Vinylengine Reviews 43

probably the best turntable site in the universe,so much information and great people.

Great site.
Found the manuals i was looking for.
Super forum with a friendly tone

Great resource, friendly forum, I am a daily visitor.

Great website with so much information, love it. If you're looking for info about how to get the most out of your record collecting hobby, this is the place to go.

Vinyl Engine is an invaluable site. The library of manuals and the databases on cartridges and tonearms is a huge resource with vital info we simply can't find elsewhere.
The forum is one of the most friendly and informative I have ever been on. So much experience, so much expertise, so helpful.
The site owners are friendly and should be proud of such a great site.

Some years ago, I scanned several sites hoping to get some advice about a problem I had with a turntable. This one seemed the most friendly, and I got informed advice on the problem from several helpful members.
The collection of manuals is valuable, but the willingness and ability of the members to help sort things out is outstanding, whether the question comes from a seasoned veteran or from someone trying to figure out where to plug their turntable in.
Yes, people who abuse the system, or who become abusive are cut. This keeps things civil.

This is my favorite social media forum bar none...JaS does his best to maintain the site and keep it up, but I'm sure it's not easy, to which we are indebted to him for all he does...Still, if any of you are looking for the friendliest vinyl and turntable-related forum on the Internet, NOTHING compares to Vinyl Engine! Some of the most helpful, dedicated and knowledgeable people there, as well...In fact, in the 9 years I've been on the site, I have learned more about turntables, vinyl and equipment than I'd done in all the other years I've been living and being obsessed with records...If you are a newbie, do not be shy...Come visit our site and see how great it is...We're nothing if not a helpful bunch! Read a few threads and maybe post a comment of your own or ask a question...Trust me, you'll be glad you did!

Great site with lots of like minded helpful folks.

This is a great site. I've been a member for 4 or 5 years now and have always found it full of knowledgeable people, a lot of differing opinions, but this is vinyl - how can there not be widely different views on turntables, cartridges, etc. It's baked into the hobby. The website is clean and simple, the way it should be. Not full of pop ups and visual distractions and annoyances that tend to make me leave other sites alone. Keep up the great work!

I've been a member of VinylEngine for practically 10 years, and I all have is positive reviews. The site is run by a reputable and trustworthy administrator on his free time, and he does an excellent job in providing free infrastructure for users to interact in a healthy environment.

The community itself is very stable and some members have indeed become virtual friends. I have learned a lot over the hears and hopefully shared some of my knowledge for the community too. VinylEngine and the sister page HiFiEngine, also run by the same administrator, also features a huge library of products spanning several decades. All this fed by the members themselves in what is a community responsible website.

The people who have been banned from VE had this fate due to very explainable reasons: scamming, abuse of library documents for commercial purposes, excessive quarrels on forums or misinformation spread. The administrator has done an excellent job in this.

Excellent site that has a manual library that is even used as a resource by some manufacturers for some of their older products.

The forum is friendly, open minded, and a wealth of experienced and knowledgeable members who give their time freely and seek no reward.

The site owner is regularly online and is very approachable, moderation is fair and usually a last resort. Members are not banned because of views or opinions, banning is only a result of abuse.

Another point is that VinylEngine and HiFiEngine are not businesses, there is no mechanism for members to pay the site owner and the small advertising barely covers the cost of hosting the site.

The best site I know about for information about record playback.
I am a former audio equipment salesman and a 50 year audio hobbyist with some other professional audio experience.
I have been a member of VinylEngine for 18 years and made thousands of posts. I view the site pretty much every day.
VinylEngine has a fantastic free library of user and service manuals for all types of record playback equipment: turntables, tonearms, and phono cartridges.
There is also a large database of information about these same products and a nice set of tools to help you choose and set up your record playback system.

As far as I know (and I have been researching audio information on the internet for 30 years or more) there is no other comparable site on the web.
It's the best!

The forum is extremely active, with contributions from a large number of audio enthusiasts from around the world. Mostly from the US and UK. But there are contributors from every continent except Antarctica.

Many contributors are very knowledgeable and very willing to help those who are new to the hobby or who have problems with or questions about equipment, setup, and repairs.

