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GIVE ’EM A Not too many (any?) hifi systems these days come with a record turntable. So what do you do with that collection that’s been gathering dust since your old faithful died? There’s plenty of turntables out there! Just dip into our listing. by BARRIE SMITH I f you had any doubts about the future of LP recordings just walk around your local hifi store and see the bins full of LP reissues and even some new titles. And they’re not cheap either, with prices frequently level with and sometimes above new CDs. Maybe you want to wrap your tone arm around the Buddy Holly LP, “pressed on 180 grams of virgin vinyl, remastered from the original tapes without compression!” Just $48 for a singe disc. Of course, the happy hunting grounds for vinyl platters with a bit of age on them are the charity shops, garage sales and school/church fetes. Plenty of people these days are spending the odd hour or spare day converting their vinyl to CD or MPS tracks for use in iPods and similar. With the right software you can bring analog recordings back to original quality: no clicks, bumps, pops. You need a turntable. There are a few options: you may have no desire to mix it with eBay to grab a preloved turntable from a seller that probably matches the age of your LP collection. If you’re in need of some turntables or other components of a ‘certain age’ you will be surprised at how easy and economical they are to acquire these days. Aside from checking around with friends (especially 16  Silicon Chip the spouses or partners thereof!) to prise some unwanted hardware from their hesitant fingers, the next stop should be the used section of hifi retailers. But you may find the occasional absence of manuals with used equipment a bit of a bind! I regularly haunt Len Wallis’ premises in Sydney; the pre-owned amps, turntables and tape machines are a joy to behold, in excellent working order and very fairly priced. Other cities have similar businesses you can scour. But if you prefer not to mess with gear of an indeterminate age and go the new route, there is a virtual forest of new models out there from prestige manufacturers, as well as the majors like Sony and Panasonic. New turntables can vary enormously in price, comparable in the range from a second hand Datsun 120Y to a new Merc 200; I’m talking in a range from $400 to $68,000! This turntable listing includes units priced below $2000. There are others … but if you’re spending in the tens of thousands of dollars for a turntable to retrieve the sonic glories of yesterday you either need your head read — or you should get out more! (BTW: the abbreviation MM in the listing stands for moving magnet cartridge.) siliconchip.com.au SPIN! Buying a turntable The argument continues: is the reproduction of sound from an analog LP superior to that from a digital CD? I’m not buying into it other than to say I personally don’t miss the clicks and bumps from a vinyl LP and I do find the quality on the best of CDs far superior to that of top LPs. So there. But if you want to copy your LP collection to CD and you’ve dumped the family record player years ago there is no alternative: you will be buying a new or second hand turntable. Basic turntable construction is just that: pretty basic. In the main case there is a motor, a drive system which connects the motor to the platter so that it rotates at the appropriate speed and usually (though not always) some method of selecting that speed. Alongside the platter (which itself rotates the records) is a tone arm which moves over the surface of the record. It carries the cartridge which converts into electrical signals the miniscule movement of the stylus as it tracks the record’s groove and vibrates from side to side in accordance with what was recorded in that groove. There is usually some method of adjusting the downward force the stylus exerts on the record. siliconchip.com.au The best turntable systems can reduce the clicks and other noise from the record surface while inferior turntables may well exacerbate this. Speeds 33-1/3 RPM (revolutions per minute), 45 RPM and the lesser seen (older) 78 RPM are the main ones you will encounter. Let’s hope you’re not confronted by 16-2/3 RPM discs; many older turntables do not handle th is speed! Before investing in a turntable, check to see if your amplifier or receiver has “phono” inputs. These are inputs with (a) the appropriate sensitivity (usually around 5-10mV); (b) the appropriate