Crosley revolution help

Hi folks. Thanks for letting me join. I bought a Crosley Revolution for my bar. It sounds like ****. I'm not needing the best quality sound for my needs but this is BAD. I'd be happy with radio shack quality. I know many will say to toss it and get something better but I'd like to keep it because of its compact size it is perfect for the bar top. I'm pretty handy with a solder gun and don't mind having a project. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

What kind of advice are you looking for? It's poorly engineered and cheaply manufactured, so there's not much you can do to improve it.

It will possibly damage your records too...

 

It would seem the best sound that can come from a Crosley is when it hits the bottom of the dumpster. So they say.

 

Ok. Very good. Let's start with the stylus. What part should I graft on?

 

Can't be upgraded, Sorry. You are stuck with the cartridge and stylus on it as is, nothing else can be used. Upgrading means replacing it and getting a proper turntable. These Crosleys chisel records, they have very poor quality tonearms with clumsy bearings and horrible heavy tracking ceramic cartridges.

 

Dear Hannible Lector. This is a tough crown. That C word is worse here than the other C word.

 

No personal experience with either, but if I'm seeing the right photos of your Crosley on line, Audio Technica made a similar sized record playing device known as the Sound Burger. For all I know, it's just as bad, but Audio Technica has a good name among gearophiles, at least for many of its cartridges, something that cannot be said for Crosley, so perhaps it would offer some hope in approximately the same form factor. Others doubtless can offer you more insight into the A-T's quality or lack of same.

 

The Crosley is to Turntables as the Yugo is to cars.

 

No support for the record, no counterweight, the non-upgradeable cart is probably a ceramic. None of that is good news.

Honestly, if you want something mindless to throw on the bar, grab something like this:

Won't break the bank, nothing special sonically but it doesn't go out of it's way to damage the records. Integrated pre-amp so you can run it whatever house sound you have without needed it to have a phone input.

 

A little Googling says the Sound Burger used the AT-103 cartridge which apparently is a magnetic cart. That alone makes me think the AT would be clearly better than the Crosley. I don't know anything much about the Sony equivalent except that it used linear tracking. The AT and Sony are vintage, so you'd have to check eBay.

 

First generation models of the Crosley Revolution did use the magnetic cartridge but it has since been replaced with the ceramic cartridge version currently in production. The Spinnerette, Collegiate and the Nomad are the current in production Crosley's with magnetic cartridges. If you go to www.crosleyradio.com click on turntables and if the replacement needle says NP5, that means it is magnetic, NP6 means ceramic. First generation owners of Crosley Revolutions, keep your units and if they no longer work, buy a Spinnerette, Collegiate or a Nomad.

 

Looking at their selection, it seems more and more of their models use Magnetic Carts, especially their newer models. Still not a majority of their players, but a growing percentage. Sadly their most popular ones still use the ceramic record chiselers. If they would go ahead and replace the ceramic carts in those models with mags,they would go a long way to improve their rep.

 

I agree. I'd like to see more of the NP5 classification in the replacement styli section rather than the other classifications which mean ceramics such as NP1 and NP6.

 

What's that? First generation Crosleys no longer work? But I have regular old record players from the late 50s and early 60s that are still going strong.

 

There are lots that still work for now, but when they die, then replace that with the Spinnerette, Collegiate or a Nomad, after all, they are made on the cheap in China.

 

What are you playing the Crosley through? Speakers and amp? We might be able to suggest something that would amaze you for less than you think.

 

No way can this be serious. I smell troll.

 

Here's a link to some great products that will help your turntable sound better

http://shop.mapleshadestore.com/