For the past ten years, I’ve been playing my records on a Crosley
CR711 record player. Since I’ve been playing my records more frequently now, I
decided to look into getting another turntable/record player. To save room, I
looked at record players with built in amplifier and speakers.
Last year, I purchased a Gadhouse record player from Amazon.com. Just
a few weeks earlier, I bought, a Jenson, but that one didn't work too well. The
Gadhouse record player, like the Crosley, is just a basic and cheap record
player. It needed a little bit of maintenance (loose speaker cover, loose
connections, etc.) to keep it working properly, but it sounds OK with external
speakers.
This year, I bought two used Garrard turntables. After cleaning/restoring
them, I discovered I discovered that my last receiver did not have a phono
input. Instead of buying a preamp, I purchased a 1970s Realistic receiver. Using
an A/B input switcher box, I have the two Garrard turntables working with the
Realistic receiver.
I’m also back to using my Crosley record
player. Since I have enough turntables/record players, I’m dedicating the
Crosley to playing only shellac 78 rpm records. I replaced the stylus/needle
with one specifically made for 78 rpm records, which require a different size needle
for playback--it is wider than the needle used for 33/45 rpm records. Now I can
play my parent’s old records as well as some that I’ve purchased at thrift
shops.
