Record players on boats

[Rambling Boater]

When I decided to live on a boat many years ago, I had to go through a material world purge.

 

The funny thing is that one of the few things I kept (stored in someone elses house!)  was my quite small vinyl collection.

 

Now I've decided to regress back to the analogue route and bought one of new Audio Technica Sound Burgers (other compact decks available).

 

It's brilliant. It works for many hours on rechageable batteries. I just use an audio cable to plug it into my stereo, but the new fangled Sound Burger has Bluetooth. That also works well if you prefer your sound waves chopped up. 😉

 

Analogue vs Digital war Grrr

[Puffling]

Interesting to see it's priced the same in dollars as pounds. Burgers were never this extortionately priced when Wimpy bars were common on the high street.

 

Seriously, though, I'd imagine the stylus pressure is independent of levelling, given the tone arm is tensioned with a spring. A spring! Definitely won't be putting my LPs anywhere near such a bugger  - sorry, burger - to see them ploughed and furrowed.

[booke23]

I'm a bit of a record collector myself, but haven't heard of these Sound Burgers until now! Just looked at a few videos on youtube and they do look clever, although I don't like the sound of a spring tensioned tone arm 😬. They also seem to suffer from a bit of wow and flutter and one example on YT was grossly overspeed, although this can be adjusted internally aparently.   

[Rambling Boater]

Funny you should mention wow and flutter. Actualy, it's not bad and the stylus cartridge is very good quality. 

 

The point is that I can now listen to all of my old albums, on a boat, without it jogging the stylus and with great analogue sound.

 

What's the point of having a record collection if you don't listen to it? Ok, perhaps it's a financial investment, then again, can you take the profits with you, or the vinyl. 😕

 

Anyway, that was my thinking. Just listening to Supertramps first album before they sold out. Not sure why I bought it now. Hmm, maybe it wasn't such a good idea getting that one.

 

If you had to take just one album to a desert island, which would it be?

[DShK]

Interestingly, and worryingly. Vinyl is likely extremely bad for your health! Up to you if you care but this was enough to put me off buying vinyl as the odd collectors item.

 

 

[Rambling Boater]

2 minutes ago, DShK said:

Interestingly, and worryingly. Vinyl is likely extremely bad for your health! Up to you if you care but this was enough to put me off buying vinyl as the odd collectors item.

 

 

 

Of course I care. This is stuff I bought in the 70s, so I can I either listen to it, burn it, or stick it in land fill.

 

As for the new trend in selling vinyl, maybe you have a point.

 

So what about all of the energy used from point to source with an MP3 track being played over the internet? Do you realise how much energy these internet servers use? 
 

To be fair, I've seen, and even bought clocks made from old vinyls. Where do you think that will end up?

 

Aplogies for using the energy equivalent to boiling a kettle for replying to your post. 😉

[matty40s]

Yes- Close to the Edge would have to be my one album. Incredible piece of music.

Kathy got me one of these a while back, with a USB socket so you can transfer the files to digital.

[Rambling Boater]

3 minutes ago, matty40s said:

Yes- Close to the Edge would have to be my one album. Incredible piece of music.

Kathy got me one of these a while back, with a USB socket so you can transfer the files to digital.

 

 

NOooooo

 

Mind you, at our age, with dodgy ears, hi fiddelity is a bit pointless really.

 

Yep, copy all of your vinyl to MP3 and then chuck the viynl into land fill.        Along with the player!

 

BTW, yes, Close to the Edge is a brilliant album. 😉

[DShK]

23 minutes ago, Rambling Boater said:

 

Of course I care. This is stuff I bought in the 70s, so I can I either listen to it, burn it, or stick it in land fill.

 

As for the new trend in selling vinyl, maybe you have a point.

 

So what about all of the energy used from point to source with an MP3 track being played over the internet? Do you realise how much energy these internet servers use? 
 

To be fair, I've seen, and even bought clocks made from old vinyls. Where do you think that will end up?

 

Aplogies for using the energy equivalent to boiling a kettle for replying to your post. 😉

 

Did you watch the video? I wasn't making a comment of the environmental impact, but on your own health.But I was specifically talking about the effect it has on air quality. Which is going to be an even worse problem on a boat.

