Audacity Forum

Hello All,

Just wondering if anybody else out there has used the RCA LAB-1200 Turntable. It was basically Radio Shack's war-horse turntable, and I believe even the same as their Optimus model. Anyway, what is y'all's experience with this turntable? I have been recording LP's for some time, and I think it is ok.

I am curious if anybody knows if the turntable's pre-amp adjusts to the RIAA curve or not. The sound does seem a bit lean, and I have applied a conservative adjustment of Audacity's RIAA preset equalizer to get better sounding recordings. I have found "upgrade" styli online for about $30, and am wondering if that is a course to take.

On the other hand, if I am trying to get really good recordings, should I look around for a turntable that has more features....such as anti-skate and time correction? Any hints would be great.

rca lab 1200 radio shack is a fine turntable. anti skate format-- if you do not know what you are doing will damage/ruin your records. all needles are set at a pitch when installed, use the same cartridge and needle or use a audio tectnica cartridge with needle and it will also give the correct pitch and weight. otherwise invest 900.00 dollars for a rosewood cartridge. the pitch and weight with the correctly manufactured product cartridge purchased with the lab 1200 is just right with the right price. lean sound can be corrected with an equalizer and adjust to your taste and texture. i carry alot of respect for that lab 1200 turntable, price of turntables will give one the impression that it is a superior item and never really replace's quality sound. if your receiver has a preamp use it. i would take a tape player and hook up a equalizer and strip a recordable tape removing all the film. i turn both units on and hit record on the tape player and turn on the tape monitor on your receiver which will activate your equalizer and push your turntable switch on and adjust your equalizer and it will sound fantastic, check it out.

i have the batteryshack TT for records that i dont care about
(and a *good* TT for ones that I do - so the other records wont mess up the good needle) dont recall any model number but it was decent in its day

the TT should not have any eq adjustments in it
the riaa etc are done by the preamp of your receiver/amp
whcih should have line outs for you to record from

if you used a preamp without riaa in it then you need a lot of eq
to fix it

if you have good records and care about the recording then i would use one that tracks with a light weight, antiskate built in, pitch variation so you can set it at exactly 33.3333... , etc.
diamond elliptical needle. large heavy platter.

I think the OP suggestion is great if you have money to burn but you can put a good system together without going $900 for a cartridge.

check your existing stylus with a microscope. 30x handheld works okay for this. got mine at the shack too.