Since Levi & I put our brains together for 25 Albums You Should Own On Vinyl we’ve been on a bit of a music-list kick. We know, we know – listicles are the death of writing & critical thinking, etc.  Yet, we love reading them ourselves, even when we vehemently disagree with the author’s picks…and we love making them ourselves.  Thus, we decided to do one more (we promise…probably) that would hopefully be useful to a lot of people – a workout playlist.

For quite a while both of us have been asked by our friends for good indie workout music, i.e. non-Top 40, stuff you don’t hear on the radio everyday. Thus, we present you with 100 songs (50 from each of us) that we think deserve a place on your workout playlist. Is this the top 100? Best workout playlist ever? Possibly, but you can decide.

What you WON’T find is Powerman 5000, Drowning Pool, Metallica – so if you’re a power lifter and that’s the music you’re looking for don’t bother reading on. However, if your workout includes more than A.C.-Slater-curls, things like running, biking, CrossFit, etc. then you may find some good stuff here you may have otherwise never discovered.  Enjoy!

1. Alexander – “In the Twilight”

2. Animal Collective – “Peacebone”

3. Animal Collective – “Today’s Supernatural”

4. Arcade Fire – “Keep the Car Running”

5. Arcade Fire – “We Used To Wait”

6. Arctic Monkeys – “I Bet You Look Good On The Dance Floor”

7. Arctic Monkeys – “Old Yellow Bricks”

8. Atoms for Peace – “Ingenue”

9. Band of Horses – “The Great Salt Lake”

10. Band of Skulls – “Light of the Morning”

11. Beastie Boys – “Gratitude”

12. Beirut – “Postcards from Italy”

13. Big Boi – “Back Up Plan”

14. The Black Keys – “10 AM Automatic”

15. The Black Keys – “Strange Times”

16. Blitzen Trapper – “Fire and Fast Bullets”

17. Broken Bells – “The Ghost Inside”

18. CHVRCHES – “Recover”

19. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah – “The Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth”

20. Cloud Nothings – “Wasted Days”

21. The Cribs – “Men’s Needs”

22. Cut Copy – “Need You Now”

23. Daft Punk – “One More Time”

24. Daft Punk – “Harder Better Faster Stronger”

25. Dale Earnhardt Jr Jr – “Simple Girl”

26. Das Racist – “Michael Jackson”

27. The Decemberists – “Calamity Song”

28. Deer Tick – “Easy”

29. Deerhoof – “We Do Parties”

30. Deerhunter – “Desire Lines”

31. Dirty Projectors – “Just From Chevron”

32. Ducktails – “Timothy Shy”

33. The Dutchess and The Duke – “Reservoir Park”

34. Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes – “Home”

