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To me, the point of vinyl is as much the physical side as the audible side. It’s the interaction of reading and admiring the art on the sleeve, taking the record out of its sleeve and placing it on the platter, turning it on and placing the needle, then sitting and listening to the first side, then you get to do most of that again to listen to the other side. Sound quality compared to another format is irrelevant. The only other existing formats that have a similar interaction are CD & Cassette.

I’m a bit young to know if it’s true, but I’m sure when I was younger I remember lots of bands, and visual artists living on the dole while they went after their artistic vision. since that’s not an option does it matter if their full time job makes their art possible? the reality is most the money has gone out of music for the producers - unless you chase the algorithm- the fact that people are still doing their thing and making things happen as a side hustle is a good thing- not a negative.

IME the biggest improvement most HiFi enthusiasts could do would be to give their listening environment some proper acoustic treatment. You might be able to minimise surface noise with expensive playback equipment, but there is nothing you can do to eliminate pops and clicks caused by damage or defects to the actual grooves of the record or fix a pressing that is off-centre. Most of the vinyl I want to listen to is 40-50 years old and exists in runs of no more than 500 copies, so trying to find a pristine example, if one even existed in the first place is an exercise in futility. The best I can do is record it onto my computer clean up the audio the best I can by drawing out the pops and clicks in the waveform and then sell the disc on to some other sucker.

Double post!!

Worth is a strange old concept... Some folks think that going to a gig with 50000 other people and paying £400 for the privilege is worth it. Others are happy to pay £500000 for a pokey flat in Willesden Green. I know a vastly overweight bloke who spent thousands on lightweight components for his Kawasaki while losing no weight of his own - it was worth it to him! And most bizarrely of all (arguably!), folks pay thousands for a personal number plate whose main two functions are to aid the police in recognising your motor, and to aid the public in determining the character of said number plate owner. At least with a high end vinyl set up you can attempt to appreciate your music in as much high fidelity glory as you feel it is worth! BTW, in my experience, a well put together and high quality turntable/arm/cart set up minimises surface noise of all kinds...

I love vinyl and 100% agree with the above comments pointing out its flaws and the slight perversity of preferring it as a format. Surely it's good to throw these ideas around once in a while, all the more so in a setting ostensibly aimed at discussion and debate? Another current thread here has seen some ill tempered comments that were prompted by people noting some uncomfortable but ultimately potentially valuable legal issues re replica instruments. I like being encouraged to challenge my established views and think about things I might not initially be comfortable doing - big stuff and the less consequential stuff too.

For some of us those pops, clicks, general surface noise and low frequency rumble just get in the way of the music. I suspect that those who still champion vinyl have never spent countless occasions arguing with record store employees about whether the scratches on your newly bought album and single were already on when you bought it (they were) or put there by your mis-handling. And you've never spent an afternoon going round all the local record shops looking to see if any of them had a copy of a particular album with the hole close enough to the centre for you not to feel seasick when you listened to it (there weren't any).

We Built This City - Starship

I'm in for the year

That was unfretted. Ill try it fretted and see where it is

Skyscraper - Demi Lovato

Oh maybe it was yours I had seen @ead! Both very cool, and cool to see two different UK builders take on the same bass

Hi, how much as I need a replacement bridge for my wild thing bass?

Downtown - Petula Clark

Ain’t no love in the heart of the city - Bobby Blue Bland

Love Will Tear Us Apart - Joy Division

Love Will Keep Us Together - Captain & Tennille

I like that you avoided fully shielding the scratchplate and instead just ensured continuity at the key contact points — that’s a more targeted approach than lining everything with copper. That’s a really clever solution

Gotta 'fess, the juxtaposition of your post right below @SumOne's did make me smile. He needs to be awarded the BCP^* accolade! You shouldn't have any trouble shifting your MXR if recent sales have been anything to go by!

I have had Kent Armstrong Hot Vintage P alnico in my Precision parts bass before and even though I thought they sounded great, I thought i could find better. So I've tried multiple Fender, DiMarzio, Nordstrand, Seymour Duncan, Fralin etc etc pickups and I'm going back to the cheap KA. It has all the p-bass attributes you need. That's just my opinion and to my ears, but for the cheap price, why not give them a shot? You won't be disappointed. Just play with that tone knob and you'll find the sound you want. If not, tweak a little on your amp. 👍🏽

16 years later......is anyone still rocking the Kent Armstrong Hot Vintage P? I have a set ready to go back in my parts precision. I've tried all sorts of different pickup brands "Fender, DiMarzio, Nordstrand, Fralin, SD etc and I still rate the cheap KA Hot Vintage P alnico my favorite. With flats, running through my Genz Benz heads and Mesa 215 cab....I'm in sonic heaven 👌🏽