I tried selling mine new-in-box on ebay with no bids starting at $4.99. No takers on Craigslist or marketplace either. I left it by the mailbox on my way to work with a FREE sign on it. When I got home, somebody had left another USB turntable but they took the FREE sign.
Hey is it still for sale? I think that would be a great way to keep a few banjos and accordions from walking back together. Just maybe it'll scare some people off?
As always, you really put this "throwaway" device through its paces before arriving at your conclusion. I also chuckled at your sharp joke about Brighton nightclubs.
Was your joke about the original Brighton in the county of Sussex in the UK? Or on of the many towns that copied the name in the USA? Because in Sussex we wunt be druv. 😊
For everyone commenting on the Hannakuh LP, that guy Zim made an answer to "Jesus Christ Superstar" called "David Superstar" with a childrens chorus and "rock" music. Wish I still had it now.
@md_vandenberg I've never watched or liked the guy. I chortled out loud at the joke in the video. But what I didn't do, is feel the need to comment and go HEY GUYS I GOT THE JOKE DID YOU GUYS GET IT I GOT IT
@@PixelatedH2O Hah, no. Not in a million years. With vinyl records you get different dynamic range depending on the audio frequency. We compensate for that with the RIAA curve, which then effectively lowers the dynamic range of the entire recording. Then we face the problem that with an analogue recording, quality is tied directly to linear velocity (inches per second), but the linear velocity of a record groove slows down as they're recorded and played at constant ANGULAR velocity (rotations per second). It's a fun format but it isn't a good format.
Looking at the underside, it appears that the power transformer and power supply board are continuously powered as long as the cord is plugged into an outlet. It's not until the lowered DC leaves the power supply board that the switch powers off anything downstream from there. But the clipping originating inside the unit without a way to adjust the level should be a show-stopper for anyone considering getting this thing. Thanks as always for an informative review.
The "eject" function is definateley something I've not seen of those cheap turntables, un-till now. I found a "suitcase" player in the trash, the tonearm was sticking (which I have now fixed) and that's probably why it was trashed. It's a little bigger and better than the typical "crosley cruiser" turntables even though it still has the same turntable mechanism and cheap ceramic cartridge. I intend to add a high impedance input stage to the amplifier and maybe add an EQ circuit to tame the frequencies around 5khz that those cheap cartridges seem most sensitive to.
I love the fact they claim that "lp's degrade.. " so its better to digitize them, and burn the music on a cd. While a "burned " cd is more sensitive to degrading over a short period of time. I heard a lot of people having regret because of this.
@@JSRphones Not really. CD-Rs will much more likely start failing due to their dye layer (which gets lasered in the burn process) degrading. Disc rot's a thing with 'proper' manufactured discs, and even with those the vast majority has been attributed to specific pressing plants' output from a specific time period.
Not really, most of my old burned CDs are perfectly fine. I think I had 2 failing, and one of them was like 25 cents back then, with Princo branding... While old vinyls are very much prone to wear by basically everything... dust, heavy tracking force, dropped needles, accidental scratches, fingerprints, not cleaning them regularly, or doing the cleaning wrong, or just by even playing them... they're much more shelf-queens than CDs.
@@MetalTrabant I guess it also depends. I have 50 - 60 year old vinyl that still sounds good. I also have burned cd's that gave up after 15 years ( which were pretty good brands ), and can not be read by various cd players anymore. I still dont wanna take the risk to digitize vinyl to burned cd's, and throw out the vinyl.
Looks cheap, sounds cheap, eventually the price was cheap...and yet somehow, they used a good quality Burr-Brown USB audio IC...which they screwed up on the implementation. With its appearing as a USB microphone, I have to wonder if the audio IC is programmed through resistors or jumpers and if the manufacturer chose the wrong ones. If not, I suppose one could always pad the output of the cartridge down through some resistors and solve the problem.
I bought the IT back in the day at Big Lots for $28 if I remember correctly. They said it was a clearance item. Yes, I said for get this and boxed it back up. It's up on a shelf in my closet. I went to a pawn shop and bought a Pioneer 12 and have several other vintage turntables from the 70s and 80s.
Oh yeah, Burr Brown ADC, renowned among audiophiles :D :D Suggestion for a follow-up video: How to add two simple voltage dividers (one per channel) to greatly improve the USB sound quality. Another suggestion for a follow-up video: Cut the signal from the record player to the USB part (perhaps using a switch) and use the USB part to digitize other audio sources.
The folks at Knowzy had their records destroyed by this turntable. It had nothing to do with the tracking force however. They purchased an unity with a crooked needle that chewed the LP grooves. It was the Grace brand.
That Chanuka music sounds like the soundtrack of a 70s anime TV show. Let's hope those anime producers were inspired by that album, including the album cover.
maybe reduce the clipping by fitting a resistor in series with the cartridge feeds to the circuit to reduce the amplitude? may even help the bass response by reducing loading ....?