35. Electric Six – “Gay Bar”

36. Fatboy Slim – “Weapon of Choice”

37. Felice Brothers – “Run Chicken Run”

38. Flashy Python – “The Lady is a Ghost”

39. Fleet Foxes – “Grown Ocean”

40. Four Tet – “Locked”

41. Foxygen – “No Destruction”

42. Franz Ferdinand – “The Dark of the Matinee”

43. Fugazi – “Waiting Room”

44. Gil-Scott Heron – “New York Is Killin Me (Jamie XX Remix)”

45. Gorillaz – “Stylo”

46. Grizzly Bear  - “A Simple Answer”

47. Handsome Furs – “Repatriated”

48. Heartless Bastards – “My Maker”

49. The Heavy – “How You Like Me Now”

50. Hot Chip – “Flutes”

51. Jack White – “Sixteen Saltines”

52. Japandroids – “The House That Heaven Built”

53. Jeff The Brotherhood – “Staring at the Wall”

54. Justice – “D.A.N.C.E.”

55. Kid Koala – “2 Bit Blues”

56. The Kills – “Sour Cherry”

57. Kings of Leon – “The Bucket”

58. The Knife – “A Tooth for an Eye”

59. Kurt Vile – “Jesus Fever”

60. LCD SoundSystem – “All My Friends”

61. LCD SoundSystem – “Daft Punk is Playing at My House”

62. Little Dragon – “Ritual Union”

63. Local Natives – “Sun Hands”

64. The Long Winters – “Scared Straight”

65. Luke Temple – “Ophelia”

66. Lykki Li – “Get Some”

67. M.I.A. – “Paper Planes”

68. Metz – “Wet Blanket”

69. MGMT – “Kids”

70. The National – “Bloodbuzz Ohio”

71. Palma Violets – “Best of Friends”

72. Panda Bear – “Tomboy”

73. Parquet Courts – “Stoned and Starving”

74. Passion Pit – “Moths Wings”

75. Phoenix – “1901″

76. Radiohead – “Morning Mr Magpie”

77. The Rapture – “Sail Away”

78. Rage Against the Machine – “Testify”

79. Ratatat – “Seventeen Years”

80. Sia – “Breathe Me (Four Tet Remix)”

81. Solange – “Losing You”

82. Spoon – “The Underdog”

83. The Strokes – “The Modern Age”

84. The Strokes – “You Only Live Once”

85. Tame Impala – “Be Above It”

86. Tame Impala – “Elephant”

87. Temper Trap – “Sweet Disposition”

88. Thao & The Get Down Stay Down – “We Don’t Call”

89. TNGHT – “Higher Ground”

90. Tune-Yards – “Bizness”

91. TV on the Radio – “Wolf Like Me”

92. Unknown Mortal Orchestra – “Swim and Sleep (Like A Shark)”

93. Wavves – “Demon to Lean On”

94. White Rabbits – “Percussion Gun”

95. White Stripes – “Blue Orchid”

96. White Stripes – “Seven Nation Army”

97. Wolf Parade – “Dear Sons and Daughters of Hungry Ghosts”

98. Wolfmother – “Woman”

99. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – “Heads Will Roll”

100. Yeasayer – “2080″

via Roo & The Howl…

What I found out about blues and music, tracing things back, was that nothing came from itself. As great as it is, this is not one stroke of genius. This cat was listening to somebody and it’s his variation on the theme. And so you suddenly realize that everybody’s connected here. This is not just that he’s fantastic and the rest are crap; they’re all interconnected.

- from Life by Keith Richards

This is part 3 of of 3-part series Levi & I wrote on the joys of vinyl records.  See Part I: “Let the Vinyl Spin: My Journey Into Record Collecting” -AND- Part II: “A Beginner’s Guide to Buying Your First Turntable” as well as the supplement “The Top 5 Beginner Turntables for Vinyl Enthusiasts”

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Below is a list of what I consider essential albums to own on vinyl. This list did not come together overnight. It’s the product of years spent scouring record stores, attending concerts, talking shop with music lovers whose knowledge often far exceeded my own, and most importantly, thousands of hours spent actively listening to albums. You should understand that my opinion is simply that – an opinion.  But, if you’re at all like me, it’s sometimes difficult to know where to start when putting together a decent collection. Along the way, I intend to give you some tips about where to start with your own collection and point out some reasons why these vinyl records are unique.

Inevitably, the comments section of this post will be filled with people who think my list would be better transcribed onto toilet paper and used in a port-a-potty. That’s fine, I won’t take it personally. What I offer you, though, is an honest attempt at a list of my favorite unique albums on vinyl, in the hopes that you’ll banter with me in the comments about which you agree with and maybe some albums that you think I should consider. Keep in mind, a list of 25 albums is only a glimpse through the peep-hole of what my collection holds, what I know it’s missing, and future albums that will find their way in.

Lists have a funny way of becoming irrelevant in a hurry. The irony of writing this list is not lost on me. It will be a potentially (but hopefully not) outdated list of albums that will be stumbled upon in 2019 only to be ridiculed by someone who right now (as I write this) is in 5th grade. That’s cool with me. In the end, it’s more about my personal reasoning and the following considerations rather than my very specific list of the top 25 vinyl albums.

So with that, some albums to consider:

Arcade Fire – Neon Bible

Arcade Fire has grown their fan base exponentially since their debut album Funeral in 2004. When they released their follow-up in 2007, the anticipation had early adopters on the edge of their seats to see if the music could possibly hold up to the debut. Neon Bible did just that, showing excellent depth and staying power for a band that continues to get better as their catalog grows. Neon Bible was released on vinyl as two 180gram records consisting of three sides of music and the fourth side with etched-in Neon Bible artwork as seen on the cover – something you’ll rarely see and a unique artistic highlight to an already excellent album.

