u/jerryleebee

What a great album though. Absolutely beautiful and soulful. One of my favourite artists I "discovered" last year. His 2nd LP is imminent.

I'm struggling to find reviews for the 2025 reissue, and originals are way overpriced.

Audio-Technica LP120XBT-USB Bluetooth Turntable + Edifier R1280DB Active Bluetooth Speakers.

I've already got my Rega setup. This is my teenage daughter shopping for her first setup within her budget. She's taken some advice from me and done some research of her own too and this feels like a solid option. I've advised her on looking at particular models and avoiding others due to future proofing a bit more, upgradeable, reliable, etc. Not opposed to alternative suggestions within this budget but I think it'll be difficult to beat. It's probably going to be this setup. So real my question is, are there any tips/tricks/hints you have learned when you used this setup? Quirks or pitfalls You've worked around that you would pass on to new owners?

If you're not into vinyl you may not know this instinctively (my daughter didn't until I explained, so forgive me if you know this).

A vinyl record has grooves. Or, rather, one singular groove (per side) that spirals from the outer edge at the first track of the start of the side, all the way to the inner edge near the centre at the last track of the side.

You can spot the start of each individual track usually by the slightly wide gaps between tracks. This represents a couple of seconds of "silence" between tracks. Here, I've labelled the gaps of side 2 of Aladdin Sane. Track 1 (Time) through track 5 (Lady Grinning Soul).

So what's 1a? That's the few seconds in the middle of "Time" when the track gets very quiet, and it's just Bowie breathing heavily.

I just think it's neat.

I don't like it when a label doesn't have a clear A/B indicator. And my eyes thought that's what was going on here at first. I guess I was expecting a smaller A/B, probably off-centre. Whoops.

Stevie Wonder — Fulfillingness' First Finale. I am now only missing "Music of my Mind" from his legendary "classic period" between '72—’76. Not seen that in the wild yet.

David Bowie — Aladdin Sane | Hard to get more iconic as an album cover. Not my favourite Bowie album, but super iconic and still excellent by any measure. Can't really have Ziggy without Aladdin.

Norah Jones — Visions - I actually bought this once before about a year ago, but had to return it as the label was pressed off-centre into the groves. First time seeing it in the wild since. I've got a lot of NJ on my shelves. This makes the 9th.

George Ezra — Goldrush Kid | Already had Wanted on Voyage, and just really wanted more George.

Michael Kiwanuka — Home Again | Been meaning to get more into MK's music for a long time now.

Raye — This Music May Contain Hope | Along with David Bowie, Raye is another artist I've gotten into through my teenage daughter's recommendations. Fantastic singer, great album.

(Honourable mention) Bridgerton (OST) | My wife told me if I ever saw any Bridgerton vinyl, just get it. She's not really into vinyl, so I took that shit seriously. For those not in the know, the show takes pop songs and reimagines them as classical pieces. Genuinely fascinating to listen to.

CBR has that smooth, sultry, jazzy/r&B sound I enjoy so much in artists like Olivia Dean and Alicia Keys. But I feel she's somehow underappreciated. This was an excellent RSD drop, despite all the naysayers about RSD being garbage. Give it a listen.

I picked this up on RSD but am only just spinning it now. It's been a busy time recently with house decorating. Finally taking a little break for me. What an excellent funk trip. Highly recommended.

I'm in the process of cleaning and redecorating in prep to valuate/sell. We'll be moving into a new build and I want to be better going forward in several key areas...one is the kitchen. I've been shocked by how much grease has accumulated atop the kitchen surfaces (tops of cabs, etc.) We use a splatter guard over frying pans, etc. And CLEARLY I've been woefully inadequate about addressing the "out of sight, out of mind" areas. So I know I have behaviours I can change going forward in the new house. Our current evening meal preps consist of a fair amount of Hello Fresh-type meal kits. Many, despite their lower calorie content, still require an element of pan frying, which sees us use a fair amount of oil. I'm not moving back to nonstick frying pans after stainless steel, so that's a hard no. But I'm considering an air fryer to reduce the frequency of open-pan frying. Are there other things y'all do that I should be thinking about, to help me reduce in-air grease which settles on everything? TYIA