The day after Thanksgiving perennially brings the biggest shopping day of the year, Black Friday. This year Amoeba will hold a sale with limited Record Store Day vinyl releases (see a list of highlights here, or download the full list [pdf file] here). And the sale goes through Sunday, Nov. 25, though if you want any of the exclusive RSD releases, you better get in early!
 

All headphones will be 15% off the regular ticket price. A special sale will be held on Skullcandy Ink'd Buds, which will be on sale for $12.98 (normally $19.98), while Skullycandy’s Lowrider headphones will be on sale for $29.98 (normally $39.98).

Select models of turntables will be on sale for up to 25% off.

Turntables on sale include:

 

The Audio Technica LP 60 (Non USB) –  $99.98 (regularly $139.98) Continue reading...

In July, Amoeba Berkeley ran a promotion of historic proportions: if you bought at least $75 worth of vinyl there, you would be entered into a drawing to win a white Pro-Ject Debut III turntable! The Pro-Ject Debut III is a high-quality manual turntable with great sound quality and ANYONE would be besides themselves with joy to go home with a prize like that. Well, we are happy to announce that a winner has been chosen...ladies and gentlemen, congratulations to Mollie Downs, who won the Pro-Ject Debut III! 

In the market for a groovy turntable and need more info about which kind is right for you? Check out our trusty Turntable FAQ.

Here is a breakdown of some of the turntables Amoeba currently sells and a bit of an overview of each one. Please see store for specific stock as our inventory differs between locations. 

	Crosley Keepsake 249 USB 33 1/3, 45, and 78 RPM Fully Automatic Belt Drive Auxilliary input Adjustable tone control Dynamic full range speakers with switch for line in play (iPod/CD, etc) USB enabled Software suite for ripping and editing audio included
	Numark Portable PT-01 USB - Available Online - 33 1/3, 45, and 78 RPM Belt Drive RCA line & headphone outputs USB enabled Wall-powered with included AC adaptor or battery powered ±10% pitch control Internal speaker
	Numark TTUSB 33 1/3, 45 (78 RPM with software) Adjustable anti-skate control Built in pre-amp Line level RCA outputs USB enabled EZ Converter software included
	Jensen JTA-460 Compact USB Turntable System 33 1/3, 45, and 78 RPM Belt Drive Built in speakers Remote control AM/FM receiver USB enabled
	Audio-Technica AT-LP60 - Available Online - 33 1/3 and 45 RPM Fully Automatic No Pitch Control Belt Drive Built-in pre-amp Phono or Line/Aux outputs Replaceable stylus USB model available
	Audio-Technica AT-LP120 USB 33 1/3, 45, and 78 RPM Manual operation Pitch Control Direct Drive Built-in pre-amp Phono or Line/Aux outputs Forward and reverse play USB   Continue reading...

      

As you've no doubt already read, vinyl sales are up so to meet the accompanying increase in demand for turntables Amoeba Music recently began selling various turntable models. As outlined in the excellent recent Amoeblog about buying a turntable at Amoeba Music, the three Amoeba stores each have a really good selection of turntables for sale.  Recently I stopped into the Berkeley Amoeba store to talk a bit with turntable expert Brendan about the variety of turntables to choose from at the Telegraph Avenue store. Note that the San Francisco and Hollywood Amoeba stores may each have a slightly different array of turntables to chose from. Call ahead to your local Amoeba (scroll down for phone numbers) to double check on which models are available. 

As outlined by Brendan in the video interview clip above, the Audio-Technica model on display is a wonderful hands-on, easy to operate, sturdy model that comes with a good quality, built-in cartridge (so you don't have spend any extra time and money getting the needle cartridge) for only $129.98. This exact same model - including the extra feature of a USB connection that is geared for folks who, as well as listening to their records, want to dub off their vinyl into a digital format to have on the go in their iPod and other mp3 listening devices -- sells for $179.98. A great deal if you plan on doing a lot of digitizing of your vinyl collection is the Numark TTUSB model with USB compatibility, on sale for just $149.98. As Brendan says in the video clip, this belt-driven model is "a really solid design for 150 bucks!" It also comes with pitch control, which is perfect for DJs and anyone who wants to increase or decrease the speed of the record being played.

When you buy a turntable from any Amoeba store now through November 15, you'll get $25 worth of USED vinyl - for FREE - to jumpstart your collection! 


To help determine which turntable is right for you, here are some questions to ask yourself before you purchase and some handy factoids that might help with that decision.

To DJ or Not to DJ
If you want to DJ with your turntable, you need a Direct Drive turntable. This means that you can scratch, mix, cue up your records, and do everything else DJs do without ruining your record player or the stylus.

If you don't plan on using your turntable for DJing, Belt Drive Turntable will work perfectly well for you.


How Are You Going to Hook Up Your Turntable?
Do you have a component system already? Do you have a receiver? If so, does it have a "phono" input selection? If your receiver doesn't have a phono input (and a lot of them don't these days), you will need a pre-amp.

If you have powered speakers (speakers that have their own power source), you can connect your turntable directly to the speakers if you want (and skip the receiver altogether). 


What the Heck is a Pre-Amp Anyway and Why Should I Care?
The pre-amp boosts the sound of the cartridge on your turntable up to the "line" level of an iPod, CD player or cassette deck. A lot of turntables come with built-in pre-amps these days and if that's the case, you don't need to worry about it. But if your turntable or receiver doesn't have a built-in pre-amp, you'll need to get one (you can get a decent one for around $30 at Radio Shack). Then your turntable will connect into the pre-amp which will then connect to your receiver (or your speakers if you have powered speakers).