The Band – Music from Big Pink

“Big Pink” refers to the house that members of The Band were occupying in New York when they originally composed the tracks that would end up on the album. As a modest nugget of music trivia, “Big Pink” was the same house where Bob Dylan and The Band’s Basement Tapes were eventually created. To say nothing of the excellent musicians, and the music that comprises this album, some legendary artists of our lifetime put together classic music, and you’d be doing yourself a favor to include it as part of your growing record collection.

The Beatles – Revolver

Q: Why is Revolver the best Beatles album to own on vinyl? A: Because it’s the best Beatles album period. The artistic and technical innovation that occurred during the 300 hours of studio time for the Fab Four is as astonishing as it is unmatched, taking place while the band was truly in its prime. After producer George Martin created his own label, the group then had time to develop the album at their own pace without anxious record execs breathing down their necks. “Eleanor Rigby” features a string octet and is very much an example of Paul McCartney’s genius, although each of the members contributed to the lyrics. “Tomorrow Never Knows,” the final song on the album, stands not only as a forerunner to the psychedelic rock movement, but also reveals just how far ahead of the times the Beatles were, using automatic double tracking for Lennon’s vocals, reverse guitar, and multiple looped tape effects. With Revolver, one finds the right band at the right time with everything falling beautifully into place…to not own and know this album on vinyl is nothing short of a musical crime.

Beirut – The Flying Club Cup

One of the biggest draws for me with a band like Beirut is their ability to create beautiful music with traditional instrumentation (not electric guitars, folks) that you just don’t get in many other places. Zach Condon is an artist like few others, one who can create an album that incorporates instruments like the trumpet, flugelhorn, ukulele, accordion, cello, melodica, upright bass, trombone, tuba, and glockenspiel without it sounding like circus music. The second album from Beirut was inspired by a turn-of-the-century Parisian balloon festival, with each track tied to a different French city, resulting in a musical masterpiece that will remain timeless among your otherwise potentially dated record collection.

The Black Keys – Thickfreakness

The liner notes of The Black Keys second album casually explain that, “all songs were recorded and mixed december 2002 by patrick carney in akron ohio at studio 45 using his patented recording technique called ‘medium fidelity.’” This might seem like boring technical jargon until one discovers that “medium fidelity” was a tongue-and-cheek reference to the old, junky, and half-borrowed analog recording equipment used to record the album (1980’s Tascam 388 8-track recorder) and that their “studio” was, in fact, drummer Patrick Carney’s basement. Recorded in a non-stop 14-hour session, Thickfreakness is the Akron duo stripped down to their fuzzy-licious, ghost-of-Junior-Kimbrough, dirty blues core. Carney bangs the drums like a floppy-haired Thor and Dan Auerbach’s voice is 23 going on 60, full of cigarettes and gravel…in other words, perfect for a garage-rock blues album and drool-worthy on vinyl.

Blur – Think Tank

Damon Albarn is known for a myriad of successes throughout his career that include leading the widely popular band Blur in the 1990s through the early 2000s, as well as his genius work as the unsuspecting leader of Gorrillaz starting in 2001. Although many of his albums could have found their way onto this list, we felt driven to include Think Tank not only for the musical beauty of the album but also because it has a rare commercially-released cover by the widely popular graffiti artist Banksy; a genius in his own art realm. If not for the beautiful album of music contained on the vinyl, framing the cover and hanging it near your record player will be an easily appreciated musical and artistic conversation piece to say the least.

Bob Dylan – Blonde on Blonde

We could have included ten Bob Dylan records because his sound lends itself so well to the vinyl format, but Blonde on Blonde is an easy standout even among his catalog. Largely accepted as one of the first double albums to be released by a major recording artist, Blonde on Blonde was Bob Dylan’s seventh studio album and was released in the summer of 1966. Although the record contains many great Dylan tracks, the beautiful 11-minute “Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands” was done in just one take at the end of an 8-hour recording session at 4 o’clock in the morning and is one of the greatest songs you could ever listen to on a clean cut of vinyl.

Decemberists – The Tain/5-Songs

The Tain is a relatively lesser-known track by the Decemberists, most likely due to its length – it weighs in at over 18 minutes long. This bodes well for vinyl lovers and fans of the Decemberists because its obscurity alone makes it a treasure, but the 5-part track fits perfectly on just one side of a vinyl disc. So as an added bonus, the B-side of the album is one of the other lesser-known Decemberists works: their 5 Songs EP. Any Decemberist fan that hasn’t heard this music will surely love discovering it in its most fitting format.

