Advice: Turntable for my Child

My daughter (who is 12 years old) is really into music and already has a few records that we play for her on our turntable. Now she is wanting a turntable of her own. She wants the Light in the Attic turntable bundle that is available on Third Man Records. What is everyones opinion on this turntable? It is manufactured by Jensen and is $95. Is that a good price for what it is? What quality is it? How bad will the sound be? Are there better options?

 

IMO nothing that costs $95 is going to sound good at all, and could possibly even damage an LP. There will be MANY, MANY opinions here of the route you should take. But all of them will start with the same question, "What is your realistic budget?"

 

The bundle you reference does not look promising to me. Not much out there for $100. This one seems to get solid reviews:

http://www.amazon.com/Technica-AT-L...0f-20&linkId=51c9a65c8fff3d7efbcf216a41a66248

 

Hi Mommy...VPI scout, please

 

You appear pretty close to a couple cities I would scour Craigslist for a Technics, Pioneer, Sansui, etc ... from 70s.

 

Entry level Orbit U-Turn, $179. I recommend adding the Orbit Cue for $40. A kid that learns how to use a cueing arm will have fewer regrettable accidents with LP's and needles.

http://uturnaudio.com/

That turntable and a decent receiver with phono stage and bookshelf speakers will make a wonderful stereo setup for a 12-year old.

 

Oh Mommy...would you also please get me an Ortofon Blue with my VPI Scout, and Mommy, Christmas is right around the corner, could you please make it an Ortofon Black, please

 

I had a turntable player like that at her age and it was a lot of fun. Years later playing those original LPs on better turntables showed the damage done by a low quality cartridge and too much tracking force. That's the trade-off: enjoy something simple, inexpensive, and potentially damaging or get into a whole vinyl playback "system" of higher quality and cost:
http://www.needledoctor.com/Audio-Technica-LP60-and-Audioengine-A2Black?sc=2&category=59154

If you decide to go with the "Light In the Attic" approach, that player is available at Target for a lot less:
http://www.target.com/p/jensen-portable-3-speed-stereo-turntable-blue-jta-410-bl/-/A-16787905

 

I agree with dkmonroe...go with the Orbit. Being from the US you are supporting a US company and the table won't ruin all of her records (which, if she enjoys collecting vinyl, will be upset that her copy of Jack White's solo album is all worn due to a crummy stylus/tonearm in 20 years). She can pick her colour and although it is a little more expensive, grab her an inexpensive phono stage or find an old receiver in used circles (I got a Pioneer A6 in great shape years ago for $35 that I use in my second system at a store called Value Village - think Goodwill). She will thank you years from now.

http://uturnaudio.com/

If my two kids showed ANY interest in vinyl that is the way I would go

 

That is a tough question. The Hardware discussion is the easy part, the challenging part is how long is a 12yr old going to be into records? Kind of impossible to know.

With the cost of records these days it is a much less frivolous pursuit. Because of this, it is hard to justify a frivolous table.

It's almost like buying a pony at this point.

 

Yes! With the right table now, her records are actually an investment in future enjoyment and not just something that'll wear out in a few years. I got very damn lucky with some of my older LP's - I didn't have great equipment but many of them still sound good - but some of them really suffered for not having a quality table. It's very disappointing to pull out a great LP after 20 years and find out that it's got groove damage.

 

If a kid is into music, having a good turntable is the best way to ensure that she will maintain an interest in LP's. If she has something that isn't as good, or even may damage her records, than that will pretty much ensure that she will lose interest in LP's and will discard them in a few years.

 

I completely agree. I don't advocate a poor quality table, quite the opposite. I would vote for no table over a poor one.

Knowing what I spend on my vinyl habit, I would hate to start supporting a second.

I would buy the table wanted and that way if she loses interest, I have a second table.

 

I don't know. I played the crap out of my records on my Western Auto suitcase record player and it never killed my enthusiasm for vinyl.

 

No, I got your point - it's like, "Why spend a buncha money for something that she may lose interest in anyway?" That's a perennial parental dilemma. Or at least one for parents like me who at least have an entertainment budget to worry about.

