Vinylrecorder : Worth Buying?

[nomad]

HI!

I am a long time dreamer of learning how to cut my own records. I want to do it for my own musical projects as well as be available for hire to independent artists.

I've never cut records before! I am about to run into a small inheritence of money - and am planning on reserving about $5K to get myself everything I need to be up and running.

I'm looking for someone with experience and knowledge of all things cutting records to look over this starter kit and equipment at the link below and let me know if it seems like a good deal. I would certainly purchase the Starter Set for 3200 Euro ($3400 USD) and possibly buy some other equipment listed on the lower part of the site.

Let me know what you think! If you have any other gear you would recommend in my budget or overall tips for getting started - it would be highly appreciated!

http://vinylrecorder.com/order.html#contact

-Jake

[asqus]

Hey Jake,

I picked up a T560 a few months back and I'm finding it very rewarding, albeit daunting. It is a tricky art for a newbie to master though and you will probably spend about 4500 euros for the full recommended setup, including a bunch of blanks to start with and an extra needle.

You'll also need to interact with Souri to secure training - he won't sell you a machine unless you go to Germany for a free one day intensive training workshop. It took me almost a year to get a training session, so good luck with that!

There's also a lot that can go wrong and you need to be quite meticulous; small details can have massive consequences (like leaving your stylus heating on accidentally ).

[nomad]

That is pretty ridiculous. Considering I will not be flying to Germany for a three day training with this guy - I suppose my dream of getting this is shot. I've read about him a bit on here over the past few days - everyone seems to have problems with him. It's too bad.

Are there any other options on the market that are as well put together as this kit?

[handcut]

That is pretty ridiculous. Considering I will not be flying to Germany for a three day training with this guy - I suppose my dream of getting this is shot. I've read about him a bit on here over the past few days - everyone seems to have problems with him. It's too bad.

Are there any other options on the market that are as well put together as this kit?

Lets not start another Souri bitching session...

There are many options, have a look around here at some of the development threads. Blanks & stones are not a problem - myshank makes excellent PVC discs or if you want to go polycarbonate, just about any small-town plastics company will cut Makrolon or similar sheets for you. New lathes and cutterheads appear to be popping up all the time at the moment, so no sweat there. I say read, read, read... and then read some more. Decide which machine suits your needs & budget best.

[misjah]

You're not the first one to come here with a dream on a budget.....I would suggest reading the forum here and search and read and search some more...although not always easy to find most info is here.

[nomad]

Thanks for your replies. I remain hopeful. I do read these forums and I will continue to dig deep into it all - but can anyone give me something more specific than just telling me to read the entire forum? I try doing that, but it can become very daunting and overwhelming rather quickly.

Are there a few go to machines that are good for starting out?

Like, if this were an audio engineering forum - and I was a newbie - I'd ask - what's a good mic to start out with for a home studio? People would say SM58 or something - not just "read all the threads and eventually you'll find your way".

Grateful for any advice that comes my way. Thanks again.

-J

[fredbissnette]

honestly i have found the only way to get anywhere here is the search bar
i have learned a lot from this
i can only say you WILL find what you are looking for

cheers

[markrob]

Hi,

I would start with a Presto 6N or K8. The 6N was a staple in radio stations back in the 50's into the 70's. They are built like a tank and perform well. They are easy to work on and hold value if you decide to sell later. The K8 is a portable unit, a little lower in quality, but still quite nice to get started with. It had the cutting electronics built in and you can get them up and running with little effort or bypass them and use you own modern chain (see below). Now that there is more demand out there the prices are getting pretty steep, but you should be able to find one if you are patient. As far as heads go, the Presto 1D should take you quite far (the K8 had a lower - fidelity head built in similar in construction to the 1D). Once again, well engineered and easy to work on. People like Todd here on this forum, are repairing and rebuilding. You will be cutting mono, but that is a great place to start. Down the road, you should be able to upgrade to a stereo head like Flo's Caruso (if you can get you hands on one). As far as electronics go, you can use a modern power amp (solid state, or tube) or go vintage. The choice is yours. Hope that helps.

Mark

[asqus]

It seems like there is another new lathe on the market: http://www.myshank.com/en/zez-cutting-lathe/133-zez-cutter-one.html

Haven't seen any reviews of it but it looks very well put together and MyShank seems like a trusted member of the community.

[TheCrates]

yes its worth buying -even you dont get any support. almost every question bout this machine is allready solved and you have other ways to get material (my shank)..... buy it used if you wont travel , wait for sillytoes lathe or save money for flo am44 or maybe the new zez cutter.

if you have techincal skills and want old school rek-o-cut and a lot of lathes are around. just digg in the forum, very informative and it will help you to find the right one.

cheers,
crates

[nomad]

Wow - thanks so much for the continued informative responses!

This setup at MyShank looks pretty great ( and a bit cheaper than VinylRecorder). Plus they seem to offer 2 to 3 days of free training if you buy the system. I'll look into it more!

Thanks all

[socialroots]

Greetings,I just want to point out that the cheapest part of the lathe cutting game is gonna be buying your first lathe. Once you got that sorted , be prepared to be investing alot of time problemsolving , and ALOT of money, no matter at what level your shooting for, and choice of either cutting of embossing, lofi mono, hifi mono, stereo, using pc, pvc, laquers, nos discs from ebay, using homade steel styli, sappires, or diamonds....there is no getting around the money you gonna be spending,its a costs that doesnt stop , unless you stop cuttin. Thats the reality of cutting records, even if its just a hobby. Ive been diggin a deep hole for myself financially ever since I got a lathe and started cutting records, for me its just a passion and hobby, but a costly one. Regrets ? There are some, but its like any addiction! When things are going smoothly its bliss, when you run into a problem it always tests and challenges my patience!
repect,
Patrick