I remember when Kohls first sold these USB turntables by Memorex or Ion, I was somewhat interested in buying it, until I found out it’s overpriced for over a hundred bucks, while a Crosley combo turntable with cassette and CD player just slightly cost more and had more playback features!
Some lives ago when I was living in the UK I heard that if you ever plan to stroll at night through Blackpool you should always wear wellies... I asked "Why?", "Oh, so you don't get puke on your nice shoes!" 👏☺
Great video! You did another video on the lineage of cheap turntable mechanisms awhile back - I have always heard of Leetac and Skywin manufactured turntables, it would be great to have a comparison of these things. As you showed here, the brand name doesn't mean much it would seem!
Space Kid, track "Tune" if you're taking requests, sir 😊 Yeah, I figured this thing was trash lol I always enjoy your vids, appreciate the attention to detail and basic common sense when you review things.
My copy of Homework always skipped on cheaper turntables, too. It was pressed off center though, so lots of players would have struggled to play it without skipping. About 12 years ago I bought a nice condition Thorens TD-160 for around $300 (local seller) and I haven't needed to use anything else since.
It's funny you posted this. I literally just found an almost new in box ION TTUSB turn table for $10 at good will. It's in such good condition that i had to get it.
An idea for the distortion: how about an attenuator between the cartridge and the USB encoder. I have a feeling it will perform better with a lower input signal.
Just acquired something very similar just for the ceramic preamp going to use it with a BSR MP60 fitted with a Sonotone cartridge that I've totally dismantled powder coated reassembled and fitted to a new old stock plinth. Looks like 1972 but playing really better than it should
The clipping also happens with the AT-LP-120xUSB. It clips at -6db with the USB connection and highest quality through USB is 16bit 48kHz. For that reason I record using my line in on the SoundBlaster card. No clipping and I can record up to 24 bit 192 kHz. However, I now record everything at 24 bit 48kHz, which is considered HD audio.
While 48khz is pretty common for recording, wouldn't 44.1khz be more suitable since that's what music is typically stored at? It wouldn't really make much difference but it does mean you don't have to resample down for CD burning, perhaps.
@ I use the files on my Sony Hi Res Walkmans. I’m sure at my age there’s absolutely no sonic difference, it just makes me all warm and fuzzy knowing I saved the files in a slightly better format. 😂
Around 2010 my father purchased an ion brand turntable with USB, its speed was all right, and it had great stereo separation... The way I found that second one out was because I guess it had set itself to one channel as well, and it didn't combine the stereo channels, it only recorded the one. It was only a two-speed unit and it had a ceramic cartridge that wasn't properly matched. Bizarrely, it was not a cz800 clone, though I don't know what it actually used. Most useful thing it did for me was it provided a decent rubber platter mat that I snagged when I first got my old lp60x years ago now
I had a usb turntable in about 2008. When I’d transfer the vinyl to Audacity, the turntable would pick up the ambient noise in the room. I gave it away.
it’s funny how this sold for $200 usd. A few days ago I bought a at-lpw40wn for about the same price ($400 aud, so technically more but close enough). No USB recorder but I had a cheap audio interface and most people could get something workable from the audio input on their computer if they have one
I remember Innovative Technologies having this massive booth at CES in like 2015 or 2016, with all sorts of retro-looking turntables with the Victrola name on them. Some actually looked kind of neat, but I never saw those sold anywhere after the show. And of course they had the same cheap internals as the others.
There's a brand new Victrola "crosley cruiser" up in my shed - looks like the power supply jack tore off the board the first time the buyer tried plugging it in.
I’m honestly really quite impressed by this. I was expecting an absolute piece of crap, but it’s actually a completely listenable sound that’s only a little too fast. It’s not that heavy on the record and it’s not that bad of a stylus, and it doesn’t really seem that bad at all, it has some quality. My record player is a belt driven one which doesn’t have those fancy controls for the platter and tone arm, so in a sense this might actually be better than my one, which was a real surprise.
@ It’s an old one my dad got in the 90s, the stylus and audio quality is better, but it doesn’t have the arm controls and its belt driven so that needs replacing every so often.
@@justanotheryoutubechannel The controls are really unimportant. Lots of high end turntables were and continue to be minimalist in terms of features. The main thing is the sound, which is lacking on these cheap plastic players.
with the system the way it came, you can use the red and white cables into the inputs of your computer, just need a 3.5 mm to RCA, level should be right.