Deer Tick – Born on Flag Day

If your musical interests tend to reflect a great appreciation for rawness and grit, you should look no further than Deer Tick for a catalog of records that will fulfill those interests. Born on Flag Day was created after a 20-day marathon recording session that resulted in this album, and is some of Deer Tick’s best work to date. With a sound leaning on a mix of country and blues together with the rasp of lead singer John McCauley’s voice, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better album to soundtrack your summers. As an incentive to search local record stores you might even find a copy of this LP pressed on clear vinyl—they’re out there.

The Felice Brothers – The Felice Brothers

As the story goes, the Felice Brothers got their start by playing together at their dad’s Sunday BBQs and performing in New York City subways. Without leaning too much on that storyline, it does give you a context of what their early music might have sounded like. Their music was seemingly made to play on vinyl and to be enjoyed in thorough contemplation of life’s greatest stories. Beautiful ballads, sing-a-longs, tracks on the threshold of parlor music, and themes of death, murder, love, regret, hope, depression, and violence – it’s American music at it’s best.

Fleet Foxes – Fleet Foxes

Fleet Foxes self-titled debut, released in 2008, was an instant classic and phenomenal start for the 22-year-old Robin Pecknold. The vocal harmonies and stellar songwriting make this folk rock/baroque pop newcomer seem like an artist wise beyond his years. The album plays beautifully and flows naturally, like the perfect Sunday afternoon record. Fleet Foxes features a full-size bonus LP featuring the Sun Giant EP in its entirety, a welcome surprise for anyone who purchases this first album on vinyl. It also features cover art detailing “Netherlandish Proverbs,” a painting by Pieter Bruegel the Elder.

Joanna Newsom – Have One On Me

Every collection needs some artistic diversity, and Joanna Newsom will give you a lot of it in one bundle. Her box set vinyl release for Have One on Me is her third full-length LP, ringing in at over two hours of music, expertly showcasing her harp skills and unquestionably brilliant songwriting ability. There is a reason artists like Fleet Foxes, M. Ward, and The Decemberists readily cover her music; her songwriting ability is in another league and one that any focused listener can appreciate.

Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

There’s a lot to talk about Kanye West without even grazing the surface of a discussion about his music. Truth is, whether you particularly care for the guy or not, his dedication in the studio is among the top in the business, the result being a bevy of successful albums for himself and other artists across the spectrum. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is one of the most highly-praised albums of the last several years and is certainly the most artistic of his own catalog. Released as one package of three LPs with bonus art, you will surely be holding on to a classic album in the future if you get your hands on a copy of this today.

Kid Koala – 12 bit Blues

12 bit Blues is an epic blues-based album showcasing the talented DJ/turntablist/musician Kid Koala. Eric San used an E-mu SP-1200 sampler to create the tracks for this album over the span of three days without the use of modern day sequencing software. The result is 12 bit Blues, an album of re-invented blues music that will have you shaking your head in amazement of his technique. To be brief, the longest sample on the entire album is only 10 seconds long, which means no splice of any individual track would play longer than 10 seconds without San queuing the next part manually to keep the track alive (that’s a lot of work and a lot of samples to make an entire album sound this fluid). As a bonus for buying on vinyl, the LP is packaged with a cardboard, hand-powered turntable kit that actually works and plays music…the perfect way to teach any doubter how to really appreciate analog music.

Kings of Leon – The Early Vinyl (box set)

So much can be said about what the Kings of Leon used to be versus what they are today. No matter your position on the topic, this box set of the first three KoL albums is a treasure. Youth & Young Manhood, Aha-Shake Heartbreak, and Because of the Times capture KoL at their earliest musical roots when they were touring the country in dive bars and working their way up to the larger audiences and commercial successes they enjoy today. Original cover art for all three albums (which are difficult to find elsewhere), plus an entire LP of handpicked rarities from the band, make this worth the investment. This is a well-packaged set of albums for your growing record collection, because few things rock harder than early KoL.

Miles Davis – Kind of Blue

If your plan was to purchase only one jazz album on vinyl, first I would tell you what a horrible decision that is. Jazz is one of the best sounding genres on the format, with original Blue Note recordings fetching hundreds and even thousands of dollars at auction. However, if you persisted in your foolishness I would tell you to pick up Kind of Blue by Miles Davis. The best-selling jazz album of all time brought together a stunningly talented crew – John Coltrane, Julian “Cannonball” Adderley, Bill Evans, Wynton Kelly, Paul Chambers, Jimmy Cobb, and of course Davis himself. The musicians were given the basic outlines of the songs, but little else, as Davis wanted to capture the spontaneity he knew was at the real heart of jazz. It worked perfectly and when played on vinyl you start to understand why great jazz is something you feel more than you hear.

