[Eric79]

Hi everybody,

I was hoping to get some help and advice for what I will need to set up a high-end turntable setup.  I should first mention, that I know only a little about audio equipment, and even less on how to set up a good system.  That's my main problem, haha.  I'm mainly a CD listener, but I loved listening to vinyl growing up on my Dad's system.  A year ago I bought a cheap Ion USB turntable to help me get back into vinyl, but I've just been listening to it on headphones and don't have a real setup.  It doesn't really sound all that great, but it has helped me renew my love for vinyl.  Now I've finally decided to get my own system, but I'd like something high-end this time.

I recently purchased a Jolida JD 502B Tube Stereo Amp for this project, but that's all I have so far.  Now I really don't know much about tube amps, but I've heard great things about them and wanted to try one.  My next task is picking out a turntable (I'm leaning towards Pro-Ject) and cartridge, and speakers (probably something from Pinnacle).  My main problem is I'm not sure how to set up the tube amp with a turntable, and what cables I'll need for the speakers.  I apologize in advance if these are stupid questions. 

1.  Do I need to buy a pre-amp to use with the turntable, or will the Jolida Tube Amp act as a pre-amp?
2.  What cables will I need to connect the turntable, speakers, tube-amp, etc, together?  (Please recommend cables as well)
3.  Will I need anything else that I'm missing?
4.  If I decide to add a CD player later on, will that also work with the Tube amp or will I need to buy a receiver?


Thanks!
-Eric

[Jlappy]

Eric,

Welcome - this is a great & friendly place for help.

Don't know much about your  Jolida JD 502B int-amp, yet from a quick search you have 4 inputs into your pre-amp ( this is a pre-amp and amp integrated). . ...

1.  Do I need to buy a pre-amp to use with the turntable, or will the Jolida Tube Amp act as a pre-amp?

 

No, you have a pre-amp with the integrated system, yet you will need a phono pre-amp that will connect to your auxiliary input.  You will need additional gain (in decibels) as the sound/music is transferred from your cartridge (on your turntable) to your preamp (sorry an over simplified and incomplete response, its late).

4.  If I decide to add a CD player later on, will that also work with the Tube amp or will I need to buy a receiver?

No, your pre-amp has an imput for the cd player.


sorry, more knowledgeable folks will chime in.

cheers,

Jim

[Delta Wave]

Do you have a budget? That would help folks with equipment recommendations for you.

[decal]

I suggest a rig that has the cartridge already mounted and aligned,all you have to do is a 5 minute assembly and you're ready to spin some albums. You will need 2 sets of interconnects and a ground wire (don't have to be expensive ones). Get a stylus cleaner and record brush and you should be good to go. BTW, keep your wallet full because you're gonna be buying albums like a mad man!!!! Good luck in your endeavor.
   
ProJect RPM 1.3 Genie
ProJect Phono Box II
Spin Clean record cleaning system

 

[Indiansprings]

My advice is pick up a lower end rega or the like. Get a feel for things and spend a little time on this forum, as well as a few others. If your in the market for a high-end table, you can afford to pick up a $300-400 player for now. You would have no problem getting some money back off of it when you sell.
This way, you can listen to some records while studying up for what you really want.

[Ericus Rex]

Here's a Rega Planar 3 just listed here:


http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=102782.msg1043203;topicseen#new

Needs new cartridge (can Rega cartridges be retipped cheaply?) but you can get an OK AT or Ortofon for under $50.  The more you spend the more happy you'll be, of course.  I've heard Grados buzz on these tables unfortunately.

You can get a phono preamp for under $100 that will get you by until you can invest in something better.  PM thechairguy (John) for info (sorry I can't remember the brand off hand) or search the vinyl circle for info.  Or you could spend a little more and get Jolida's well reviewed tubed phono pre for just a few hundred bucks.

If it wasn't clear in an earlier post, you can plug your CD player (and any other line level source) direcly into your integrated amp; no special pre needed.

Welcome!

[Berndt]

The path of vinyl is not for the faint of heart. There are more than one threads here that chart peoples vinyl angst. I believe there are many steps to vinyl life. First thing is you are going to need local support. Find some local vinyl boys that are experienced and hopefully have good sounding systems. Any vinyl guy who has been around a while not only has all the tools but has extra decks and carts and Phono stages.
It is really easy to spend money and not improve your playback chain.
I would probably start out with a TCG dd jvc and do the cheapo tricks.
Now you can focus on cleaning and preparing your vinyl. A good cleaning set up is requisite. This is another area your local heroes can assist you.
I could not have risen out of the primordial vinyl soup without a group of vinyl fanatics to steer me through my set up and purchasing.
Phone stages, tonearms, cartridges, and tts are so system dependent it is difficult to make blanket suggestions. The analog playback system is a system and the best thing to share is to remember it functions as an organic system.
Good luck and if you are in the bay area I would be happy to help.

[chester_audio]

What is your reference to "high-end" and what is your budget?

[MaxCast]

The path of vinyl is not for the faint of heart. There are more than one threads here that chart peoples vinyl angst. I believe there are many steps to vinyl life. First thing is you are going to need local support. Find some local vinyl boys that are experienced and hopefully have good sounding systems. Any vinyl guy who has been around a while not only has all the tools but has extra decks and carts and Phono stages.
It is really easy to spend money and not improve your playback chain.
I would probably start out with a TCG dd jvc and do the cheapo tricks.
Now you can focus on cleaning and preparing your vinyl. A good cleaning set up is requisite. This is another area your local heroes can assist you.
I could not have risen out of the primordial vinyl soup without a group of vinyl fanatics to steer me through my set up and purchasing.
Phone stages, tonearms, cartridges, and tts are so system dependent it is difficult to make blanket suggestions. The analog playback system is a system and the best thing to share is to remember it functions as an organic system.
Good luck and if you are in the bay area I would be happy to help.