The only problem with the site is that there are a few forum users who can be rude or insulting to those they disagree with. The number is pretty small, however, compared to the usual social media experience.
I *might* take off a 1/2 star for that complaint, but that would probably be unfair, considering all the other positive aspects to the site and forum.

The site owner, JaS, does a tremendous job, especially considering he is unpaid.
I honestly don't know how he does it!

THANK YOU, JaS!!

I joined Vinyl Engine six or seven years ago. Initially I discovered the site while searching for an instruction manual for a particular turntable. V.E. has the largest collection of turntable instruction manuals on the web, and they're free, which is in contrast to the many other sites that charge money for manuals.

While I was there, I discovered the V.E. discussion forums. I asked some questions, got some advice, and quickly came to appreciate the diversity of knowledge and information shared by other V.E. users from around the globe. The wealth of knowledge is astounding. The vast majority of the members are friendly and helpful. There are a few troublemakers, just like there are on any site, but they're totally outnumbered by the good people.

If you think rules don't apply to you and that you should be allowed to say or do whatever you want with no consequences whatsoever, then V.E. probably isn't the right site for you. But if you're able and willing to follow some basic common-sense rules and behave yourself like a civilized member of society, you'll have no problems at all and you'll quickly come to appreciate what a great community V.E. is.

Great source for info about hi-fi, toe The Party Line and you'll be fine. Non-conformity to the hive-mentality will get you banned.

First the good: GREAT site for getting manuals completely free. I use it all the time.

The bad: A friend of mine just got banned there and I just HAVE TO post this from my personal experience: I would not bother posting there unless you have a sincere and carefully worded question. Otherwise, you will be banned FOREVER and without warning. And to be clear, he's not messing around. I was a member there for many years and somehow gored one of his ox and, without warning, he even blocked my ip from accessing the site - at all. And when I accessed from another IP I found out that every post I'd ever made on the site was removed. Like in Back to the future - erased from existence. Fortunately I have a lot of IP's I can use to access the site so it's not really an issue. I just created a couple of accounts there that never post, but just download the info. I created two just in case one gets banned for using a "known" IP that he's banned.

He also reads the PM's and will ban people for stuff said in PM's. He will also ban you if he discovers you are complaining about the site from someone else. And if you try to create a new account, the very act is a bannable offense because you are a previously banned member. And he is quite active in checking. That is, if you mention you have turntables a and b and someone banned also had turntables a and b, you may be banned - completely without warning. It happened to me.

But if you just don't post there and use the resources, it's a great source. And if you take a strong "beta male" position, you should also be fine. That may explain why the forums are so quiet though. :)

Edit: Regarding VE's response below: See what I mean? Every time I need to get to any pdf there I hsve to create another account, and by posting in his forum I exposed enough info to convince him it was me, at least regarding the ones that actually were me. He's pretty, um, serious about this stuff so yer safest if you just use the resources and don't post in the forum. That's what I do now.

A site with not just opinions but helpful members/posters with both knowledge and experience . A great troubleshooting aid for both new vinyl users and even a recovering Linn mechanic like me can learn a thing or two.
Highly recommended.

i registered on "vinylengine" a short while after getting back into vinyl several years ago. The owner "JAS" seems to be a narcissist jerk with a grossly inflated ego who loves to bully forum users.
For no reason, he started to put words in my mouth claiming that I said things that I never said and he banned me from the forum . Others have said much the same about him.

" JDJX"

.

Fabulous site, specializing in vinyl, but covering all aspects of audio reproduction, from the elementary, to advanced. Friendly, helpful advice for all, on all levels of equipment, methods, software, and recorded music. An especially great find for beginners, who don't know a turntable from an end table.

An excellent resource to learn about the art of vinyl playback. There is a non-judgmental attitude by most of the forum members and so no matter if you have a low or high priced turntable you can contribute your findings in most of the forums. I find it a real useful practical resource for those who like to experiment with and share their findings. Unlike CD players, high quality vinyl playback requires careful setup and precision, but once attained the fidelity achieved can rival any other medium.

