record label saver

i have about 200 vinyl records that i started collecting in the early 2000's. Most of my collection is made up of primarily deep house music, with some various electronic tracks and an even smaller section of "everything else". I've been toying around with the idea of digitizing all of my vinyl records. i think it would be super cool to have the audio files of these hard to get songs in my pocket. the down side to this is that each record holds anywhere from one song to 45mins worth of music. recording them all would be a huge feat, imagine recording one record each business day for an entire year.

back when my friends and i would go digging for records, i'd buy most of these records for only 1 of the songs on the record. most records have 3 other tracks (2 songs per side seems to be the most popular format). so there is also the possibility that i'll discover some gems on sides of records that maybe received 10 seconds of my attention while i stood at a record store turntable auditioning stacks of records.

i recently input my collection of records on discogs (see my list here) to find that i have 246 records that are in the discogs database, and about 10 that aren't. The discogs database is real easy, each recording has a alphanumeric identifier making the lookup process real fast. doing this made me want to digitize even more.

but before i do an analog to digital conversion, i want to make sure that i can minimize as many snaps and pops that accompany old records as possible. i thought about buying different record washing mechanisms, but wasn't convinced i'd be happy spending $79.99 on a spin clean washer without trying my own diy project first.

i came across a label saver idea called groovmaster on an audiokarma thread. the design was simple and effective. after reading about different brush and solution ideas, i went to the hardware store and bought  a few items.

these two mini plungers looked perfect. and at $1.99 ea how could i go wrong?

record labels are 4" in diameter, this is just the size i needed.

i cut the handles off and drilled holes for the threads.

slipped the threaded bar through, with some washers and wing nuts for clamping power, and there you have it. two plungers that will end up squeezing my record during bath time.

i somehow have a copy of the original westside story broadway show, and it has been beaten to hell. i couldn't think of a better record suited for job of test drive the washing.

i washed a few records successfully, using a solution of 1/3 90% isopropyl alcohol, 2/3 water, and a drop of dish soap. after scrubbing along the grooves using my paint pad, i rinse with lukewarm water. some microfiber towels are used to dry the records and i'm good to go!

here we have an analog to digital recording in progress.

kings of rap

on audiokarma, a forum i frequent, someone started a thread asking members to list their first album ever purchased.

for the life of me, i couldn't remember what the first album i ever bought was. but i do remember the first recording i ever owned, kings of rap. the compilation came out in 1985, and i'm thinking that i either got it for my birthday in '85 or '86, it's hard to remember as i was 6-7 years old then.

i'm not sure that tape was the reason that i spent from the late 80's to the late 90's loving what was then called rap. but i did listen to the tape so much that towards the end of the casette's life audible sound quality loss was very apparent, some would describe the tape as stretching from being played too much. who knows i was probably 8years old by the time the tape was tossed.

but i still know these tracks. in fact, years later when the notorious b.i.g. sang "remember rappin' duke, da-ha da-ha, you never thought that hip hop would take it this far". nobody i knew had any idea what this line was about. I had been playing my kings of rap tape over and over, with rappin' duke as my very favorite of all ten tracks so i was right there with biggie.

i lived and breathed rap music through high school, which ended in the late 90's. at least once a week i'd go to the warehouse music store, since they had the best selection of used cds and didn't mind that i was under 17 years old buying cds with the parental advisory explicit lyrics sticker on the front. if i could, i'd tag along with mom on shopping errands with the hopes i could sneak into a different warehouse music store than the closest one to my house.

maybe i do have kings of rap to thank for my hip hop/rap education.

digital audio

i find that throughout the years i've been just as into music as i have been into the equipment used for music. a major component for that has been my digital library, which is my source for pretty much 99% of the music that i listen to, (other sources include records, fm radio, and cds).

i thought that this little demonstration was interesting. i can say that theres far more to digital audio than just this little demonstration, but it gives a bit of insight to the give and take that comes along with digital audio.

the monster receiver

lately i've been into vintage audio. i'm not sure where or when it started, but as the days pass i find myself spending far less time on face-twit and more on forum sites, craigslist, and ebay.

