@cleeds Oh no, not at all. Good LP playback requires a proper turntable, and a proper pickup arm, and a proper phono cartridge, and a proper phono preamp. They must each be suited to the others, and they must all be properly setup.
Are you talking about cheap portable Crosley turntables? If something wrong with the records it’s about the cartridge, not about the rest of the sh***t on those plastic tuirntables. If your records are destroyed then she played them on completely worn needle.
For me it’s still hard to imagine destroyed old records, just because someone played them on old and cheap turntables, good sellers have grading system for each record. And most of the old vinyl have been played for 40 years on average turntables with average cartridges and tonearms. Sellers and normal people are not audiophiles! Those vintage records are still amazing sounding today on our proper setup even if the condition is VG+ or higher. Poeple who cares too much about clicks on vinyl should really go digital.
I don’t mind to spend $100+ on rare original vinyl, but when reissue cost $50 new i will pass on it! Especially if the original first pressing of the same records available for $10