This site is obviously run by an anorak, geek, or dictator who, if he (must be a 'he'!) doesn't like what someone writes, in a forum, will not delete it, but state, and I quote: ''Please take your attitude and ranting elesewhere, thank you''. Ha, ha, ha, ha.... well, I think that sums up this silly little site!

Let me tell the world what I wrote, and let's see if this poseur has anything to do with a certain product. There is a German made, supposed, record-cleaning machine that actually damages records, as all it does is use a solution, that has no official list of ingredients, and brushes that impact dust, and then when the records dry, the precious vinyl is blocked. So, that is what I stated! Simple. Not a 'rant'.

Then I suggested what I do: use a pressure washer, to clear the grooves, and then dry using microfibre cloth. And the KNOSTI DISCO ANTI-STAT machine is poor, and of untested quality.

So, Mr Vinyl Engine dictator, are you being paid by KNOSTI??!!! Totally poor, geek site, and run by someone who hasn't a clue!

This is an up-date, many, many months later, as the site finally got around to being in touch outside of its own world, and as you can see from the comment, it actually shows modern day naivety, and a lack of understanding of what is or isn't allowed. To say, as I did, that a product causes damage to records, due to a lack of transparency in contained ingredients in the cleaning solution, where there is no list of WHAT is in the fluid, is fact, NOT slanderous or libellous. I suggest Mr Vinyl Engine takes a course in law! Knosti could be a company from any part of the world, it is irrelevant whether it is German or not, but since it is branded, made, produced and exported by a German company then let it be known that it is what it is: German! Had this been a UK based company (I am English) I would have stated the same i.e, ''This is a British made product, that damages records!'' This ignoramus does not only NOT know the law, he/she does not understand definition: slander is verbal, vocal, ACTUAL speech. NOT typing! That (if it were true) would be: Defamation. Plus, it could never be seen to be libellous, as all consumers have the right to complain, if a product does not do as is suggested, listed, advertised and in fact any wrong doing would be seen as a company making false claims. For this, so called, vinyl person to take down a logical, with warning critique suggests complicity or a sheer lack of wanting to be bothered, and such sites should be considered unhelpful, at best, and plain useless at worst! Vinyl can be ruined by this form of cleaning, and this site should not just delete, then insult! YOU dictated to me, by starting off with, ''Your rant....'' and you carried on insulting! I suggest if there are grounds for defanation that they are with those that you don't like on your little site!

My reply to this:

You really are a foolish person, as there was nothing, so called, ''foul mouthed'' about my critic concerning the vinyl cleaning machine! You suggest it was somehow because it was German?! You clearly have no idea, as my wife IS GERMAN! This is just the sort of fool you clearly are, and THAT is not foul mouthed, nor was my review. You have a site, and that site is about vinyl, well guess what? WE CLEAN VINYL and the machine that IS out there, that does NOT do what is is supposed to, IS part of owning vinyl for many! It is clear you get things wrong, and insult whenever you can.

Reply:

Once again, this 'person' uses words that are his, I am nit ranting or raving; he is! You run a forum for those who own vinyl... records. Thus: I can leave a review for a record cleaner, just as I can about a stylus! I was warning the forum readers, that IF they used a certain record cleaner, it WOULD do harm to their vinyl! If you can't see the relevance, then you should not be running a forum for record lovers! It is as daft as someone running a forum for cars, and someone warning them about a certain brand of car wax that damages cars! That is not ranting, nor raving, as you put it, that is related!

Reply:

I don't think you get it?!! I wrote my review about you, because YOU accused me of ranting and raving, and deleted my review for the record cleaner! My review was about YOU! Being a dictator, and running the vinylengine site as if you could pick and choose just who and what is discussed! I KNOW you have nothing to do with Knosti! This is not about them, it is about your attitude: thus about you and vinylengine! As I keep saying, and this is the last time: IF YOU HAVE A SITE ABOUT VINYL, ALLOW PEOPLE TO DISCUSS VINYL, AND ANY ASSOCIATED PARTS. That is all I did, and you didn't like it! So, go away, my review is about YOU and your pedantic attitude! Bye.