Considering going Vinyl--Please talk me out of it

Lots of great comments and testimony from the guys here on Audiogon. Fun read.

I say, let these comments reverberate in your head for a while. But don't think about the decision. Don't think about the pros and cons. Don't even think about the comments. Without your awareness, you will move closer to a resolution.

Maybe nothing will ever happen, and your decision loses pertenance(sp). Or someday, you will just know and proceed in the vinyl direction. Maybe you will find your self buying an LP or two and spinning it on a friend's system. Or it's just time to buy the vinyl gear.

But don't force a decision. The worst decisions can result from brute force. Something should simply tell you to move forward with vinyl. You will know it, but you may not know where the impetus came from. Your heart will be there however. Or maybe there is a gut feeling vinyl is just not for you. If there is no feeling, of course, just leave things alone. The best path is often the one that simply appears in front of you.

Darm OCD, this thread reeks of it in varying degrees. Some have escaped and some didn't they say. But I don't think of compulsion and obsession as a lamentable flaw. It's just the way some of are. It's a trait. It's a characteristic. It can be a source of strength or a vortex of decline. And what we do with our characteristics defines who we are and what we do. Many have taken this trait and accomplished wonderful and beautiful things with their drive to improve the reproduction of their favorite music.

Stolen energies returned many times more. Sure, there is a bit of suffering, but when the music washes over us....

Don't OC this decision. Relax, the best answers usually just reveal themselves to us. Spare the effort and use the energy for better purposes.

Or....

Do you look at your system and dream of what it might become? Maybe vinyl then?

vs

Are you happy to just look for the CDs? You have arrived now.

if I can relay one more testimony,

Shook Up On Vinyl

'Twas the biggest decision
I've faced in a while
Warm up to vinyl?
Like a good audiophile

I called out my plea
And the stories were told
But doubt still lingers
What have I been sold?

It turns me to think
This is not black or white
Proponents are rearing
And lined for a fight

And it pains me to know
More than vinyl vs CD
There's lots to consider
Is vinyl right for me?

So the time had arrived
My heavy, weary head
A moment of respite
Put these thoughts to bed

And if I had visions
Of components and racks
There's a mouse in the corner
Sitting next to it's trap

Then late in the night
My ears did discern
A commanding declare
Just what would I learn

My dreams were blackened
Like a moonless sky
And down from the rafters
Fell this stirring cry

Yes detail, yes dynamic
Yes PRAT and unveiled
Yes coherence, yes clarity
Yes delivery and breathed

His warm voice was golden
Said I looked in bad shape
Then he offered me comfort
That bore his namesake

He was dressed real tight
And shook at the pelvis
The sequence was sparkling
His name, simply, "Elvis"

"These shiny black discs
Will magically sing!
Expansive bright covers
Are fit for a king!"

"This disc has no limits
To what you'll perceive
The music that flows
No work to believe"

"I speak from my heart
This isn't a ruse
And now that I've left
I live in these grooves"

"Years pass me by
But I still get around
This heavenly transport
Is where I am found"

Then quick as a blink
Doubt returned, shook my head
Everyone knows
That Elvis is ...............

My apologies to Santa himself.

I suspect that the fact that you're asking this question is simply because you want a new toy. If you really wanted to get into vinyl, you wouldn't be asking "if" you should get a turntable, you'd be asking WHICH one you should get in a given price range.

That said, vinyl is one heck of a toy...if you enjoy a hunt-and-discover type of shopping, there's nothing like vinyl. Everything from hardware, to cleaning materials, to used vinyl, to new vinyl...it's all fun to buy due to its scarcity. Every time I find what I want, be it online, in a store or at a flea market, there's a little victory dance going on in my head. And when I bring home new records, there's nothing like cleaning and spinning a new find for the first time.

Good luck with your decision, keep us in the loop...