Neil Young – Harvest

James Taylor, Graham Nash, Linda Ronstadt, Stephen Stills, David Crosby – what could easily be the lineup for a music hall of fame concert is actually the list of vocal contributors on Neil Young’s fourth studio album. Including songs like “Old Man” and “Heart of Gold,” Harvest checks in as Rolling Stone’s 78th greatest album of all time. The original vinyl release featured a beautiful lyric sheet and soft jacket that added to the hand-crafted feel of Young’s music. If you can get your hands on the original LP, good for you, but if not there are several re-pressings that have garnered praise from critical fans in recent years. Whichever pressing you end up with you can be satisfied in knowing that you possess an album that helped define Americana. Ironically, it required a Canadian-born musician to do so.

Neutral Milk Hotel – In an Aeroplane Over the Sea

There are legendary albums, then there are albums full of legend. The second and final release by the Jeff Mangum-led indie rock band Neutral Milk Hotel belongs to an exceptionally rare breed of album that confidently straddles both. The dreamy turn-of-the century sound (organ, accordion, brass, pipes) and accompanying album art alone provide fertile breeding grounds for a certain mystique, but the hazy connections to Anne Frank, whose diaries reportedly served as an emotional catalyst for Mangum, help push it into cult-like status. Considered by many to be one of the greatest indie rock albums of all-time, In an Aeroplane Over the Sea continues to rank among the top sellers on vinyl year after year, despite being released over 14 years ago. One might be tempted to shrug it off as indie nostalgia…don’t. The music is lo-fi indie perfection, the album artwork grandiose and lovely – but most importantly there’s an intangible weight and force to this album that makes it a must-have piece of rock history for any true fan of music.

Panda Bear – Tomboy

One of the most accessible Animal Collective albums released to date, Panda Bear (Noah Lennox) created Tomboy shortly after the widespread appreciation of Merriweather Post Pavilion as a solo follow-up to his highly praised album Person Pitch. Although it is a significantly different sound than most fans might have expected upon release, to this day it is one of the most listenable albums to come from the unconventional group of artists. The limited edition vinyl release of Tomboy is a four-LP set, including the entire album on two discs with the Tomboy single mixes and several unreleased instrumentals, a cappellas, as well as the single “The Preakness” and a 16-page art book. And, just to make you feel like a philanthropist, all proceeds of the limited edition LP go to the American Cancer Society – as if you needed that as your reason to love Panda Bear.

Radiohead – In Rainbows

When Radiohead released In Rainbows in 2007 as a pay-what-you-want model, nobody was sure if that was going to reflect the quality of the release compared to their traditionally released masterpieces from before. Fortunately, it exceeded most fan expectations. They won several awards for their work and challenged the long-standing models of music access. As a bonus, they won a Grammy for Best Special Limited Edition Package for the vinyl release. Although you probably won’t find that Grammy-winning package very cheaply today, that doesn’t change the quality of the music contained on the album nor the enjoyment of the standard vinyl LP commonly available today.

Sufjan Stevens – Illinois

Sufjan Steven’s fifth album, Illinois, is his second state-based theme album. It contains people, places, and events relative to the title. The songs are not about the state explicitly; they just make a reference to the state in one way (sometimes direct, often indirect) or another. It’s not just beautiful music; it is an exercise in listening intently for the genius references while still making an album of incredible songs. This deep and active listening is what the vinyl format helps champion and with Sufjan, it’s a very rewarding exercise.

Van Morrison – Moondance

Written and recorded after a move to rural New York with his wife, Moondance is the album that put the Northern Irish singer-songwriter on the map. Blending jazz, soul, rock, and blues, the album contains a nostalgia that is easier to feel than describe. Much like Miles Davis’s Kind of Blue, Van Morrison brought into the studio little more than a basic outline of the songs, allowing the album to come together in a more creative and spontaneous manner. The highly subjective it-just-sounds-better-on-vinyl argument comes into play here with many fans describing fuller mids and lows on the LP in contrast to its CD/MP3 counterpart. Regardless, one really can’t go wrong adding such a classic from one of the century’s most gifted artists.