i joined audiokarma, probably the largest online audio forum for consumer audio, where i post under the alias 'holysocks'. check out the thread i've up posted about my audio systems here. you may recognize the re-wire portion.

what is fascinating about vintage audio is the fact that you can get very great stuff for very little money. this doesn't apply to any other type of electronics. stereo systems in the mid 70's and early 80's were being made to do one thing, sound amazing. almost every company in business at that time was making stereos with as much quality as possible. during the mid 80's however, that trend died due to the demand for more features and less demand for superb audio quality.

stereos are unlike televisions and computers for the simple fact that they aren't obsolete year over year. what would you use a laptop from the early 90's for, could it even get on the internet? a TV from the 70's? you aren't watching any streaming netflix on that puppy. but audio systems are different. our ears can only hear from 20hertz to 20,000hertz. as long as a stereo system can produce those frequencies and everything in between, you won't know if the system is 30 days old or 30 years.

so with this knowledge i've gone and started my first project, a receiver restore. after spending many hours educating myself in all things vintage audio, i found someone selling what was to be my first project piece. I found an MCS 3275 receiver about 30miles from my house listed on craigslist. after a few phone calls and a 45min drive i had my new (to me) receiver in tow.

this baby is a monster, as you can see i took a picture with my flip cam standing next to it on the table for size comparison. just look at all the aluminum knobs and switches, no plastic here. and the case is made of real wood, it's not (as often referred to on the forums) "bpc" - black plastic crap.

first thing i did was take it apart.

the second thing i did was post questions on forums about my questions. the first thread i posted about was pertaining to a capacitor issue i came across. the second thread about a lighting issue i'm having.

first of all, i love having this community of similar interest people. i ask questions, and not only get answers and suggestions, but also thanks and congratulations on my project. we're all geeking out, but it's ten times more fun geeking out with other geeks that are into the exact same thing.

i also feel that i'm being *somewhat* productive. granted all of the time i've put into this does now show in my immediate results, just another stereo. but the enjoyment factor is not to be discounted, as people spend most of their available time and money on enjoyment.

The End Starts Today

almost two months ago i started a music blog titled, The End Starts Today

i had been contemplating the workload that came with a daily music blog for the past few years, each time telling myself that it was too large of a commitment for me to undergo. then in feb of 2010 i found myself sharing a song a day with a fellow music loving friend, and jon commented that i should have just started a blog with all this effort. i hate to now say that he was right.

i wasn't sure that finding a song and emailing it to a friend was the equivalent of creating a blog, uploading a song, linking it, writing my thoughts and feelings about the song, and searching for and adding a picture to accompany the post.

but somewhere in the past few months, i decided to quit creating excuses and just go for it. i registered a blog title, devised an efficient process for uploading, tagging, linking, and posting my song, text, and a photo. i even sketched the black and white graphic above as 'album art' for each song that i post.

nowadays i spend about 15 minutes per day posting to the blog. i spend almost all day listening to music, via peel, my new best friend but this is usually during work, lunch, or after hours. i haven't changed my music discovery habits one bit as a result of the music blog, which was also a concern of mine.

on top of my 5 posts per week, jon posts one song per week on his "select sundays" category for the blog. you could say he's my re-occurring guest contributor, but he's more than that. he's helped with the blog layout, and a trusty consultant all things blog (he did publish a book on blogging).

since day one, i've had a blue sticky note that sits on my desk helping me blog. i wrote two sentences on the sticky note "if someone only listened to my music blog, what songs would i post?" and "discuss what i like about the song, and how it makes me feel"

i wrote these sentences to help me focus on what songs to choose and what i write in each post. plenty of blogs i follow post songs and their version of the band's bio, or some neat factoid. i figure that factoids are posted everywhere, but what i personally feel about the song is not posted anywhere, so instead of creating redundancy on the internet, i'm adding something unique and personal. now don't get me wrong, i'm not writing pulitzer prize novels about songs. i write a few sentences and move on, i mean, it's a music blog!

i've made a facebook page, a twitter account, and a feedburner for everyone's blog following preferences. so follow along and enjoy [what i think is] good music daily!

blown away (guy)

in 1983 maxell ran a commercial about the audio fidelity integrity of maxell tapes.