input impedance (around 50kW) and (c) most importantly, response tailored to reverse the equalisation which is applied to records in the manufacturing stage. If your amplifier or receiver doesn’t have such an input, you will have to buy a turntable with inbuilt preamp or buy/ build a separate preamp to connect between the turntable and your amp/receiver. The output from such a preamp (or preamp-equipped turntable) can be fed directly into the sound input of your computer for dubbing onto the final CD. Many computers only have “mic” inputs – use this in the absence of a “line in” input and reduce the gain. May 2007  17 Recorded Sound Progress A successful and commercially viable method of recording and reproducing sound was long in coming but it was not until 1948 and the arrival of the 12 inch 33-1/3 RPM vinyl LP that music quality began to approach that of the original performance. The earliest recorded sound system dates back to circa 1500 BC. The mammoth “vocal” statue of Memnon at Thebes had the ability to make the sound of a harp string every day. The early 16th century saw the appearance of barrel organs, using rotating cylinders and attached pins, driven by clockwork gears that reproduced sound. Jacquard’s punched card system, initially devised to weave fabrics in the early 1800s, became the basis of an organ driven by bellows, pumping air jets through the card holes to create music. The approach was similar to the player piano and paper rolls that many of us grew up with. Edouard-Leon Scott de Martinville in Paris made a Berliner Gramophone “phonautograph” in 1857 to trace of 1888waves onto a carbonised cylinder with a stylus attached sound to a diaphragm that vibrated from spoken sounds. The device did not record the sound, only a graphical image of sound. In 1877 Charles Cros described a phonograph device but never built a model. Edison was seeking to improve the telephone in 1877 when he discovered the recording device known as the phonograph. In the same year Edison recorded a human voice speaking “Mary had a little lamb” onto the first phonograph using a tinfoil cylinder. Playing time was about 2-3 minutes. Early materials used for the cylinders were lead and wax. The Graphophone (as distinct from Gramophone) was patented in 1885, using wax-coated cylinders incised with vertical-cut grooves. Emil Berliner was first with a phonograph — the gramophone — in 1887 that used a flat disc, a non-wax disc engraved with a lateral-cut groove. The 7-inch (17.5cm) disc was hand-cranked at 30 RPM with a two minute playing time. Berliner was the first to mass-produce hard rubber vulcanite copies from a zinc master disc. He later used shellac, which was used later in pressing the popular 78 RPM records that were displaced by vinyl LPs only in 1948. The early steel styluses tracked at a weight of nine ounces (255 grams). Magnetic recorders came along in 1898, patented by Valdemar Poulsen using steel wire. Wire recorders were still in use by Australian radio Edison tinfoil phonograph 18  Silicon Chip stations in the 1950s. Double-sided flat discs were first sold in the early 1900s. HMV marketed a complete opera on 40 single-sided discs. The Odeon company competed with the Nutcracker Suite on four double-sided discs. Edison fought back in 1912 with blue celluloid cylinders that played for four minutes. Played with a diamond stylus, the new cylinder had low surface noise that gave better quality than flat discs of the period. However Thomas Alva finally conceded victory to the flat disc and began to use discs with a surface of plastic, laminated to a 1/4 inch thickness, similar to Bakelite. The bane of careful record collectors was the automatic record changer. The average gramophone, loaded with a dozen LPs could be guaranteed to destroy the audio quality on those hapless discs in doublequick time. The world’s first automatic record Berliner hand Gramophone changer was invented by Tasmanian Eric Waterworth, who showed it first at the 1927 Sydney Home Show. Due to a series of events Waterworth did not profit from the device, the patents lapsed and a number of English companies manufactured record-changing gramophones with almost all of them using the stepped centre spindle — a central feature of Waterworth’s design (information from SPAT). Vinyl discs were first used in 1929 when RCA began making transcription discs from optical movie soundtracks for radio stations to play on air. The same year saw the final production run of Ed ison cylinders and