I have a Lenco one, less disguisting looking. I use it to make recordings off vinyl directory into audacity. It aint the best to say it simply. But since something will never come out again I’m just glad to have one
I bought a Numark TT-USB 150 Euro unit from Thomann (IIRC) over ten years ago. PROS: - Unlike these ubiquitous things with the red-and-black cartridge, possibly with sapphire stylus, it can be fitted with your choice of bayonet cartridge, or the included head shell to adapt for any 1/2 inch mount cartridge - The factory cartridge is a Numark GT, a spare unit for which cost 30ish Euro stylus included when I last checked, and the spare stylus went at 15ish Euro - that appears to be a diamond stylus, and the cartridge is a perfectly good starting point for someone who just wants to play records - Unlike these ubiquitous things with the ridiculous plastic platter with stylus killer lobes and little rubber pads for traction with the record, it has a metal bearing and a cast alu-minimum platter with a fibercloth mat - while the stylus would not like to be put on that either, it is way safer - The internal preamp, nothing bad to say about it, way better than I expected for the price - better than some that are on new cheapskate HiFi amps if they even have one. CONS: - It isn't mechanically very sturdy, with a plastic body and very little structural metal - The internal ADC while fairly good otherwise, could benefit from a sizely and accessible gain adjustment knob on the front/top panel instead of a tiny wimpy little twirly nipple in the back next to the phono/line level selector by the cord entry point - The power transformer inside is very much under the trajectory of the stylus, and there is a noticeable network frequency hum at all times the unit is powered on and the stylus is on the record, even when the motor is stopped Obviously all the cons are fairly expectable by the price. I solved the hum problem by ripping the transformer out and wiring a wall wart from an old DSL modem on it. I never throw out working PSU's even if the associated device itself went to WEEE. They come in handy at the most unexpected moments. My solution to the poor adjustability of the internal ADC is not using it, but a good sound card instead. EDIT: One of the pros was misplaced as a con.
I had one of these when I was in high school/college. I got rid of it shortly before or after I graduated college. The moment I realized it was a crummy turntable was when I kept trying to import my records in Audacity, and they always sounded terrible on there, even when they would sound fine on my Dad's better turntable. (Mine had the logo of "Electronic Brands" or something like that.) Another problem I remember it having was it would skip playing some warped records because the turntable platter wasn't completely flat, it had a few raised sections so the record wouldn't be scratched by the hard plastic underneath. Yet another reason I got rid of mine in the late 2010s.
I went out of my way to get a turntable without USB connectivity. Thankfully the Denon model is got for $100 new was the perfect start. Paired it with my Sherwood stereo receiver and still able to record to my PC via Soundcard. Along with other sources like cassette tape, FM radio, HD radio, SIRIUS, and XM.
Before these cheap and nasty player's, You could record a turntable after the pre-amp to the input of a sound card, use a audio program to remove hiss, and clicks These palyers were not needed
You can't really remove hiss. You might make it less noticeable in sections of total silence, but with music, you're just trying to fight analog SNR. There is no general filter available that can distinguish noise from a signal. If there was, we would have never needed to switch from LP to digital.
I wonder if that clipped audio is a driver issue or a chip issue, is it also clipped coming out the RCA? Wondering if it could be fixed with a pair of resistors 🤔
Grace put out one of these? They used to be a VERY reputable high-end pro audio brand, best known for their incredible mic preamps. Sounds like some "vulture economy" type snagged the trademark and logo...sort of like how one sees Delta Labs stomp boxes despite the ACTUAL firm not even making it to the 1990s. Or those Biyang (which actually makes some damn fine effects) pedals badged with the long-gone Cordovox brand.
2:23 "Those old LPs are degrading..." So, burn them to CD-Rs that will last only about 2-5 years :( Seriously, those CD-Rs are probably unplayable by now, but the vinyl LPs will last beyond your lifetime!
@@seanmckelvey6618 That's a myth. A TH-camr put that to the test. The only thing that could cause "wear" is if the record is played several times in a short time period. The friction makes the vinyl warm and can soften the grooves when heated too much.
It depends which quality of CD-R you bought. I still have some over 20 years old burned CD-Rs without any data rotting. Making FLAC format is still best idea for backup.
Ok...I admit...I have the Tevion version. I ordered it a new drive belt and diamond stylus, in the hope they would arrive by Xmas (they didn't)...ordered the spares for a Crosley Cruiser, assuming they'd fit. Is it's tracking force likely to damage records long term?
See my three-way vinyl record wear test video. With a diamond stylus, you're unlikely to notice any wear until after you've played the record 100+ times.
@@vwestlifeDad came home with a Tevion version years ago... its belt snapped, so I had to order another. Once it's working, I'll use it until it dies or I decide/can upgrade.
Honestly... after watching this video, it might be better than a cruiser! A diamond stylus and a platter mat would make this thing a decent rig. Not many turntables available today (at least in stores near me) have an automatic tone arm.
I was certain that this video's title was going to adhere to Betteridge's Law, but you got me 😁 But, as always, I appreciate you actually testing and demonstrating these things so we can see and hear the validity of your conclusions. And those clicks during the image changes near the beginning were really making me think of even older technology - every one made me picture the advance of a slide carousel/cassette in a projector, in a most satisfying way.