 

And yes, I have a good idea about server energy use. I did work experience at IBM and they showed me their server room - they told me this room used as much power as the nearby village. The difference there being that servers can be powered from renewables, unlike the production of vinyl. But this wasn't my point to posting.

[booke23]

54 minutes ago, Rambling Boater said:

What's the point of having a record collection if you don't listen to it?

 

Couldn't agree more!

 

 

46 minutes ago, DShK said:

Interestingly, and worryingly. Vinyl is likely extremely bad for your health! Up to you if you care but this was enough to put me off buying vinyl as the odd collectors item.

 

 

 

 

Fake news. All plastics offgas. Unless you're huffing it in huge quantities you'll be fine. 

Edited October 5, 2023 by booke23

[DShK]

Again, did you watch the video? Benn Jordan is a musician who decided to no longer produce vinyl for the videos outlined in the video. Given that streaming makes it very difficult for artists to make a living these days. It's counter to his economic interests to do it lightly. He's also an accomplished researcher, so I think he's probably more qualified to make a call than just some guy on a forum saying "fake news" without backing his argument up, lol.

[Rambling Boater]

10 minutes ago, DShK said:

 

Did you watch the video? I wasn't making a comment of the environmental impact, but on your own health.But I was specifically talking about the effect it has on air quality. Which is going to be an even worse problem on a boat.

 

And yes, I have a good idea about server energy use. I did work experience at IBM and they showed me their server room - they told me this room used as much power as the nearby village. The difference there being that servers can be powered from renewables, unlike the production of vinyl. But this wasn't my point to posting.

 

Did you read my reply?

 

Do you know how much energy and pollution is caused by the manufacture of 'renewable power souces' and how long they last? Seen many used solar panels dumped on the cut in recent years. Where are they going to go? Not seen any dumped records yet (if i do, I'll grab 'em).

[magpie patrick]

17 minutes ago, DShK said:

Again, did you watch the video? Benn Jordan is a musician who decided to no longer produce vinyl for the videos outlined in the video. Given that streaming makes it very difficult for artists to make a living these days. It's counter to his economic interests to do it lightly. He's also an accomplished researcher, so I think he's probably more qualified to make a call than just some guy on a forum saying "fake news" without backing his argument up, lol.

 speaking as someone involved in music (radio and promoting artists) I should point out (1) there are alternatives to spotify (Bandcamp stream music but also allow purchase of a digital download so there is a bigger revenue stream for artists) and that (2) most bands don't do vinyl releases, it's largely a prestige thing not an commercial venture  - CD's become economic at a run of around 100 whereas vinyl is in the 1000s. Also, unless you're going to saw your treasured LP in half, and either inhale it or eat it, those toxins aren't going anywhere. 

 

Or put another way, most artists turn their back on vinyl for economic reasons - this guy's "principled stand" is a marketing ploy to gain attention

[booke23]

4 minutes ago, DShK said:

Benn Jordan is a musician

 

Yes, eminently qualified to comment on the chemistry of PVC no doubt. 🙄 He also is a big advocate for copyright abolition, and it just so happens that physical music formats are devastating to his cause, so he's got an axe to grind.

 

9 minutes ago, DShK said:

I think he's probably more qualified to make a call than just some guy on a forum saying "fake news" without backing his argument up, lol.

 

Highly ironic. You can't believe anything you see on youtube.

[DShK]

Aight guys, keep huffing the toxins if you like, just like you did the lead in petrol. I wonder if the want for one is linked with the other?

[booke23]

We could talk about huffing the PM2.5 particulates from your stove for 6 months of the year, and the proven ill effects on health that has. 😉

[Tony1]

39 minutes ago, booke23 said:

We could talk about huffing the PM2.5 particulates from your stove for 6 months of the year, and the proven ill effects on health that has. 😉

 

I might as well go and jump in the cut now....

 

 

[blackrose]

12 hours ago, DShK said:

Interestingly, and worryingly. Vinyl is likely extremely bad for your health! Up to you if you care but this was enough to put me off buying vinyl as the odd collectors item.

 

 

 

I'm sitting in a small backstreet Hainanese pork and duck restaurant in Bangkok so I can't play the video out loud as it would be a bit rude, but I thought the adverse health effects of PVC were limited to the production stage of the polymer from potential exposure to the monomer, vinyl chloride? Once the material has been polymerised it no longer poses a health risk does it?