discs. In 1930, RCA Victor launched the first commerciallyavailable vinyl long-playing record, marketed as “Program Transcription” discs. These revolutionary discs were designed for playback at 33 RPM and pressed on a 30cmdiameter flexible plastic disc Many 78s were not recorded at exactly 78 RPM: speeds of between 72 and 85 RPM were quite common. A standard speed was not decided upon until around 1930. Up until then, record and replay speeds were pretty much subject to the left to the fancy of the various record companies; in fact, speeds ranged anywhere from 60 to 130 RPM. The majority of records, as it worked out, played quite successfully at speeds that ran from 72 to 82 RPM. Some examples: Edison and Diamond Discs siliconchip.com.au siliconchip.com.au May 2007  19 play at 80 RPM. Early Pathé discs run at 100 RPM. It was rare that a ‘78 RPM’ record actually played at a true 78 RPM. All of these will track happily at 4-5 grams, the optimum weight given the groove-wall geometry/dynamics of the 78. The first magnetic tape recorder was built in Germany by Dr. Fritz Pfleumer and AEG/Telefunken in 1931; BASF/AEG made the tape. This recorder was publicly demonstrated in Berlin in 1935. This invention became the foundation of the US Ampex corporation (see Ampex and Germany). Ampex got a leg up thanks to an enterprising US engineer and the end of WW2. (See AMPEX and Germany). 1948: Columbia introduced the first 12-inch 33-1/3 RPM micro-groove LP vinyl record with 23 minutes per side capacity. Tracking weights of 5-8 grams were common. 1949: RCA Victor introduced the 7 inch 45 RPM micro-groove “Extended Play” vinylite record and player. 1953: Elvis Presley made his first recording on disc at the Sun Studio of Sam Phillips in Memphis; the second recording by Elvis at Sun a year later was taped on two Ampex 350 recorders. 1956: the Chrysler Imperial 16-2/3 RPM record player with 7-inch ultra microgroove records appeared. 1958: world standard for stereo records estabRCA Victor Phonograph lished and first stereo LPs sold. 1963: Philips demonstrated its first compact audio cassette Columbia using Graphophone high quality BASF polyester 1/8 inch tape that ran at 1-7/8 inches/second. 1966: US cars were equipped with 8-track stereo cartridge tape players made by the Lear Jet Corporation. 1969: Dolby Noise Reduction introduced. 1971: quadraphonic records were announced, recording four separate sound signals. This was achieved on the two stereo channels by electronic matrixing, where the additional channels were combined into the main signal. 1982: first digital audio 12.5cm CD discs marketed by Sony and Philips. The maximum playing time would be 74 minutes, long enough to hold Beethoven’s 9th Symphony. 1987: Digital Audio Tape (DAT) players introduced. It was recently announced that production of DAT recorders is to end. 1999: Sony and Philips launch Super Audio CDs (SACD) delivering two channel stereo and (optionally) a 5.1 channel surround mix. 2000: DVD-Audio discs appeared, offering reproduction of up to 7.1 channels. 2001: Apple’s iPod, using a minuscule internal hard drive, is on the market. Early Gramophone Looking for real performance? • Learn how engine management systems work 160 PAGES • Build projects to control nitrous, fuel injection and turbo 2 3 CHAPTERS boost systems • Switch devices on and off on the basis of signal frequency, temperature and voltage • Build test instruments to check fuel injector duty cycle, fuel mixture and brake and coolant temperatures • Speedo Corrector, Turbo Timer & Digital Thermometer Projects Order by phoning (02) 9939 3295 & quoting your credit card number; or fax the details to (02) 9939 2648; or mail your order with cheque or credit card details to Silicon Chip Publications, PO Box 139, Collaroy, NSW 2097. 20  Silicon Chip of Intelligen t turbo timer I SBN 095 852 294 9 7809 5 8 5229 4 $19.80 (inc GST) Mail order prices: Aust. $A22.50 (incl. GST & P&P); Overseas: $A26.00 via airmail. Fro m the pu bli sh ers -4 s fuel cont rollers 6 NZ $22.00 (inc TURBO B OOST & nitrou GST) How eng in managemene t works siliconchip.com.au Power Supplies Oscilloscopes Spectrum Analysers Frequency Counters RF Generators HAMEG Instruments have always been recognised for the consistent quality and nocompromise value of German engineering. And now the news is even better! With more new products, an attractive educational discount scheme and lower prices for 2007 you owe it to yourself to find out more. Call us please on 1-300-853-407 