I got one of these in around 2008 I think. £40 from QVC. Dreadful thing. I wonder how many people digitised their records on one of these and then threw away the originals. You can hear the high-frequency damage on the Daft Punk album from the times it's been played as a test on these cheap turntables.
Maybe try to tweak the audio levels that enter into that USB encoder? Some resistive divider, or even a stereo potentiometer maybe? It have the place to be mounted.
I have a new in the box VINYLWRITER Pico GDI-VW00 made by Grace Digital Audio. Still has the store price label: $73.99. It does not have a base like the ones you show, just legs to stand on. I never got around to transferring any records thanks to YT having all the music I want. Happy Holidaze One And All.
must've heard "Around the World" a thousand times, and while it was playing all I could think was "mmm, sounds a bit fast". I felt pretty vindicated once you put the strobe disc on!
I had a worse sounding one that recorded straight to USB. Not only was it clipping the audio but it was so tinny that it erased all the bass. I ripped the circuit out and used it as a decent USB music player. Although your's looks FUGLY. 🎉Happy New Year Everybody🎉
I literally have this exact USB turntable in the thumbnail, still sealed, in the garage. I picked it up for 50 bucks amd meant to digitize my albums beofe I heard how the needle can ruin your records. Been meaning to get rid of it, but just haven't.
Personally I find it kinda funny that a big selling point of these was for people to not have to buy CDs or mp3 of music they already own...since I bought my first turntable a few months ago, and I've been basically doing the opposite, buying records of music that I already either have on CD or mp3! In fact, there was a model of the turntable I got that came with a USB port, but I didn't get that one because I figured I'd be unlikely to use it.
I had one of these for a while, got it with a bunch of other free audio stuff . Mine was branded medion , it had all the options and " features " + the stupidly bright blue display I should have videos of it in the achive.
I tried selling mine new-in-box on ebay with no bids starting at $4.99. No takers on Craigslist or marketplace either. I left it by the mailbox on my way to work with a FREE sign on it. When I got home, somebody had left another USB turntable but they took the FREE sign.
Lol
Hilarious
Hold on to it because it will go up in value as it becomes more rare. Don't throw it away.
Hey is it still for sale? I think that would be a great way to keep a few banjos and accordions from walking back together. Just maybe it'll scare some people off?
Replace the 'free' sign with a $30 sign, someone will steal it, guaranteed.
Using Around The World to demonstrate skipping was a masterful bit of trolling.
It almost fits with the song lol
As always, you really put this "throwaway" device through its paces before arriving at your conclusion. I also chuckled at your sharp joke about Brighton nightclubs.
It really was right on point.
@@CuttinChopps 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
@@dangruner5926 LOL
Was your joke about the original Brighton in the county of Sussex in the UK? Or on of the many towns that copied the name in the USA? Because in Sussex we wunt be druv. 😊
It was a very spiked remark.
Wasn’t prepared for how hard that Chanukah album slaps.
Made my ears bleed 😒
Which is Chanukah, which is Metallica? I'm confused...
@@SuperHyperExtrayou an anti-Semitic man? Sounds like it! Clalinc Chanukah demonic heavy metal music made by mettellca
Brother Zim spitting bars!!
For everyone commenting on the Hannakuh LP, that guy Zim made an answer to "Jesus Christ Superstar" called "David Superstar" with a childrens chorus and "rock" music. Wish I still had it now.
they also made a hitler rock opera, i got one in a lot once
2:42 the fact that the brand name chosen is LTT is funnier than it should be
Yes, you've noticed the joke. Very good
Their screwdrier costs more than the turntable
@@_g_h_ Linus fanboy spotted.
@md_vandenberg I've never watched or liked the guy. I chortled out loud at the joke in the video. But what I didn't do, is feel the need to comment and go HEY GUYS I GOT THE JOKE DID YOU GUYS GET IT I GOT IT
@_g_h_ you dont seem very fun to be around
Why spend "hundreds or even thousands" on CDs? One reason, sound quality.
The sound quality of a well mastered vinyl record on a good turntable will outshine any CD
@@PixelatedH2OI don't think so.
And reliability, longevity, with basically zero maintenance... I've spent thousands on them, no regrets, except a few badly scratched used discs.
@@PixelatedH2O Hah, no. Not in a million years. With vinyl records you get different dynamic range depending on the audio frequency. We compensate for that with the RIAA curve, which then effectively lowers the dynamic range of the entire recording. Then we face the problem that with an analogue recording, quality is tied directly to linear velocity (inches per second), but the linear velocity of a record groove slows down as they're recorded and played at constant ANGULAR velocity (rotations per second).
It's a fun format but it isn't a good format.
@@PixelatedH2OYeah, nah!
So the infamous "Loudness War" reached USB turntables.
It makes me wonder how many others do that
Looking at the underside, it appears that the power transformer and power supply board are continuously powered as long as the cord is plugged into an outlet. It's not until the lowered DC leaves the power supply board that the switch powers off anything downstream from there. But the clipping originating inside the unit without a way to adjust the level should be a show-stopper for anyone considering getting this thing. Thanks as always for an informative review.