 

If PVC itself is hazardous to health then what about all the PVC insulated cables on your boat, PVC window frames in people's houses and countless other products made from the plastic? 

 

12 hours ago, Rambling Boater said:

What's the point of having a record collection ?

 

I think for many people that might be the most relevant question... Yes I know all about the supposed analogue timbre of vinyl which you just don't get from digital formats, but to actually hear the difference you'd need a pretty good turntable, amp and speakers, plus as someone said we're getting old and you'd need pretty good hearing too. So for most people and especially people on boats CDs and MP3 formats make sense. But it's whatever you like and I understand that getting rid of and replacing an entire record collection is going to be impractical and expensive. I have about 350 jazz, soul and classical music albums on my boat in minidisc format which is also now a dead technology. I recorded most of them when I lived in Tokyo 30 years ago and I'm not going to replace them as they still work fine and sound perfect. I just can't imagine storing hundreds of vinyl albums on a boat.

Edited October 6, 2023 by blackrose

[tree monkey]

12 hours ago, matty40s said:

Yes- Close to the Edge would have to be my one album. Incredible piece of music.

Kathy got me one of these a while back, with a USB socket so you can transfer the files to digital.

Bowie, rise and fall of ziggy stardust.

 

Actually maybe diamond dogs

 

Nope definitely rise and fall.

 

Hang on, maybe dark side of the moon, yes definitely dark side of the moon.

 

No definitely rise and fall

 

Mind you I would miss Billy Bragg talking to the taxman

 

Hmmmm this could get complicated 

 

[Puffling]

As I understand it, it's only the perception of high frequencies which is affected by the aging process; an older person is still able to distinguish high quality reproduction from lesser. If you've been exposed to and appreciate low distortion and high transparency sound, you'll recognise crap very quickly.

 

I often consider how ironic it is that many young people's main music source is a tiny phone speaker. Or "pods" that look like electric toothbrush tips poking out their ears. If they use speakers they will be Bluetooth coupled and with shrimp-sized diaphragms. I'll concede that some may spend a lot of money on quality headphones, but the desire for solid bass is what mostly passes for being an audiophile under 25 these days...

 

mp3 can be surprisingly good if it's recorded at the top bit rate. But if you have the storage space (trivial these days with 2TB portable drives the size of a credit card) it's better to encode using FLAC, which doesn't throw away any of the information in the original. I ripped all my LPs and CDs to FLAC before moving onto the boat. It's free! It's lossless!

 

I don't think my Transcriptors Fluid Arm and ADC cartridge would have got on too well in the ever-changing horizontal of boating life.

 

Edited October 6, 2023 by Puffling

[cuthound]

7 hours ago, tree monkey said:

Bowie, rise and fall of ziggy stardust.

 

Actually maybe diamond dogs

 

Nope definitely rise and fall.

 

Hang on, maybe dark side of the moon, yes definitely dark side of the moon.

 

No definitely rise and fall

 

Mind you I would miss Billy Bragg talking to the taxman

 

Hmmmm this could get complicated 

 

 

This explains why I ended up with over 400 CD's.

 

My favourite is very mood dependent.

[Sir Percy]

The Sound Burger appeals as a clever space-saving device, but obviously doesn't address the problem of the vinylephant in the room. I've just dug out an old Thorens deck (with suspended platter, useful on a boat) and brought that on board, with the first tranche of my record collection, which I might be able to find space for, with careful culling. CDs, I've mostly ripped onto a Brennan JB7, so I guess they can go to Oxfam. Add to that, harmon/kardon speakers chucked out on to the street by my NDN, seemingly for no other reason than his kids dropped bits of toast and toy parts down into the subwoofer hole. Bit of a design flaw, that. The only thing I've splashed out on recently is a preamp with a digital output so I can digitise the LPs. Might be a compact system eventually.

[blackrose]

Record players on boats with accompanying large album collections. What a great space-saving idea! 😋

[Chewbacka]

8 hours ago, blackrose said:

Record players on boats with accompanying large album collections. What a great space-saving idea! 😋

A lot of vinyl is quite heavy, so can double up as ballast……

[cuthound]