This is excellent advise.

[Delta Wave]

The path of vinyl is not for the faint of heart. There are more than one threads here that chart peoples vinyl angst. I believe there are many steps to vinyl life. First thing is you are going to need local support. Find some local vinyl boys that are experienced and hopefully have good sounding systems. Any vinyl guy who has been around a while not only has all the tools but has extra decks and carts and Phono stages.
It is really easy to spend money and not improve your playback chain.
I would probably start out with a TCG dd jvc and do the cheapo tricks.
Now you can focus on cleaning and preparing your vinyl. A good cleaning set up is requisite. This is another area your local heroes can assist you.
I could not have risen out of the primordial vinyl soup without a group of vinyl fanatics to steer me through my set up and purchasing.
Phone stages, tonearms, cartridges, and tts are so system dependent it is difficult to make blanket suggestions. The analog playback system is a system and the best thing to share is to remember it functions as an organic system.
Good luck and if you are in the bay area I would be happy to help.

Some good advice up there. 

[orthobiz]

BTW
I think "TCG" is "The Chair Guy," our fearless moderator.
It also helps to be Berndt, so if you don't have the part you need you can just make one!

Really, though, "high end" would need an actual dollar number. You don't have to be bashful here because a lot of us have thousands invested in our stereos. Since you already did the Ion USB, you could probably just go for the gusto and get a primo rig!

Paul

[Eric79]

Excellent advice so far guys, thank you very much.  Unfortunately I had moved from NJ to Florida a few years ago and I don't have any friends here (or in NJ) who love vinyl or stereo equipment.  I do have a few options of getting local advice though.  There is a record store nearby that has some people working there that know a lot about vinyl.  There are also a few local companies that specialize in audio equipment, and I've thought about having them set up the system for me...but then I'm afraid I may come away with not much knowledge on the subject (and it might cost a lot more). 

To answer the question about my budget...I'm probably prepared to go up to 5 thousand for the complete setup (including a turntable, cartridge, nice speakers, new CD player, cables, etc).  Of course, I'm hoping to not spend quite that much...but I'm trying to be realistic since I'm starting from scratch (aside from having the tube amp) and want to get some good equipment.  I've been a diehard music fan since I was in my early teens, but have only had fairly low-end equipment to listen to.  Now that I'm in my 30s I'd like to finally have a nice high-end setup for my music.  I understand that "high-end" can mean a lot of things (especially after seeing turntables that go upwards of well over 100K), but my definition is around the 5K range haha. 

I was thinking about purchasing what I need from this website:  http://www.needledoctor.com/

I've heard that they're quite helpful over the phone in figuring out what you'll need, how to set up your system, and recommending equipment.  Has anyone bought anything from them before?

[neobop]

Eric,
It's really hard to recommend an almost complete stereo, including record player and phono stage to someone else. Maybe a little more info would help. Is this going in a large or small room? Are you willing to get some used equipment, or want new?

I usually buy accessories, record cleaning fluid and sleeves from NeedleDr. Some of their prices are a bit high, depending. But they sometimes have great closeouts. Click on their link and they have a pr of Epos spks for $250. That's a great deal but only if they are appropriate. They don't do deep bass and aren't the most efficient spks. So you'd probably need a sub and they might not be great in a large room. If you work with the amp you already have, 60wpc can be surprisingly powerful. Subs normally come with their own amp and you have a sub out. You can see that $250 can turn into quite a bit more with the purchase of a sub or two and we're not sure if they're to your liking or if you'd prefer full range speakers. I'm not sure about the Project table. I'd have reservations about that, although I've never used one.

There are two basic approaches here. One is to get good buys and spend as little as reasonably possible to get started. You can upgrade as needed. The other is to try to get as good as possible from the get-go. The way to maximize quality is usually with used equipment. You'll be paying roughly around 1/2 of new, but it can be more to deal with. Vintage stuff can also develop problems, but so can new. This is more like what I'd go for:
http://app.audiogon.com/listings/456507

The only thing missing is a arm height adjuster. You can get one of those for around $150. You could also negotiate a deal and get a cartridge set up. Maybe he'd sell w/cart for $675. Believe me, this is a whole other league and something you're not likely to want to replace in a yr.

Needed:
Record player
phono stage
speakers
record cleaning system
records
misc (cables)

[orthobiz]

Get a used TT, try Bill at fixmydual dot com or vinyl nirvana dot com...

Paul

[putz]

Eric,

I was in your shoes not that long ago. One suggestion is to read a lot of the threads here and some of the other Audio forums to educate yourself as much as possible.

If you're looking for a used TT, stay local. A shipped table may not survive the journey and will need to be reassembled by you. As a total novice nothing wrong with buying new. Here's a nice deal on a VPI that's a keeper. http://www.musicdirect.com/p-16119-vpi-scout-jmw-9-standard-b-stock.aspx Have them put a Cartridge on it for you and you're good to go. VPI's are pretty easy to set up and vendor should walk you thru the process. Lots of upgrades are available for future enhancements. Think the VPI comes with a stylus gauge. If not, get one.

For a Phono Preamp, lots of used stuff around on Audiogon. For new, Cambridge 640P and Vista (check Vista circle here) are both decent. Might want to decide on the Cart first and then get a Pre that matches up well with it.

I have the same Jolida amp as you do. They will power most any speaker except very low efficient ones and it sounds great with vinyl. Tube upgrades are available for the unit as well.

I'm partial to Salk Songtower speakers.  Lots of other choices as well.

Too bad you're no longer in NJ. You'd be welcome to hear my setup and get an idea of what's out there.