Hi folks,
You probably know that I’m a big music fan, based on some of my threads and posts here on Android Central.
I thought I’d do a little writeup of some new analogue gear I’ve recently acquired. I’ve been a music lover my entire life and had my own stereo system since 1985, which I purchased when I was still in high school. I’ve also been a fan of vinyl records since childhood and never got rid of my old vinyl records, even though all of my cassettes and many of my CDs have long since been sold.
Thanks to Jerry and other folks on the forums, I decided to upgrade my headphones last year and purchased Sony MDR-7506 headphones. I had been using those headphones with a FiiO Q1 to listen to FLAC and WAV music files on my PC and on my Android devices (via the HibyMusic app and a USB OTG adapter).
Last December I decided to get a new turntable.My initial plan was to digitise my vinyl collection via a USB turntable and the Audacity software. I purchased an AudioTechnica LP120 turntable, which I was going to use to digitise my vinyl collection. However, something different happened. Rather than digitising my vinyl collection, I decided to stick with listening to vinyl records, add to my vinyl collection and acquire more analogue gear.
I usually listen to music using headphones, since I live in an apartment, and my neighbours and landlord would not appreciate hearing my music. I was not satisfied with the sound using the built-in preamp on the AudioTechnica LP120. I’ve been aware of valve amps for years, since I knew guitarists and bassists who used valve amps back in the 90s, when I used to go to a lot of shows, both at small clubs and at arenas. Family and friends also used valve amps for their home stereo systems back in the 70s. I also read some interviews of well-known musicians I like who also were producers, and these guys preferred the analogue format.
My quest for better sound led to the purchase of both a valve phono preamp and a valve headphone amp.
I initially tried the headphone amp with my Android devices and liked the sound. However, I decided that what I really wanted to do was get better sound from my vinyl records whilst listening. As a result, I purchased the phono preamp. This is a definite upgrade from the built-in preamp on the AudioTechnica LP120. My setup is turntable to Gemtune phono preamp to Nobsound headphone amp to Sony MDR-7506 headphones. I’ve listened to many different vinyl LPs, both vintage and brand new, and the sound is so much better than what I got using the built-in phono preamp, the FiiO Q1, and the Sony MDR-7506 headphones. The vinyl has a warm sound that is much more natural to me. I like this analogue sound so much that I have no plans at all to digitise my vinyl LPs. My plan is to keep using this gear for now, but eventually I’ll upgrade to better analogue gear. It’s really a treat just getting lost in music and experiencing it, which is something I don’t get via streaming or even listening to lossless digital audio.
Note: I purchased replacement tubes for both the phono preamp and the headphone amp. Both came with Chinese tubes. I got new old stock GE tubes (ca 1977) for the headphone amp, and new Slovak Republic tubes for the phono preamp. Both sets of tubes are matched pairs, which is recommended for valve amps. The Gemtune phono preamp takes 12AX7 tubes, which are common in most major brands of guitar and bass valve amps; those may even be purchased at places like Guitar Center if one needs tubes quickly and cannot wait to order them online. I have not done any tube rolling yet. “Tube rolling” means swapping out different tubes to see which produce the best sound. “Best sound” is going to be subjective, based upon each person’s ears. So far, I’m satisfied with the sound using the tubes that came with both devices, but I’ll hear how the replacements sound once the tubes go bad.
Many of you may not have ever used valve amps. I always turn them on and let them warm up about 20-30 minutes prior to playing music. Tubes amplify sound best once they are warmed up. I also turn down the volume on the headphone amp all the way, prior to inserting the headphone jack and starting the music; this reduces the risk of blowing out the headphone speakers and my ears.
I highly recommend trying valve amps and vinyl records if you have never done so. The gear that I got sounds great and doesn’t cost a lot of money. You may just lose yourself in your music like I’ve done, and enjoy the experience, rather than simply hearing some music in the background.
Thanks for reading this, and please ask me if you have any questions.