The keyboard clicks during the slide changes in the intro were oddly satisfying.
I thought they were mouse clicks, but yes I agree
The "eject" function is definateley something I've not seen of those cheap turntables, un-till now. I found a "suitcase" player in the trash, the tonearm was sticking (which I have now fixed) and that's probably why it was trashed. It's a little bigger and better than the typical "crosley cruiser" turntables even though it still has the same turntable mechanism and cheap ceramic cartridge. I intend to add a high impedance input stage to the amplifier and maybe add an EQ circuit to tame the frequencies around 5khz that those cheap cartridges seem most sensitive to.
8:36 "Around the world, around the world, around the world..." I could listen to that on loop like that
Daft Punk’s albums are really great works of French house music, especially Discovery and Random Access Memories.
I love the fact they claim that "lp's degrade.. " so its better to digitize them, and burn the music on a cd. While a "burned " cd is more sensitive to degrading over a short period of time. I heard a lot of people having regret because of this.
Disc rot...
@@JSRphones Not really. CD-Rs will much more likely start failing due to their dye layer (which gets lasered in the burn process) degrading. Disc rot's a thing with 'proper' manufactured discs, and even with those the vast majority has been attributed to specific pressing plants' output from a specific time period.
@@MosoKaiser That's what I'm trying to refer to, but I don't know the proper term
Not really, most of my old burned CDs are perfectly fine. I think I had 2 failing, and one of them was like 25 cents back then, with Princo branding...
While old vinyls are very much prone to wear by basically everything... dust, heavy tracking force, dropped needles, accidental scratches, fingerprints, not cleaning them regularly, or doing the cleaning wrong, or just by even playing them... they're much more shelf-queens than CDs.
@@MetalTrabant I guess it also depends. I have 50 - 60 year old vinyl that still sounds good. I also have burned cd's that gave up after 15 years ( which were pretty good brands ), and can not be read by various cd players anymore. I still dont wanna take the risk to digitize vinyl to burned cd's, and throw out the vinyl.
Looks cheap, sounds cheap, eventually the price was cheap...and yet somehow, they used a good quality Burr-Brown USB audio IC...which they screwed up on the implementation.
With its appearing as a USB microphone, I have to wonder if the audio IC is programmed through resistors or jumpers and if the manufacturer chose the wrong ones. If not, I suppose one could always pad the output of the cartridge down through some resistors and solve the problem.
It has line level out, but the USB interface is sending clipped audio. Proves it was made cheaply.
I bought the IT back in the day at Big Lots for $28 if I remember correctly. They said it was a clearance item. Yes, I said for get this and boxed it back up. It's up on a shelf in my closet. I went to a pawn shop and bought a Pioneer 12 and have several other vintage turntables from the 70s and 80s.
"....just like the clubs in Brighton..........." Suberb!! LOL
3:23 that needle spiking reference was unexpected.
Kevin, just wanting to say many thanks for another year of interesting, informative and entertaining videos. Have a great 2025.
I really have been waiting on another Heartburn America catalog review. Your first review was absolutely excellent. Please do another soon.
i second this!
Yes!
I agree, more Heartburn America
Oh yeah, Burr Brown ADC, renowned among audiophiles :D :D
Suggestion for a follow-up video: How to add two simple voltage dividers (one per channel) to greatly improve the USB sound quality.
Another suggestion for a follow-up video: Cut the signal from the record player to the USB part (perhaps using a switch) and use the USB part to digitize other audio sources.
I got one of these gems for christmas years ago... thankfully the giver wasn't offended when I asked if she kept the receipt.
The folks at Knowzy had their records destroyed by this turntable. It had nothing to do with the tracking force however. They purchased an unity with a crooked needle that chewed the LP grooves. It was the Grace brand.
That Chanuka music sounds like the soundtrack of a 70s anime TV show. Let's hope those anime producers were inspired by that album, including the album cover.
i was gonna say, it sounds like a showa-era Kamen Rider theme...
I would love to see another Hearthburn America video
The CEO of the OEM that pumped out those things is probably a millionaire.
You might be forgetting the upfront cost and logistics. At $200 they would have quite a nice margin, but that wasn't their price for too long.
maybe reduce the clipping by fitting a resistor in series with the cartridge feeds to the circuit to reduce the amplitude? may even help the bass response by reducing loading ....?
The video title breaks the law of Betteridge!
This was fun to listen to during my drive back to Winnipeg from Regina. Hope you had a good Christmas.
That final record sounded interesting.
I remember when Kohls first sold these USB turntables by Memorex or Ion, I was somewhat interested in buying it, until I found out it’s overpriced for over a hundred bucks, while a Crosley combo turntable with cassette and CD player just slightly cost more and had more playback features!
