Advice, Direction.. Something - ELAC Miracord 50H ii

[Carina]

Hi! I am new here and to the vinyl world. I do not know much about turntables besides the information my dad tries to tell me. I was looking into purchasing a turntable and everything else needed to make use of the vinyls I have from my parents as well as newer ones I have bought for myself.

I am not interested in the LP to MP3 option. My parents actually have a converter, so I do not need to buy one. I want a turntable for just quality listening purposes.

I thought of buying a new one, but my parents have a ELAC Miracord 50H 2 turntable not in use. They also have the huge wooden floor standing speakers that I am sure they used with this record player back in the day (sorry I do not know the brand, but I can find out).

I have no objection of buying new speakers, or using these ones.. If i can convince my parents to let me have their turntable - is that better than buying a brand new updated one?

Thank you in advanced!

[lini]

The 50HII is a nice classic - so, if it's still in good condition, I'd suggest to use that.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini

[directdrivencrazy]

I agree with the previous, if you can get your parents to let you have the 50H go for it.
But, be advised, if it's been sitting for some time it's likely needing maintenance. Lubrication and possible conditioning or replacing the drive idler (rubber tire that goes between the motor and the platter).
If it has a good cartridge, be sure to examine (or have examined) the stylus tip under a microscope. You can upgrade the cartridge if needed, but you need to be careful not to get a high compliance type. The tonearm is a bit massive compared to modern tonearms, and you need to stay with mid-level carts.
If you haven't got a means to clean your stylus (never use your finger) you should look into a good stylus cleaning kit. Often times, when I've gotten a used cartridge, the stylus is usually good, just coated with layers of dirt and fried vinyl.
Overall, the 50H is very stable and musical, and would be an ideal starter table. For a minimal investment to bring it back to full operational spec, it would cost less than buying one of the cheap and cheesy turntables that are offered these days for under 200.00.
If you parents are using one of those ION LP-to-MP3 units, and they give you the 50H, you are getting the better deal. Good Luck!

[LPfan]

Hi!
Agree with the other posters above. The 50H is a nice classic; our member timspell is running one and enjoying the music.

If you collect the tt from your parents, ensure that the cartridge carrier plate is not missing. This is fixed to the headshell (the front end of the tonearm) and is removable. If there is already a cartridge mounted on it, then you might be able to start using the tt just by installing a new stylus on that.

You shall require an amplifier to go between the tt and the speakers (any speakers). Older amplifiers have an input marked “PHONO” and a tt can be connected directly to this input. Most of the new amps available today do not have this facility and require a separate pre-amplifier to go between a tt and the amp.

Regards,

LPfan

[fotoburger]

I own a Radio Shack branded Miracord from probably the 1970s. I know Miracord was considered pretty good at the time, but is mine any good? I haven't used it in many years, but as I am moving soon, I may want to try and use it again. As far as I know it still works.

[sreten]

Hi,

Unlees you can confirm the stylus on the turntable is relatively new
it is always best to replace it, or fit a whole new cartridge. The latter
gives you more choice : the following is a very good budget option :
http://cgi.ebay.com/ADC-QLM-34-MKIII-PH ... _500wt_968
(Its a lot better than $30 worth....)
Track at around 2.25g in the Miracord arm I'd say.

What are those big speakers ?

rgds, sreten.

[nat]

fotoburger: the Radio Shack Miracords are just rebadged, not down speced. So assuming you want the urgency and control of an idler table, and don't mind the higher rumble, if the table is in good shape (grease not hardened up and idler pliant, and cartridge in good form) you ought to be happy with it. Obviously you shouldn't use a really compliant cartridge or one that puts huge amounts of energy in the arm. So Shure V15s, ADC XLMs and the like, or Deccas or low compliance MCs are not really a good idea.

[fotoburger]

Just going by memory, I think I bought a Shure M91ED, or maybe it's an M95ED. Is that an appropriate cartridge? Can I still get needles for them? As I recall an old rommate wrecked the needle, and I have never replaced it, nor have I played anything on it since that happened.

Thanx for the help!

[nat]

If you liked how it sounded, its probably an appropriate cartridge. The Miracord arm is probably somewhat massier than ideal for the M91ed, but I believe that reality is a good deal less hard and fast than theory, and plenty of people love how M 91ed and V15 and other high compliance cartridges sound in Miracords and Dual 1019s and so on, and its hard to argue with success.
But: in its heyday, the M91ed could be bought from every stereo store in the country for $14.95. Now replacement stylii cost a lot more than that, and there are questions about how good the modern products are. So I would hesitate to pay a lot for a replacement stylus.
Here's my take: the cheapest AT cartridge (whose model number seems to vary), which goes for 10 - 15 bucks (used to be a lot less) has a conical stylus, so won't have the upper frequency analysis of an eliptical like the M 91ed, but is cheap and cheerful, a pleasent cartridge to listen to music with, seems to me the baseline. If you want better sound, its easy to achieve, and doesn't need to cost much, but its also possible to spend a lot and not get too much better. My recommendation would be to by it, or something like the cheap Ed Sauders Big Red (14.95) and get used to records, learn what you like, and only then spend much more.
There are generic stylii for the M 91 ed, and they are okay, in my experience, and that would be a different approach to spending little until you know what you want.
After that, a Jico Stylus might be just the ticket, or a Grado or an Ortofon, or whatever.

[fotoburger]

"...and get used to records..."
LOL, I guess my collection, all purchased new, doesn't qualify me!

On a more serious note , my new receiver does not have a preamp for phono inputs. Now of course my ears are definitely not what they were when I was younger, but I would like some reasonable quality for not a huge amount. Any recs?

[nat]

Well, the options are pretty clear. Get an old reciever or integrated for anywhere from free up to hundreds of bucks, or buy a phono stage, used or new for under a hundred to thousands and thousands. Some stand alone phono stages are better than some that are in recievers and integrateds, but it would be naive to think that they all are, or at least that all are much better.

[akafrank]

Anyone know how to remove the platter on a Miracord turntable (it's a 650).
The table is tight and I'm sure the grease is hard.

[fotoburger]

I haven't done it in many years, but as I remember, after you remove the rubber surface mat, you just pull straight up by the edges of the platter. It is a tight fit, but you shouldn't need any tools.

[akafrank]

Thanks, it just does not want to come off. I cannot see anything holding it in place. I'll just keep trying to pull it.