The White Stripes – Elephant

If listening to music on vinyl is a mild rebellion against the digital age, then Elephant, the fourth studio album by The White Stripes, is the French Revolution. Jack and Meg White chose to intentionally avoid modern recording technology or computers in the production process, using an eight-track tape machine and decades-old gear while laying down the album in just two weeks. The fifth-best album of the decade according to Rolling Stone, Elephant contains the well-known, “Seven Nation Army” in addition to a pulverizing cover of Burt Bacharach’s, “I Just Don’t Know What to Do with Myself.” The combination of old analog production equipment paired with the Whites’s characteristically distortion-rich shredding helps produce a rock album born for the turntable and a must-have for any true fan of the genre.

Wilco – Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

The story of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot is the classic tale of the artist triumphing over an increasingly bureaucratic and money-hungry record label. After a grueling year in the studio they handed the album over to Reprise Records only to have them refuse to release it without major changes. The Chicago-based band didn’t budge, trusting their artistic instincts over the judgment of the suits at Warner. This put the label in an awkward and soon very public position that eventually led to the album rights being transferred back to Wilco, who were then free to take it elsewhere. Finally released in April of 2002, the album was met with high praise from fans and critics alike who viewed it as the group’s most ambitious work to date and one of the best albums of the decade. This is an album to own not just because of its musical beauty and integrity, but because of what it represents – artistic conviction in an era too often marked by compromise and apathy.

William Basinski – The Disintegration Loops

Most people would call this ambient music – but not the kind where you just leave your clock radio on when you’re working in the kitchen. The Disintegration Loops is a collection of tracks of modern historic value. In brief, William Basinski was converting 20-year-old music loops from tape to digital in the summer of 2001 when, during conversion, he noticed that the decay of the tapes caused them to fleck and break apart in the conversion process. The result is hours of beautifully deconstructed sounds that take place slowly and gradually. It’s a musical experience like few others and I encourage you to read up on the story further, all the way to the part about how he finished them on the morning of September 11, 2001. In fact, the music is being inducted into the 9/11 Memorial Museum for it’s significance. Very limited, very beautiful.

Since starting Vinyl + Cocktails this past summer, Levi and I have had quite a few people ask us about the best turntables for people just getting into vinyl.  Our “Beginner’s Guide to Buying Your First Turntable” is now up over at the Art of Manliness, but we wanted to provide some additional guidance for those wanting specific turntable recommendations.  The following is a short guide to what we believe are the 5 best turntables for those just getting into vinyl.

Beginner Audiophile Turntables: The Big 3 (Pro-Ject, Music Hall, Rega)

Pro-Ject Debut Carbon ($399)

“Most highly recommended. I don’t know what else comes close for $399…”– Michael Fremer, Stereophile Magazine Senior Editor

Key Features :  Carbon tonearm, manual belt-drive operation, easy setup, Ortofon 2M Red cartridge

The Pro-Ject Debut Carbon is a redesign of the manufacturer’s bestselling Debut III series, a turntable that caught many in the audiophile community by surprise with its ability to go toe-to-toe with much higher end turntables.  The Debut Carbon features an upgraded cartridge (Ortofon 2M Red vs Ortofon OM5e), and upgraded carbon fiber tonearm (lowers resonance), redesigned body and inner suspension, and removable RCA cables should you want to upgrade further.   One would be hard pressed to make a case against this being the best beginner audiophile turntable on the market.

Music Hall MMF 2.2 2-Speed Audiophile Turntable ($449)

 “Leave it to Music Hall to take its best-selling, Stereophile ‘Recommended’ MMF-2.1 turntable and give it an upgrade, just to make it an even better value.” – AudioAdvisor.com

Key Features:  Adjustable height tonearm, manual belt-drive operation, easy setup, Music Hall Tracker moving magnet cartridge

In almost every audiophile forum you’ll find a discussion about “Best Beginner Turntable” or “Best Turntable for Under $500”.  The same three names always come up: Pro-Ject Debut III (now Carbon), Music Hall MMF 2.2 and Rega RP1.  What makes the Music Hall stand out from the pack?  First, the Music Hall offers an adjustable tonearm, meaning you can adjust the Vertical Tracking Angle (VTA) or the relative angle of the stylus to the groove (sometimes necessary when swapping cartridges).  Second, it has leveling feet that can be adjusted when dealing with uneven surfaces.  Finally, the Music Hall features a $100 Music Hall Tracker Moving-Magnet cartridge (not bad for a beginner table).  Overall, the Music Hall is a beautiful turntable that competes well in the low to mid-range audiophile category.