I keep my turntable a closely guarded secret in the hope that if my kids ever get bitten by the vinyl bug, they will be old enough to pay for it themselves!

Your last comment makes me think that now there may be a way for me to score a 2nd table.

 

Yeah, but you and I grew up in a time when that was the only game in town. I think kids today, if they're going to be interested in vinyl at all, are only going to hang in there if what they get sounds good and seems durable with reasonable care.

 

Turn a kid on to records and they should be way too broke to get into drugs. OR....they have to start dealing.

 

Were this a request for advice for someone older I'd be on board with recommending one of the low cost (but much pricier) options like a U Turn Orbit, receiver, and speakers but, fer Chrissakes, he asking about a complete set of kit for a 12 yr old. Go with what she wants, the Jensen. She'll be slowly destroying her records in the meantime but the Jensen kit won't reveal the damage on playback. When she gets older, and if she's still into vinyl, throw the turntable, receiver, speakers option at her.

 

Reminds me of my son when he was 7-10 years old he would sit with me and listen to beatles records, some Zeppelin, etc. Now he is 11 and he does not have any interest anymore, although he does play/learn drums.

My thought is jump on Craigslist/kijiji and pick up an old TT, Rec & spkrs for a couple hundred.

 

I second this. I have a friend who works in the business and he's always picking up old turntables from customers. Most he sells for around $100 including technics, Sansui, dual etc. Picked up a $75 JVC to go with my Project Xpression. He does make sure they are in good condition. Nice fully auto Japanese. I've put together a few sub $300 systems for friends with $100 being the top end each for TT, amp and speakers. I think my last set up was $75 Technics TT, $70 Pioneer amp and $60 JBL speakers. Nothing fantastic but sounded great for around $200. Friend loved it.

 

Get her the light in the attic turntable that she wants. Part of the fun of such things is its portable and has built in speakers. To your question, yes, I think that's a good price for what it is.

Don't spend a single second wondering what freaks like us on audiophile forums have to say about the topic, to be honest. If your daughter expresses interest in rare and valuable records, revisit the situation. As others have pointed out, what's more likely is she forgets about it in a few months. 12 year olds and their parents have more pressing concerns then if somebody buying her records used one day has a problem with them.

 

This is just the kind of advice that is going to make my Taylor Swift record worth a fortune in 20 years.

 

I completely disagree. I have records that I wish I had a better kit to play them on initially- and I would still have them today. If she was only buying old thrift store records then I would say go for the Jensen. I suspect she won't be for the most part. I would rather buy something of quality for my kids to appreciate than to buy a piece of **** that won't last more than a couple of years and kill my beloved records. For me, if neither of my kids wanted the table/gear then I would either sell it or give it to a friend's kid who is interested. Actually I have one friend who told me the Dual table I gave to him 30 years ago is finally toast so he is looking for one.

If the U Turn table is too expensive, then I would rather go used with some 70s gear that sounds good and is in good working order if $$ is the issue. THEN if she likes it, she can buy herself a nicer table (or when the used gear dies). My second system is all old Pioneer gear from the late 70s/early 80s and I love it.

 

I think a 12 year old is old enough to have good equipment. I still have a pair of Dahlquist speakers I got when I was about 14 and I took them with me when I went away to college. Quality equipment has a way of being a much better value in the long term.

Buying cheap is like gambling on it being a complete waste of money and a fad that will be quickly abandoned

 

When I was a kid, I remember asking for low price versions of things I wanted in the hope it would increase the likelihood of actually getting it. My guess is that if you buy a nice table, she'll be thrilled.

The Orbit has a lot of fans. I might also suggest the Pro-Ject entry level table, which I think is only something like $299 including an Ortofon MM cartridge. This will be my child's entry TT when the time comes (she's 9 right now).

I agree that you should avoid the Jensen...why start with very poor sound and trashed records? That's no fun!

By the way, if you Google entry level turntables, there are some good articles online. Marantz apparently makes a decent one, too.