Dale Jacobs? Man, you know your music! (Thought that I was one of the few who love that album/ artist.) Kudos!
Great video , I’ve always wondered about these .
Very old school to use VHS tapes to prop up a turntable. Nice.
Some lives ago when I was living in the UK I heard that if you ever plan to stroll at night through Blackpool you should always wear wellies... I asked "Why?", "Oh, so you don't get puke on your nice shoes!" 👏☺
Great video! You did another video on the lineage of cheap turntable mechanisms awhile back - I have always heard of Leetac and Skywin manufactured turntables, it would be great to have a comparison of these things. As you showed here, the brand name doesn't mean much it would seem!
Space Kid, track "Tune" if you're taking requests, sir 😊
Yeah, I figured this thing was trash lol I always enjoy your vids, appreciate the attention to detail and basic common sense when you review things.
What's the album that started playing at 8:57?
Emile's Telegraphic Transmission Device. I Could Never.
the ending 🤣 hope everyone had a good Christmas!
My copy of Homework always skipped on cheaper turntables, too. It was pressed off center though, so lots of players would have struggled to play it without skipping. About 12 years ago I bought a nice condition Thorens TD-160 for around $300 (local seller) and I haven't needed to use anything else since.
It's funny you posted this. I literally just found an almost new in box ION TTUSB turn table for $10 at good will. It's in such good condition that i had to get it.
That one is much better because it actually comes with a magnetic cartridge and adjustable counterweight.
An idea for the distortion: how about an attenuator between the cartridge and the USB encoder. I have a feeling it will perform better with a lower input signal.
Just acquired something very similar just for the ceramic preamp going to use it with a BSR MP60 fitted with a Sonotone cartridge that I've totally dismantled powder coated reassembled and fitted to a new old stock plinth. Looks like 1972 but playing really better than it should
I shudder to think how many turntables were destroyed By "DJ's" to do that scratching thing!
The clipping also happens with the AT-LP-120xUSB. It clips at -6db with the USB connection and highest quality through USB is 16bit 48kHz. For that reason I record using my line in on the SoundBlaster card. No clipping and I can record up to 24 bit 192 kHz. However, I now record everything at 24 bit 48kHz, which is considered HD audio.
While 48khz is pretty common for recording, wouldn't 44.1khz be more suitable since that's what music is typically stored at? It wouldn't really make much difference but it does mean you don't have to resample down for CD burning, perhaps.
@ I use the files on my Sony Hi Res Walkmans. I’m sure at my age there’s absolutely no sonic difference, it just makes me all warm and fuzzy knowing I saved the files in a slightly better format. 😂
But can they do the record skip sound effect?
Around 2010 my father purchased an ion brand turntable with USB, its speed was all right, and it had great stereo separation... The way I found that second one out was because I guess it had set itself to one channel as well, and it didn't combine the stereo channels, it only recorded the one. It was only a two-speed unit and it had a ceramic cartridge that wasn't properly matched. Bizarrely, it was not a cz800 clone, though I don't know what it actually used. Most useful thing it did for me was it provided a decent rubber platter mat that I snagged when I first got my old lp60x years ago now
Fantastic video! I guess this turntable wanted to compete in the loudness war 🤣
You have the rare follow up to the Joy of Shabbos - I wonder who played the bed tracks on those albums.
Ohhh hanukah song so nice! Happy hanukah and merry christmas ❤
Heartburn America again? 😊
I had a usb turntable in about 2008. When I’d transfer the vinyl to Audacity, the turntable would pick up the ambient noise in the room. I gave it away.
I’m 100% sure my dad has one of these still in the box.
it’s funny how this sold for $200 usd. A few days ago I bought a at-lpw40wn for about the same price ($400 aud, so technically more but close enough). No USB recorder but I had a cheap audio interface and most people could get something workable from the audio input on their computer if they have one
I remember Innovative Technologies having this massive booth at CES in like 2015 or 2016, with all sorts of retro-looking turntables with the Victrola name on them. Some actually looked kind of neat, but I never saw those sold anywhere after the show. And of course they had the same cheap internals as the others.
There's a brand new Victrola "crosley cruiser" up in my shed - looks like the power supply jack tore off the board the first time the buyer tried plugging it in.
I’m honestly really quite impressed by this. I was expecting an absolute piece of crap, but it’s actually a completely listenable sound that’s only a little too fast. It’s not that heavy on the record and it’s not that bad of a stylus, and it doesn’t really seem that bad at all, it has some quality.
My record player is a belt driven one which doesn’t have those fancy controls for the platter and tone arm, so in a sense this might actually be better than my one, which was a real surprise.
If this one is better than yours, I don't even want to know what kind of turntable you own
@ It’s an old one my dad got in the 90s, the stylus and audio quality is better, but it doesn’t have the arm controls and its belt driven so that needs replacing every so often.
