MC
Mini Mac
Devialet D250
Focal Sopra N2
Fast-forward a few years and I still have it. It holds more sentimental value than anything else and is still capable of spinning my limited 1980’s vinyl collection should the Wi-Fi drop-out. I keep meaning to treat it to a mid-life update but unfortunately it’s too low down on the list of life’s priorities at the moment so it will need to wait a little longer just yet.
The reason for this post though follows a random vinyl purchase which I made from Oxfam for the price of a cup of coffee. I already have the album on CD (now ripped) but nostalgia got the better of me. The particular album was also stamped with ‘Property of CBS, Demonstration Only, Not for Sale’, which made the purchase even more inevitable.
When I got it home I fired up the my Rock and took a trip down memory lane. Once I’d played the whole album (unusual for me given streaming and the propensity to skip tracks or select a playlist) I suddenly thought, how does it sound against its digital self?
A quick A to B comparison followed with astonishing results. The Rock (untouched for 30+ years, with its original belt; original silicone fluid, AC synchronous motor with no Merlin power supply (or DC motor upgrade for that matter); and aged Audio Technica AT-F5/OCC MC cartridge) sounded pretty much on par with its digital facsimile!
If I’m being critical the vinyl sounded ever so slightly coloured and the soundstage a tad less expansive; however, we’re splitting hairs here and I was consciously trying to analyse and detect the differences. The overall pleasure derived from listening to the songs with the volume cranked up was not diminished in that slightest and the turntable sounded great.
I can’t help think that it’s so easy to get all get caught up chasing so called perfection in the vinyl replay chain, without really befitting from the £1000’s spent. Thanks to decks like the Rock however, good quality music replay is readily attainable and the trough is easy so easy to manipulate once you’re used to it.
Now what does need upgrading is my old mini-Mac, as it can’t cope with running Roon and Tidal properly
Happy listening.
Current system:
Townshend Rock/RB250/AT-F5 MC
Mini Mac
Devialet D250
Focal Sopra N2