Rega RP1 Turntable ($445)

“Perhaps best of all, the RP-1 is easy to own and to use. It’s not just that I can’t imagine $445 buying more happiness; I can’t imagine so modest an investment in money and effort buying more music.” – Art Dudley, Stereophile.com

Key Features:  RB100 tonearm, manual belt-drive operation, easy setup, Ortofon OM5E moving magnet cartridge

British audio company, Rega Research, has been making turntables since the 1970’s and with a well-earned reputation stemming from their higher-end offerings, it’s not surprising that they’ve managed to create such a simple and well-preforming entry-level turntable.  The RP1 is noted for its great dynamics and performance on the high-end with things like cymbal crashes or piano flourishes coming across very life-like.  The main downside noted by many users is the low-end Ortofon cartridge, but that is something that can easily be upgraded.

In the end, any of the above three turntables would be an excellent starter turntable.  Each has its fan clubs, but most would admit that the differences are quite slight.  For those with a budget under $500 the Pro-Ject, Music Hall and Rega offerings represent the most bang for your buck in terms of design, sound quality and ease-of-setup and use.

The Legend

Technics SL-1200MK2 ($1300)

“This wasn’t JUST a record player.  This was a piece of art that doubled as a record player.” – Chuck Miller, TimesUnion.com

Key Features:  s-shaped tonearm, heavy base, variable pitch control, high-torque direct-drive motor, incredibly reliable

We have to expose our bias at this point, Levi and I both own the Technics SL-1200MK2.  Widely regarded as one of the most reliable turntables ever produced, Levi purchased his several years ago after dreaming of owning a legendary turntable that originally came out in 1972. Despite its massive acceptance in the DJ community today, the Technics turntable was originally built to be a sturdy, one-time purchase home audiophile turntable.  Clocking in at over 25lbs, it’s a tank, designed to minimize acoustic feedback.  It was manufactured with a direct-drive system rather than belt-drive, helping to minimize flutter and also allowing for quick spin-up.

In 2010, Panasonic announced it would be discontinuing production of the turntable with the result that prices have since skyrocketed, more than doubling since Levi bought his new in 2006 for $599.  There is a dwindling supply of new units on the market today, but soon buying used will be the only option (although, due to its durability, buying used isn’t a showstopper by any means).  Is it still worth purchasing at such high prices?  Hard to say, but from a usage standpoint it will likely pay for itself 500 times over in pure enjoyment and reliability.  It’s a powerhouse that is endlessly upgradeable, meaning you’ll likely be passing it on to your grandkids down the road.  It might be considered overkill for everyday household use in light of other, more cost-effective options listed above, but we love it and recommend it for anybody who can swing the cost, find one used, or just wants to make sure they get it right the first time.

The Budget Warrior

Audio Technica AT-LP60 Fully Automatic Belt Driven Turntable ($75)

“It’s not going to get any better than this until you hit about the $300 range.” – Amazon customer review

Key Features:  Fully automatic belt-drive operation, built-in switchable preamp, easy setup, affordable

For those who are looking to dip their toes in the water, but aren’t quite ready to make a $300+ investment, the Audio Technica AT-LP60 is an affordable workhouse that couldn’t be easier to set up and use.  It is fully automatic meaning you just hit play and it does the rest.  Additionally, it comes with a built-in phono preamp making it possible to connect the turntable directly to your computer, stereo, or other components that don’t have a phono input.  While the quality is not up to the same standard as the turntables listed above, this AT-LP60 has received consistently high scores from thousands of satisfied customers who are quick to point out that it outperforms all others in its sub-$100 price range.

For more info on buying your first turntable see here.

 Some of you may remember that I used to write for an excellent blog called The Art of Manliness.  I just wrote the first of a series of posts for them on my recent foray into the world of vinyl and the first post is now up.  Please go take a look when you have a second, leave a comment — it’s the type of narrative-form writing I haven’t had a chance to do much of lately and I really enjoyed the experience.