@@justanotheryoutubechannel The controls are really unimportant. Lots of high end turntables were and continue to be minimalist in terms of features. The main thing is the sound, which is lacking on these cheap plastic players.
Sadist.
Just wondering if you could add a resistor in series before the USB PCM so the levels will decrease and they could be amplified later
with the system the way it came, you can use the red and white cables into the inputs of your computer, just need a 3.5 mm to RCA, level should be right.
I have a Lenco one, less disguisting looking. I use it to make recordings off vinyl directory into audacity. It aint the best to say it simply. But since something will never come out again I’m just glad to have one
This is a great in depth review. Lik'd and Sub'd for more of this great content!
It comes with 3 needles, just like the club at Brighton. 😂
this made me giggle out loud
I don't get it. Would you mind explaining it?
Nice conclusion there. :D
The black album always skips on my at-lp60 and I never understood why, now I do! Thank you! What can fix that?
I bought a Numark TT-USB 150 Euro unit from Thomann (IIRC) over ten years ago.
PROS:
- Unlike these ubiquitous things with the red-and-black cartridge, possibly with sapphire stylus, it can be fitted with your choice of bayonet cartridge, or the included head shell to adapt for any 1/2 inch mount cartridge
- The factory cartridge is a Numark GT, a spare unit for which cost 30ish Euro stylus included when I last checked, and the spare stylus went at 15ish Euro - that appears to be a diamond stylus, and the cartridge is a perfectly good starting point for someone who just wants to play records
- Unlike these ubiquitous things with the ridiculous plastic platter with stylus killer lobes and little rubber pads for traction with the record, it has a metal bearing and a cast alu-minimum platter with a fibercloth mat - while the stylus would not like to be put on that either, it is way safer
- The internal preamp, nothing bad to say about it, way better than I expected for the price - better than some that are on new cheapskate HiFi amps if they even have one.
CONS:
- It isn't mechanically very sturdy, with a plastic body and very little structural metal
- The internal ADC while fairly good otherwise, could benefit from a sizely and accessible gain adjustment knob on the front/top panel instead of a tiny wimpy little twirly nipple in the back next to the phono/line level selector by the cord entry point
- The power transformer inside is very much under the trajectory of the stylus, and there is a noticeable network frequency hum at all times the unit is powered on and the stylus is on the record, even when the motor is stopped
Obviously all the cons are fairly expectable by the price.
I solved the hum problem by ripping the transformer out and wiring a wall wart from an old DSL modem on it. I never throw out working PSU's even if the associated device itself went to WEEE. They come in handy at the most unexpected moments.
My solution to the poor adjustability of the internal ADC is not using it, but a good sound card instead.
EDIT: One of the pros was misplaced as a con.
An order for 2000 turntables would about fit in one 40 foot long shipping container.
The LTT usb turntable fits
I had one of these when I was in high school/college. I got rid of it shortly before or after I graduated college. The moment I realized it was a crummy turntable was when I kept trying to import my records in Audacity, and they always sounded terrible on there, even when they would sound fine on my Dad's better turntable. (Mine had the logo of "Electronic Brands" or something like that.) Another problem I remember it having was it would skip playing some warped records because the turntable platter wasn't completely flat, it had a few raised sections so the record wouldn't be scratched by the hard plastic underneath. Yet another reason I got rid of mine in the late 2010s.
I went out of my way to get a turntable without USB connectivity. Thankfully the Denon model is got for $100 new was the perfect start. Paired it with my Sherwood stereo receiver and still able to record to my PC via Soundcard. Along with other sources like cassette tape, FM radio, HD radio, SIRIUS, and XM.
Before these cheap and nasty player's, You could record a turntable after the pre-amp to the input of a sound card, use a audio program to remove hiss, and clicks
These palyers were not needed
You can't really remove hiss. You might make it less noticeable in sections of total silence, but with music, you're just trying to fight analog SNR. There is no general filter available that can distinguish noise from a signal. If there was, we would have never needed to switch from LP to digital.
@@graealex exactly man, less noticable using Software Filter's, than real hardware
This record player was built in 2009, but I thought you said it says 2008 on the box?
that was likely when the box artwork was produced, it may have been manufactured for a few years from then
I wonder if that clipped audio is a driver issue or a chip issue, is it also clipped coming out the RCA? Wondering if it could be fixed with a pair of resistors 🤔
Grace put out one of these? They used to be a VERY reputable high-end pro audio brand, best known for their incredible mic preamps. Sounds like some "vulture economy" type snagged the trademark and logo...sort of like how one sees Delta Labs stomp boxes despite the ACTUAL firm not even making it to the 1990s. Or those Biyang (which actually makes some damn fine effects) pedals badged with the long-gone Cordovox brand.
that brothers zim lp is a banger need to get a copy
I'm just here for the excellently curated thrift store vinyl selection.
