Subj : Turntables and LPs
To : Nightfox
From : Ogg
Date : Wed Sep 15 2021 12:20 am
Hello Nightfox!
** On Tuesday 14.09.21 - 09:05, Nightfox wrote to All:
N> A while ago, I saw something online about this ELP laser
N> turntable:
https://www.elpj.com
N> It's a record player that uses a laser (rather than a
N> stylus) to read the grooves on the disc. The advantage
N> would be that since it doesn't make physical contact with
N> the record, it won't wear out the record. [...]
Thanks for sharing that. The idea of using a laser to read the
grooves of vinyl records sounds like one of those "why didn't I
think of that" moments.
The site seems to be thrown together (using a basic Wordpress
theme) and hasn't been cleaned up properly. How long has this
laser turntable been around? I had no idea that this was
getting explored back in the 80s. "The first working model,
the Finial LT-1 (Laser Turntable-1), was completed in time for
the 1986 CES. The prototype revealed an interesting flaw of
laser turntables: they are so accurate that they play every
particle of dirt and dust on the record, instead of pushing
them aside as a conventional stylus would." [https://
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_turntable]
It is interesting to read that the specs indicate "black vinyl"
only. I guess that leaves out the fancy LPs in alternate
colours - for now.
N> Also, they say the sound should be really good since there
N> shouldn't be any hiss from a stylus sliding across the
N> record surface. Also, I think this turntable would be a
N> good candidate to be used for digitizing records.
I was positioning myself to digitize my LP collection a few
years ago, but when Spotify came along, the whole idea seemed
moot. A Spotify subscription is far less than the cost of time
to handle every record manually, and adding all the meta data /
tags labelling on all the recordings properly, plus the cost of
additional storage, plus a decent backup regiment.
N> I've been curious to try one, but they're so expensive.
N> They cost at least $10,000 (which seems a bit ridiculous to
N> me)..
They may be made available at audio shows or at certain hi-fi
shops, soon.
N> Also, I've read some reviews saying the sound isn't
N> as good as you might think, and that the laser will also
N> pick up dust and translate it to audio, which isn't really
N> a good thing; so the record would need to be very clean
N> before being played in this player.
The 1st generation CD players did a horrible job with CDs when
they first came out.
N> If I could find a laser turntable like that for cheap, I
N> might be tempted to buy one and get into collecting
N> records.
No need to buy the laser turntable just yet. Audition one if/
when you get a chance. The cost of LPs is crazy at $20+
Further into the wiki article above: "A similar technology is
to scan or photograph the grooves of the record, and then
reconstruct the sound from the modulation of the groove
revealed by the image." ..now THAT sounds like an interesting
(obvious) approach too.
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