Test Equipment: Sales, Service and Calibration 1-300-853-407 www.triosmartcal.com.au Radio, Television & Hobbies: the COMPLETE archive on DVD YES! NA MORE THA URY T N E QUARTER C NICS O OF ELECTR ! HISTORY This remarkable collection of PDFs covers every issue of R & H, as it was known from the beginning (April 1939 – price sixpence!) right through to the final edition of R, TV & H in March 1965, before it disappeared forever with the change of name to EA. For the first time ever, complete and in one handy DVD, every article and every issue is covered. If you’re an old timer (or even young timer!) into vintage radio, it doesn’t get much more vintage than this. If you’re a student of history, this archive gives an extraordinary insight into the amazing breakthroughs made in radio and electronics technology following the war years. And speaking of the war years, R & H had some of the best propaganda imaginable! Even if you’re just an electronics dabbler, there’s something here to interest you. • Every issue individually archived, by month and year • Complete with index for each year • A must-have for everyone interested in electronics Please note: this archive is in PDF format on DVD for PC. Your computer will need a DVD-ROM or DVD-recorder (not a CD!) and Acrobat reader (free download) to enable you to view this archive. This DVD is NOT playable through a standard A/V-type DVD player. Exclusive to SILICON CHIP ONLY 62 $ 00 +$8.80 P&P HERE’S HOW TO ORDER YOUR COPY: BY PHONE:* (02) 9939 3295 9-4 Mon-Fri BY FAX:# (02) 9939 2648 24 Hours 7 Days <at> BY EMAIL:# silchip<at>siliconchip.com.au 24 Hours 7 Days BY MAIL:# PO Box 139, Collaroy NSW 2097 * Please have your credit card handy! # Don’t forget to include your name, address, phone no and credit card details. siliconchip.com.au BY INTERNET:^ siliconchip.com.au 24 Hours 7 Days ^ You will be prompted for required information May 2007  21 The Turntable Listing: Finding that Stylus If you’re searching for turntable spares — cartridges, styli, etc — one source is Decibel Hifi at www.decibelhifi. com.au Another is Soundring. They stock a wide range of record player needles, styli and turntable needles, all delivered straight to your door. They have online database of over 118 top brands and models, so you’re sure to find the replacement needle or cartridge you are looking for. Some of the brands include Audio Technica, Denon, Dual, HMV styli, JVC, Nivico, Ortofon. Replacement needles and other hifi accessories: Marantz, National-Panasonic-Technics, NEC, Ortofon, Philips, Pioneer, Sansui, Sanyo, Sharp, Shure, Sony, Stanton, Toshiba, Yamaha and many more. Go to www.soundring.com.au/record-play For much of this surprising activity in turntables and their essential spares you can thank the DJs that are jazzing the young at discos and cafes around the country. One company who is very-DJ aware is Spank Records (www.spankrecords.com.au) who not only sell turntables from many well known companies but also deal in headphones, cartridges and styli from Ortofon, Shure, Stanton and others. For cartridges/styli and a heap more, Amber Electronics (www.amberelectronics.com) is a good one-stop shop. The cartridge brands include Leda, Io, Europa and The Tribute. Amber’s ‘heap more’ covers preamps and integrated amplifiers. Denon DP-29F 33-1/3, 45 RPM, DC servo motor, belt drive, phono equaliser, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $299 Denon DP-300F 33-1/3, 45 RPM, DC servo motor, fully auto, belt drive with MM cartridge and built in preamp. Price: $699 Dual CS415-2 33-1/3, 45 RPM, DC servo motor, belt drive, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $499. Dual CS-435-1 33-1/3, 45 RPM, DC servo motor, belt drive, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $649. Original - AT-2008 A s Dual CS-455-1M 33-1/3, 45, 78 RPM, DC servo motor, belt drive, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $799. DIY Parts PIC? Ming Da - MC-2A3 Goldring GR1.2 "it doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg to enjoy the pleasures of valve audio..." Daniel Chin 0422 753 517 John Pham 0431 582 396 COEM Audio Australia www.coemaudio.com.au 22  Silicon Chip 33-1/3, 45 RPM, DC servo motor, belt drive, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $699. Goldring GR2 33-1/3, 45 RPM, DC servo motor, belt drive, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $1199. siliconchip.com.au Outputs Note: most turntables in this listing have outputs only for preamps; these are of