(notice that blown away guy casually catches his wine glass before it falls off the table's edge.)

this ad went on to represent maxell and become a pop culture icon of sorts.


you've seen this right?


recently there was an article about the youtube fellas, check out their take on the "blown away".

once the family guy references something, that thing is solidified as a pop icon (to some degree).


even the jackass guys are in the know!


i love how he grabs for the glass at the 0:13 second mark even though the entire table is blown away at 0:03 seconds.

since i've been building the ultimate stereo system, i ordered the maxell poster for display above my stereo shelf. pics to come, as i have to get it mounted before the wall is dressed with blown away guy.

my shelf has spikes

my new retro stereo is starting to come together. but as i've been acquiring the components for the stereo, i'm finding an increasing need for a shelf of some sort for the stereo to live. initially the amp and tuner were placed on top of my technics turntables inside their boxes.




the speakers are designed to stand on the floor as they are, but using my two turntables inside their boxes as a makeshift shelf is wrong on two accounts. first account, it looks pathetic. second account, if i use my technics as a shelf, that's a $1,000 shelf.

so i contemplated making a shelf. many of the diy shelf threads on the few audio forums i scoured had all somehow come back around to "the rack". the rack is a diy shelf made of plywood, large threaded bolts, and nuts.



the rack performs well, but just didn't have the aesthetic i was looking for. so i searched a bit more. this is when i learned about vibration dampening, and the spikes that come along with it. each shelf sits atop 4 sharp spikes, thus minimizing surface area contact and mitigating unwanted speaker generated vibrations from reaching your audio components. the first shelf of this genre i found for the small price of $1399.99!!! i'd be damned to have a shelf that costs more than my entire stereo!



then i found the vti-bl404 shelf for $250! three color options and four shelves. i couldn't go wrong. so i ordered it and took pics.











i've received a few compliments so far, and i'm really enjoying how pretty my shelf is. i still need to get a few more components for my stereo, and as you can see, i have the shelf space for it!

next up, to get those technics turntables out of their boxes and onto a tabletop.

the McIntosh

this past thanksgiving my parents visited. i had asked my father to bring up his old stereo that was being stored in the garage. the mcintosh!


it had been sitting in the garage for at least 5-6 years. though, for a piece of equipment that is slightly older than me, and has been sitting in a garage for the past half decade, it was in decent cosmetic condition.

my father purchased the mcintosh ma6100 integrated amplifier in the year 1978. my earliest audio memories involve this very piece of equipment. one can easily recognize it's signature walnut case, brushed aluminum knobs, black glass face, and green backlight. a couple of cerwin vega house speakers accompanied the amplifier during my days of growing up. when mom and dad left me home alone, i'd put in my favorite tape (and eventually cd) in and crank the amp to just over 1/2 volume. this is the point in which the china in our china cabinet would start to dance around on the shelf due to massive vibrations. i was literally rocking the house. needless to say i loved the power of the mcintosh.

but as i got older, and technology pressed forward i started to realize what was really important about home stereos. the mcintosh didn't have a remote control, nor did it have an lcd screen. my friend's parent's house systems had more lights, buttons, and do-hickeys than the simple 1970's style mcintosh amplifier. most of these systems were sleek black plastic, space age, not old and made of wood. i eventually started to despise the mcintosh for being outdated and ugly. soon after i was granted my own stereo, complete with digital tuner and all the cheap plastic crap that comes along with low budget audio. i loved it. this must have been the early 90's.

though soon i realized that the sound from my plastic and portable sony stereo was nowhere near that of the mcintosh + cerwin vegas. dad's system would literally bring the house down at 3/4 volume. (a few wall hanging items did fall off during one of my listening sessions). at 3/4 volume my sony made all songs sound like a microphone held up to a whoopie cushion at best. this is the first time i took notice to sound quality.

