digitalize vinyl or get original mp3/wav?

[calvin01]

do they sound good though?

[jimbob5000]

Does it sound good? Yes, if you're doing it right and use equipment that fits the bill. But its a big "if". You have to have a decent sound card (most of us here do), have a good stylus on your tt, have the right software to post-process, warp etc.. If you don't already have all that, don't bother, it's just not cost effective to buy all the equipment and software.

If you do consider buying digital files, keep in mind that some of the older stuff out there, especially tunes that re-appear from ancient back catalogues and are now sold as mp3s have often been ripped from vinyl by the labels or distributors themselves. It happened to me a couple of times that I bought mp3s which have obviously been ripped very carelessly with bad needles, massive drifting and even had needle skipping in them. So it's not always worth buying digital files.

If buying used CDs from Discogs, Amazon or the like is an option for you, you might think about that and rip those for good digital files. (Although the bad-quality vinyl-rip thingie has happend to me there as well). Beware of compilations though, they sometimes contain weird edits and are often mastered badly, resulting in overcompressed music.

BTW, someone mentioned the Ortofon Arkiv needles. They aren't worth the money. If you really want to buy something dedicated to high quality playback/recording/ripping, a decent hifi needle works as well or better for a lower or similar price. Something like an Audio Technica AT120E maybe.

[tekki]

+1 on Jesters first post.

Though, if you have some reasonable obscure vinyls you might not find in mp3, you might want to cling on to the vinyl and TT for these beauties.
(It also adds to the attractiveness of your sets. )

[tekki]

I actually know of some smaller labels actually willing to help out on getting digital versions of their older vinyls, so give it a shot.

[jasperjones]

I actually know of some smaller labels actually willing to help out on getting digital versions of their older vinyls, so give it a shot.

Names please?

[tekki]

Some of the smaller and long/defunct minimal labels.

[calvin01]

thanx jimbob.

[Archies'bald]

I'm going through the process of digitising my vinyl. It has been a mammoth task as I have over 6000 pieces of the black stuff. It has been an unimaginable pain in the ass. It has took me around a year and a half to do and I'm down to my last box of 100 albums.

The only up side is that you can rediscover records that you didn't know you had. I've found loads of tunes that I had dismissed first time round. There are gems to be found. If you have the time and the patience then I would go for it. If not, then steer well clear.

[mostapha]

The few songs I have on vinyl that I still want to play, I've just bought again. My time is wroth more than the $2 it costs to buy it again considering how long it takes to get levels right, make things sound okay, warp them, and then compress them anyway…

Plus, if the file is a bad vinyl rip and you get it from beatport…they'll give you your money back. It's happened to me a few times…and they've never charged me for a track like that. They usually say "sorry…came from the label that way. there's a credit in your account," and that's the end of it. IDK about other stores, because it hasn't happened with anyone else.

[jimbob5000]

if the file is a bad vinyl rip and you get it from beatport…they'll give you your money back.

digitaltunes.net and trackitdown did this as well. Would be interesting to know how apple/itunes would react