insufficient level and of no help when copying LPs to your computer. There are some turntables that have an inbuilt pre-amp and line level outputs; these can be connected directly to your computer for dubbing to the hard drive. There are also a couple of budget-priced turntables on sale in mainstream retailers. K-Mart has two models, one of which has an inbuilt pre-amp. Prices are $49 and $69. There is also the Optimus LAB1100 turntable and pre-amplifier combo from Dick Smith Electronics. At $98 it’s certainly priced right. Also of note are two Stanton models that have a digital output. Moth ALAMO1 33-1/3, 45 RPM, synchronous AC servo motor, belt drive, tone arm, no cartridge. Price: $715. Vinyl spoken here! Australia’s turntable specialists New and used turntables, tonearms, phono cartridges & styli, vinyl record cleaning products, alignment tools, test LP, stylus pressure gauges, upgrades for turntables & tonearms, phono preamplifiers, accessories, turntable belts, turntable parts, repairs & set up, cartridge re-tipping. Brands include Linn, Origin Live, Pro-Ject, Rek-O-Kut, Rega, Graham Slee Projects, The Cartridge Man, The Disc Doctor, Garrott, Ortofon, Audio Technica, Moth, Loricraft. Also distributing Jordan loudspeaker drivers and kits, and Sonic Impact T-amp products. SPECIAL OFFER for SILICON CHIP readers This CANRONG CRB-5 digital stylus pressure gauge normally sells on our website for $93.50. Now just $71.50. Use code SC5 in the Customer Instructions when placing your order on the website Moth ALAMOX 33-1/3, 45 RPM, synchronous AC servo motor, belt drive, tone arm, no cartridge. Price: $935. NAD C555 33-1/3, 45 RPM, AC motor, belt drive, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $799. Optimus LAB1100 33-1/3, 45 RPM, DC servo motor, belt drive, inbuilt pre-amp, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $98. Panasonic Technics SL-BD20 33-1/3, 45 RPM, DC servo motor, belt drive, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $279. siliconchip.com.au    Copyright Copyright, especially in Australia, can be a legal minefield. Take a look at www.copyright.org.au and see if the situation worries you enough to deter you from copying your old analog material – in fact, copying any material. In the US the copyright laws permit the making of one copy of an original for personal use. In Australia no such provision exists. Here it is illegal to make any type of copy of recorded music without the permission of the copyright owner – and that permission is rarely, if ever, given – especially without paying some form of licence fee. The key points: • There is no general right for individuals to copy recorded music, even from a record or CD you own and even if you want to use it on another form of “player” (eg, copying to an MP3 player or, as we are discussing here, copying old records to CDs). • There is no general right to copy copyright material for personal use under Australian law. • Ownership of a physical item (such as a CD) does not give you the right to make copies (including copying into a digital or other format). • There is no general right to copy recorded music from the internet without the copyright owners’ permission. The reality is that thousands of people make copies of records and CDs for personal use every day of the year. In moral and legal terms, it would be foolish to make copies for resale – or for gift-giving to another person. Much more information awaits at www.copyright.org. au/PDF/InfoSheets/G070.pdf May 2007  23 Turntable with USB output An easier approach could be the ION ITT USB Turntable, the world’s first USB turntable. It allows you to convert a vinyl collection directly to CD or (even MP3) with the included recording software. It is a ‘must have’ for people who don’t want to deal with clumsy adapters or mismatched audio formats. The ION USB turntable includes Audacity software for Win/Mac for recording as well as a trial of Bias Soundsoap 2 for cleaning and restoring LPs. If you’ve got a stack of old 45s, 33s or even 78s, you can now convert them to digital with this belt drive turntable. As well as the USB output it has a line level output for connecting to any home stereo with CD or auxiliary (AUX) inputs, via the stereo RCA outputs; it also has a 3.5mm stereo input so you can take a feed from a stereo cassette machine. It is compatible with any software that supports USB audio input sound cards so you can convert your vinyl into WAV, WMV, AIFF and MP3s. Includes a USB cable and pre-mounted