it wasn't until an earth shattering day in san diego a few years ago that i put 1 and 1 together. i was at my friend's house. he had just spent a bit over $3,000 on a pair of speakers. and the second i heard these speakers, i knew exactly why he paid what he did. i was changed from that moment on. i was only able to listen to three or four songs on the $3k speakers, but i was hearing songs that had 40-50 play counts on my ipod, for the first time.

it took me almost thirty years to fully appreciate audio quality. following this event was an 8 month search for a pair of studio monitor speakers, resulting in the purchase of my mackie hr824 mki's. which to this day, i love. in fact i'm listening to them as i write this post.

around this time is also when i understood and appreciated the mcintosh. i recalled my father telling me that before the cerwin vega speakers, he had some bigger and better mcintosh speakers. at the time i didn't really care, those pink rimmed cerwin vegas pumped louder than anything i had ever heard, or cared to. but somehow i held the information that dad once owned mcintosh speakers in the recesses of my mind.


fast forward to this past thanksgiving. i hauled the 40lbs mcintosh amp up two flights of stairs only to find out that it was completely inoperable when connected to speakers. a few weeks later, and my wallet $465 lighter, the amp was back in my possession. but an amp is no good without speakers to accompany it. i immediately started looking at the going price for cerwin vegas. that is, until i got the idea to search for mcintosh speakers.

this is when i came across a craigslist posting for two mcintosh xr-5 speakers, the exact model that my dad originally purchased with the ma6100! i went to alameda on a rainy night with my brother riding shotgun and $450 in cash. i came home with two 76lbs. speakers in tow. i forgot my cd for testing audio in the car, so i was forced to test the speakers to fm radio. 96.5 had a nice strong signal, and luckily they were playing bryan adams - "everything i do, i do it for you". so i blasted it, and listened for any imperfections. then madonna's "borderline" came on, and i blasted it again in order to detect any possible speaker distortion. i guess if a pair of speakers can play those two songs loud and well, then they're good enough for me.




i had successfully recreated the system that my father had purchased in the late 70's.

i'm still far from done, as you can see there's no shelf in this picture. but i'll save additions to this setup for future blog posts.

oh, and everything sounds fan-tas-tic!!

pics of your listening space

recently i joined a forum for audio junkies like myself. i've been visiting the forum for some time, in search of the answer to a specific question, or browsing pics of new equipment. but i had never felt the need to join until now.

upon joining, one thread caught my eye, then soon grabbed a hold of my spare time and rung it try like a used shop rag. the thread title is "pics of your listening space". at the time of writing this post (or starting the draft a week ago) the thread boasts 7,835 posts, 523 pages, and countless pics of listening spaces.

i went through e v e r y s i n g l e o n e.

it took me well over a week, and as i stated earlier, took most of my spare time. i started at the most recent posts and moved backward chronologically.

while combing through this massive thread, i couldn't help but make some observations. first of all, audio knows no boundaries.

here are some pics i stole off the thread and my observations alongside:


if you aren't a pink floyd fan, then this may look like a tasteless piece of art in a somewhat conservative home. i think this is magnificent! and i also love the dark side album.


this picture may not be impressive to the average joe. but those who are in the know understand that each of those black boxes with pretty blue lights costs many thousands of dollars -and is worth every penny.


there's some fun pics, like this one. only an audio geek...



some listening spaces aren't as organized and clean as i'd prefer for my own.





some contributors have more speakers than i would know what to do with.



some are in college dorm rooms.


there were a few "with the lights off" shots. i especially like the tube amps when lit.


some audio rigs look like they came from outer space.


and then some pictures made me feel as thought i was looking at art. instead of looking at electronics that reproduce pre-recorded art.

i need to tidy up, and purchase a thing or two before i contribute my listening space(s) on this thread. i'm sure if you comb through my blog you'll find some here and some there of my personal listening space. and besides the love of music and audio equipment, the other similarity that almost every single contributor to the thread agreed on is the fact that their listening space is never quite done.