Laura
You probably know that I’m a big music fan, based on some of my threads and posts here on Android Central.
I thought I’d do a little writeup of some new analogue gear I’ve recently acquired. I’ve been a music lover my entire life and had my own stereo system since 1985, which I purchased when I was still in high school. I’ve also been a fan of vinyl records since childhood and never got rid of my old vinyl records, even though all of my cassettes and many of my CDs have long since been sold.
Thanks to Jerry and other folks on the forums, I decided to upgrade my headphones last year and purchased Sony MDR-7506 headphones. I had been using those headphones with a FiiO Q1 to listen to FLAC and WAV music files on my PC and on my Android devices (via the HibyMusic app and a USB OTG adapter).
Last December I decided to get a new turntable.My initial plan was to digitise my vinyl collection via a USB turntable and the Audacity software. I purchased an AudioTechnica LP120 turntable, which I was going to use to digitise my vinyl collection. However, something different happened. Rather than digitising my vinyl collection, I decided to stick with listening to vinyl records, add to my vinyl collection and acquire more analogue gear.
I usually listen to music using headphones, since I live in an apartment, and my neighbours and landlord would not appreciate hearing my music. I was not satisfied with the sound using the built-in preamp on the AudioTechnica LP120. I’ve been aware of valve amps for years, since I knew guitarists and bassists who used valve amps back in the 90s, when I used to go to a lot of shows, both at small clubs and at arenas. Family and friends also used valve amps for their home stereo systems back in the 70s. I also read some interviews of well-known musicians I like who also were producers, and these guys preferred the analogue format.
My quest for better sound led to the purchase of both a valve phono preamp and a valve headphone amp.
I initially tried the headphone amp with my Android devices and liked the sound. However, I decided that what I really wanted to do was get better sound from my vinyl records whilst listening. As a result, I purchased the phono preamp. This is a definite upgrade from the built-in preamp on the AudioTechnica LP120. My setup is turntable to Gemtune phono preamp to Nobsound headphone amp to Sony MDR-7506 headphones. I’ve listened to many different vinyl LPs, both vintage and brand new, and the sound is so much better than what I got using the built-in phono preamp, the FiiO Q1, and the Sony MDR-7506 headphones. The vinyl has a warm sound that is much more natural to me. I like this analogue sound so much that I have no plans at all to digitise my vinyl LPs. My plan is to keep using this gear for now, but eventually I’ll upgrade to better analogue gear. It’s really a treat just getting lost in music and experiencing it, which is something I don’t get via streaming or even listening to lossless digital audio.
Note: I purchased replacement tubes for both the phono preamp and the headphone amp. Both came with Chinese tubes. I got new old stock GE tubes (ca 1977) for the headphone amp, and new Slovak Republic tubes for the phono preamp. Both sets of tubes are matched pairs, which is recommended for valve amps. The Gemtune phono preamp takes 12AX7 tubes, which are common in most major brands of guitar and bass valve amps; those may even be purchased at places like Guitar Center if one needs tubes quickly and cannot wait to order them online. I have not done any tube rolling yet. “Tube rolling” means swapping out different tubes to see which produce the best sound. “Best sound” is going to be subjective, based upon each person’s ears. So far, I’m satisfied with the sound using the tubes that came with both devices, but I’ll hear how the replacements sound once the tubes go bad.
Many of you may not have ever used valve amps. I always turn them on and let them warm up about 20-30 minutes prior to playing music. Tubes amplify sound best once they are warmed up. I also turn down the volume on the headphone amp all the way, prior to inserting the headphone jack and starting the music; this reduces the risk of blowing out the headphone speakers and my ears.
I highly recommend trying valve amps and vinyl records if you have never done so. The gear that I got sounds great and doesn’t cost a lot of money. You may just lose yourself in your music like I’ve done, and enjoy the experience, rather than simply hearing some music in the background.
Thanks for reading this, and please ask me if you have any questions.
Laura
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