2:23 "Those old LPs are degrading..." So, burn them to CD-Rs that will last only about 2-5 years :( Seriously, those CD-Rs are probably unplayable by now, but the vinyl LPs will last beyond your lifetime!
Vinyl LPs will only "last beyond your lifetime" if you only ever play them a handful of times.
@@seanmckelvey6618 That's a myth. A TH-camr put that to the test. The only thing that could cause "wear" is if the record is played several times in a short time period. The friction makes the vinyl warm and can soften the grooves when heated too much.
It depends which quality of CD-R you bought. I still have some over 20 years old burned CD-Rs without any data rotting.
Making FLAC format is still best idea for backup.
@@Juzimasteri find old blank cdr’s with a max speed of 12x and never had anything go wrong
Ok...I admit...I have the Tevion version. I ordered it a new drive belt and diamond stylus, in the hope they would arrive by Xmas (they didn't)...ordered the spares for a Crosley Cruiser, assuming they'd fit. Is it's tracking force likely to damage records long term?
See my three-way vinyl record wear test video. With a diamond stylus, you're unlikely to notice any wear until after you've played the record 100+ times.
@@vwestlife thanks Kevin. I've watched your videos for years btw!
@@vwestlifeDad came home with a Tevion version years ago... its belt snapped, so I had to order another. Once it's working, I'll use it until it dies or I decide/can upgrade.
IDK what this is at 9:05, but I like it...
The last thing i was expecting was some good ol' Daft Punk 😂
Honestly... after watching this video, it might be better than a cruiser! A diamond stylus and a platter mat would make this thing a decent rig. Not many turntables available today (at least in stores near me) have an automatic tone arm.
The only way your going to fix that is with some divider resistors between the cartage and audio module
I was certain that this video's title was going to adhere to Betteridge's Law, but you got me 😁 But, as always, I appreciate you actually testing and demonstrating these things so we can see and hear the validity of your conclusions. And those clicks during the image changes near the beginning were really making me think of even older technology - every one made me picture the advance of a slide carousel/cassette in a projector, in a most satisfying way.
breaking the law of Betteridge is a federal crime on YT now!
Should have drilled two holes in the base incase you have to go back to the trimmers!
I got one of these in around 2008 I think. £40 from QVC. Dreadful thing. I wonder how many people digitised their records on one of these and then threw away the originals. You can hear the high-frequency damage on the Daft Punk album from the times it's been played as a test on these cheap turntables.
Dale Jacobs Cobra... All I can imagine is the beginning of a 70's xxx flick..
Maybe try to tweak the audio levels that enter into that USB encoder? Some resistive divider, or even a stereo potentiometer maybe? It have the place to be mounted.
I have a new in the box VINYLWRITER Pico GDI-VW00 made by Grace Digital Audio. Still has the store price label: $73.99. It does not have a base like the ones you show, just legs to stand on. I never got around to transferring any records thanks to YT having all the music I want. Happy Holidaze One And All.
That Hanukkah music goes a bit harder than I thought it would!
I literally just got one of these in at work NOS sealed. How quaint!
must've heard "Around the World" a thousand times, and while it was playing all I could think was "mmm, sounds a bit fast". I felt pretty vindicated once you put the strobe disc on!
You know it's terrible when even suitcase players with their 4$ mechanism at least manage to get tracking force right😂
I had a worse sounding one that recorded straight to USB. Not only was it clipping the audio but it was so tinny that it erased all the bass. I ripped the circuit out and used it as a decent USB music player. Although your's looks FUGLY.
🎉Happy New Year Everybody🎉
Loved the ending
If it were possible to cut down on that overdriving of the USB DAC, it probably would improve things, not by much though... :P
I literally have this exact USB turntable in the thumbnail, still sealed, in the garage. I picked it up for 50 bucks amd meant to digitize my albums beofe I heard how the needle can ruin your records. Been meaning to get rid of it, but just haven't.
Yes, performance wise & sonically they're absolutely dreadful ! Far better off purchasing a decent used 'proper' Turntable & separate amplifier.
That Chanukah album is such a banger record, I need a rip of it
Personally I find it kinda funny that a big selling point of these was for people to not have to buy CDs or mp3 of music they already own...since I bought my first turntable a few months ago, and I've been basically doing the opposite, buying records of music that I already either have on CD or mp3! In fact, there was a model of the turntable I got that came with a USB port, but I didn't get that one because I figured I'd be unlikely to use it.
I had one of these for a while, got it with a bunch of other free audio stuff .
Mine was branded medion , it had all the options and " features " + the stupidly bright blue display
I should have videos of it in the achive.
I immediately added The Joy of Chanukah and Dale Jacobs albums to my Spotify playlist. Now who's the cool guy?
These things originally sold for $200? Yikes. With that cash and some patience, I have to imagine you could find a better used machine.
WOW cobra!! You are a man of class and SAS! You have leveled up SIR! (Gives gay 🤚)
marks and spencer?? blimey!!!