cartridge with stylus and adjustable anti-skating control; a 45 RPM disc adaptor is in the kit. The turntable weighs 6 kg. While the turntable has only 33-1/3 and 45 RM speeds the included software can be used to convert 33-1/3 RPM transfers to 78 RPM. Another trick: replay 33-1/3 RPM discs at 45 RP for the dub: whilst saving time, these speed conversions possibly compromises the quality. In the case of the 78 RPM trick, the LP stylus is certainly the wrong profile for the old 78 shellac grooves. System requirements: Windows 98, 2000, or XP; Mac running OS9 or greater including Mac Universal. Price: $349.00 1300 761 466 www.techtoolsoftware.com Do it once. Do it right. Vinyl-to-digital transcription cartridge Panasonic Technics SL-1200MK2 and SL-1210MK2 33-1/3, 45 RPM, brushless DC servo motor, quartz direct drive, manual turntable. Price: $999. Panasonic Technics SL-1210M5G 33-1/3, 45 RPM, brushless DC servo motor, quartz direct drive, manual turntable. Price: $1299. Panasonic Technics SL-1200MK5 and SL-1210MK5 33-1/3, 45 RPM, brushless DC servo motor, quartz direct drive, manual turntable. Price: $1099. Pioneer PL-990 33-1/3, 45 RPM, DC servo motor, belt drive, phono equaliser, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $349. Pro-Ject Debut III 33-1/3, 45 RPM, synchronous AC motor, belt drive, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $399. Pro-Ject Debut III Phono SB 33-1/3, 45, 78 RPM, synchronous AC motor, electronic speed control, belt drive, preamp, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $599. Pro-Ject Xpression MK II Call for free info pack www.ortofon.com www.speakerbits.com 03 9647 7000 24  Silicon Chip 33-1/3, 45 RPM, suspended synchronous AC motor, electronic speed control, belt drive, tone arm. Price: $599. siliconchip.com.au Pro-Ject RPM5 33-1/3, 45 RPM, synchronous AC motor, belt drive, tone arm. Price: $849. They have arrived! Pro-Ject RPM 6.1 SB 33-1/3, 45, RPM, synchronous AC motor, electronic speed control, belt drive, tone arm. Price: $1199. Pro-Ject RPM 9 33-1/3, 45 RPM, separate synchronous AC motor, perimeter belt drive, electronic speed control, tone arm. Price $1999. Fuel Cells Off grid power for measurement, transportation, security and telecommunications industries Generate electricity without combustion, without sunlight or wind, without pollution. Fuel cells are small, lightweight and portable, quiet, have no major moving parts and require no maintenance. They have an expected operational life exceeding 8000 hours of run time. 5 litre and 10 litre fuel cartridges are available. For example, an off-grid video camera will operate for up to 8 weeks on a single 10 litre fuel cartridge. Technical data Rega P1 RB100 tone arm and Ortofon OM53 moving magnet cartridge. Price: $599. Rega P2 RB250 tonearm, stabilised 22mm platter, high quality main bearing, Price: $799. Rek-O-Kut Rondine Jnr 33-1/3, 45. 78 RPM with pitch control, belt drive, tone arm, MM phono cartridge with LP and 78 styli. Price: $594 Rek-O-Kut Vintage 33-1/3, 45. 78 RPM with pitch control, belt drive, tone arm, auto-return. Price: $770. . siliconchip.com.au Model Charging capacity 600 600Wh/day 50Ah/day 1200 1200Wh/day 100Ah/day 1600 1600Wh/day 130Ah/day Nominal Voltage * 12V 12V 12V Nominal Power 25W 50W 65W 4.2A 5.4A *24V available on request Nominal Current 2.1A Fuel consumption 1.1 litres per kWh. 1.3 litres per 100Ah Weight 7.3kg Dimensions Batteries 7.5kg 7.6kg (L x W x H) 435mm x 200mm x 276mm 40 to 200AH recommended 100% availability Maintenance free and absolutely reliable. Even under extreme climate conditions it ensures 100% availability of your equipment. This is a decisive advantage, especially in hard-to-reach areas or with critical applications such as observation posts. Fully automatic Automatic charge control, continuously monitors battery status as it powers your electrical equipment. If the battery’s voltage sinks below the level pre-programmed by the user, the fuel cell activates, charges the battery, and then automatically shuts itself off. And it does so without any user intervention. Remote Control Each fuel cell can be connected by an interface adapter to any RS232 interface and serviced/monitored using a cellphone, laptop or PC from the office. Theft Proof Solar cells need to be placed out in the open where it is difficult to protect them against theft and vandalism. The compact fuel cell can be integrated into any standard cabinet or box. More Power With the control interface you can operate