Here’s a teaser (read the full post here):

I’m sold on vinyl. Like other passionate music lovers, ever since I was a kid I have eagerly followed the major leaps in recording technology, starting with the cassette tape all the way to the mp3. Until a year ago, I never considered pushing back against the evolutionary trend, but now here I am, completely hooked on a medium that seemingly flies in the face of decades of technological progress. And I’m not the only one.

After slowing to a trickle in the early 2000s, sales of vinyl have been making a sizeable comeback over the past six years, and were up 39% in 2011 alone (3.9M albums sold). This is happening while CD sales declined by 12.6% in the same year. While it might be tempting to chalk up the new wave of interest in vinyl to the aesthetic trends of smug, hipster culture, such a quick dismissal is suspect. I’ve spent the past year on my own journey into the world of vinyl and can truly say that there is something entirely unique and significant about the medium, something greater than simple nostalgia, image, or even sound.

Secondly, along with my friend Levi (who you’ll meet in the AoM post), I’ve been working on a small side project, completely for the fun of it.  Check it out here.

So it is proposed here that a general theory of strategy should be some development of the following fundamental theme: The primary aim of the strategist in the conduct of war is some selected degree of control of the enemy for the strategist’s own purpose; this is achieved by control of the pattern of war; and this control of the pattern of war is had by manipulation of the center of gravity of war to the advantage of the strategist and the disadvantage of the opponent. – J.C. Wylie, Military Strategy, pg.77-78

“We ought to be seeking tentative answers to fundamental questions, rather than definitive answers to trivial ones.” – James H. Billington

*From the first chapter of Colin S. Gray’s War, Peace, and Victory: Strategy and Statecraft for the Next Century

Building snowmobiles…creativity is beautiful

“…organizations which design systems … are constrained to produce designs which are copies of the communication structures of these organizations.” – Melvin Conway, 1968

Chet Richards in ‘Certain to Win‘ provides a useful explanation of why a strategy and a plan are not the same thing…an understanding that often gets lost in the midst of heated competition.

First he provides multiple definitions of strategy – below are a few of my favorites:

Victory is achieved in the way of conflict by ascertaining the rhythm of each opponent, by attacking with a rhythm not anticipated by the opponent, and by the use of knowledge of the rhythm of the abstract. - Miyamoto Musashi, samurai strategist, 17th century Japan

Strategy isn’t beating the competition, it’s serving the customer’s real needs. – Kenich Ohmae, Managing Director, McKinsey & Co, Tokyo Office

The art of the possible in a world where constraints force us to choose between unpleasant or imperfect alternatives. – Retired Pentagon official and long-time Boyd associate Franklin C. Spinney, author of Defense Facts of Life

*Note – I think the second definition above would be more complete by adding shaping rather than just serving the customer’s needs, as in “…shaping and serving the customer’s real needs.”

Richards then defines plan as the following:

A plan is an intention about how to get from where we are now to where we want to be in the future.

Plans are concrete, often linear (first this, then that), while good strategy recognizes the non-linear nature of the world and is used as a “higher-order device for creating and managing plans.”

Strategy is far less easy to define and pin down than a plan as it must intentionally remain in seated in the abstract, able to see and cope with everything.  As I have attempted to explain at other times, strategy is ‘the art of everything else.’

Boyd’s views strategy as a tapestry of mental models–models produced through a constant cycle of destruction and creation and via the building of snowmobiles,

Strategy is a mental tapestry of changing intentions for harmonizing and focusing our efforts as a basis for realizing some aim or purpose in an unfolding and often unforeseen world of many bewildering events and many contending interests.

Charlie Munger, Vice-Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway and Warren Buffett’s partner, recognized the same need for strategy to consist of multiple mental models utilizing a latticework metaphor as opposed to Boyd’s tapestry.

You’ve got to have models in your head. And you’ve got to array your experience—both vicarious and direct—on this latticework of models. You may have noticed students who just try to remember and pound back what is remembered. Well, they fail in school and in life. You’ve got to hang experience on a latticework of models in your head.

What are the models? Well, the first rule is that you’ve got to have multiple models—because if you just have one or two that you’re using, the nature of human psychology is such that you’ll torture reality so that it fits your models, or at least you’ll think it does.

What this is all highlighting is the relationship between strategy and a plan. Plans of some kind or another will always be necessary, but they are a lower-order good than strategy. Strategy guides the plan, it shapes it to better match an ever-changing reality, it modifies it, discards it (a key part leaders seem to forget).  But, alas, they are not the same thing…not even close.