up to 5 fuel cells in parallel, giving you a capacity of up to 8000Wh per day. Siomar Battery Industries Ph: (08) 9302 5444 Email: mark<at>siomar.com Contact: May 2007  25 Rek-O-Kut CVS14 Professional AM-FM Monitor Receivers RMR-01 Complete Broadcast Studio Off-Air Monitor Receiver System with Composite Output, Audio Distribution and Alarms RRR-01 Versatile AM-FM Receiver 240 V AC and 12 V DC Operation Composite Output - Re-Broadcast - MATV Systems Tunnel Repeaters - Radio News Rooms - Pre Select up to 32 Mixed AM - FM Stations via RS-485 Control Optional Model PSS-01 Wired Controller Available Ideal AM Receiver for use in Remote Locations Fully manual 33/45/78 RPM turntable with a continuously variable and calibrated “78” range of from 62 to 94 RPM, high-torque directdrive motor, tone arm, can play up to 14-inch records. Price: $990. Rek-O-Kut CVS16 Fully manual 33/45/78 RPM turntable with a continuously variable and calibrated “78” range of from 62 to 94 RPM, high-torque direct-drive motor, tone arm, can play up to 16-inch records. Price: $1210. Rek-O-Kut Rondine 3 SMR-01 Scanning Monitor Receiver Monitoring of up to 8 Mixed Remote AM - FM Services - Failure Report by FAX For Details and Price, please contact us at ELAN Phone 08 9277 3500 AUDIO Fax 08 9478 2266 2 Steel Court. South Guildford email sales<at>elan.com.au www.elan.com.au Western Australia 6055 Cleaning Possibly the most critical factor in getting the best out of early analog recordings – especially disc, to a lesser degree tape – is getting rid of the cause of a lot of the noise and other garbage from the record surface: dust. And that means cleaning both the media and the machines that play them. In the heyday of vinyl records, no self-respecting audiophile would put a disc on the turntable without ensuring both were clean: the turntable platter with a dust brush and the disc itself with one of a variety of dust collectors designed for the purpose. Such things are still available today but you may have to search for them! For really dirty recordings, by all means use appropriate methods to clean vinyls and tapes but watch out for shellac or acetate records – alcohol will destroy these – so use water-based compounds. First of all, clean the mat of your turntable. If a “78” is cracked at the edges, avoid wetting it with anything: some 78s have a centre of fibrous material which expands when wet and shatters the record. Vinyls can be safely cleaned with distilled water, although grime will possibly be removed only by the use of proprietary fluids. A whole list of excellent cleaning approaches can be accessed at Decibel Hi Fi (www.decibelhifi.com.au). Or you can go to www.screensound.gov.au and follow the “Preservation” link. 26  Silicon Chip 33-1/3, 45, 78 RPM, and 9 other speeds for vintage discs and half speed mastering, DC motor, belt drive, electronic power supply, Delrin platter, audiophile quality tone arm. Price: $1980. Sony PSLX250H 33-1/3, 45 RPM, DC servo motor, belt drive, inbuilt pre-amp, MM cartridge. Price: $299. Stanton STR8.150 33-1/3, 45, 78 RPM, DC servo motor, direct drive, inbuilt pre-amp, digital output, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $1,099. Stanton T.120 33-1/3, 45, 78 RPM, DC servo motor, direct drive, inbuilt preamp, digital output, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $949. Stanton T.80 33-1/3, 45, 78 RPM, DC servo motor, direct drive, inbuilt pre-amp, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $699. siliconchip.com.au Stanton T.60 33-1/3, 45 RPM, DC servo motor, direct drive, inbuilt pre-amp, tone arm and MM cartridge. Price: $399. Thorens TD-170 33-1/3, 45, 78 RPM, DC servo motor, belt drive, tone arm and Ortofon OMB10 MM cartridge, fully automatic. Price: $649. Thorens TD-170 Phono 33-1/3, 45, 78 RPM, DC servo motor, belt drive, tone arm and MM cartridge and phono stage, fully automatic. Price: $725. Thorens TD-190 33-1/3, 45, 78 RPM, DC servo motor, belt drive, tone arm and Ortofon OMB10 MM cartridge, heavier platter, fully automatic. Price: $799. Thorens TD-240 33-1/3, 45, 78 RPM, DC servo motor, belt drive, tone arm and Audio Technica AT95E MM cartridge, fully automatic. Price: $995. Thorens TD-295 MKIV 33-1/3, 45, DC servo motor, belt drive, rigid tone arm and Audio Technica AT95E MM cartridge, heavier platter and plinth. Price: $1149. NEXT MONTH: We’ll look at some of the software available to assist you in cleaning up old records and review one outstanding package! siliconchip.com.au May 2007  27