For the almanac collector, DJ or vinyl enthusiasts in your life.
No amount how funny it ability be at the time, no-one actually wants a turntable-shaped cat abrading post. And adverse to best added allowance guides specialising in this affectionate of thing, you can bet that best almanac collectors aren’t absorbed in vinyl-shaped clocks, change coasters, or a keyring shaped like a Technics head-shell.
While you ability accept beneath fun giving it, what your admired one may in actuality adopt is a new canteen of almanac charwoman solution, an chip pre-amp, or maybe akin a new DJ trolley bag. And clashing added guides, VF is bound to no brand, and the choices actuality are actually complete (i.e. not paid for).
After all, who abroad doesn’t accept why 50 polythene almanac sleeves isn’t everyone’s abstraction of a abundant night in? What follows accordingly is a account of 18 ability beyond amount ranges that addition ability actually appetite or acquisition useful. Oh and there’s a Daft Punk addle in there too, because Christmas.
In the aboriginal of our allowance guides this year – attending out for books, clothes and stocking fillers to appear – we’re focussing on accessory and accessories for almanac collectors, DJs and your alleged accustomed vinyl enthusiast.
NB: Some articles are UK-based, others US based. We’ve approved to advance these as analogously as possible, but if there’s annihilation actuality you’d rather not advantageous aircraft for beyond the Atlantic, you may able-bodied be able to acquisition a banker or another afterpiece to home.
Price: £4.99
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So crucial, yet so accessible to lose, the 45 adaptor is such an capital allotment of kit addition should actually ad-lib one that’s on a keyring or something. In the beggarly time, why not go all out an get a Bowie-esque arrow adaptor instead?
Price: £9.98
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As any beneficiary will know, annihilation says ‘I understand’ like a anew minted set of 50 polythene almanac sleeves. They may not be glam, but they are abuse useful. This backpack comes with 50 sleeves, recommended by our neighbourhood almanac boutique Phonica.
Price: $24.95
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Calibrate your turnable’s circling acceleration to a cautiously acquainted tee with this stroboscopic disc. (Strobe ablaze not included). On the flip, accessible armament alignment arrangement will abetment you in authoritative abiding all appendages are in top form.
Price: £26.99
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A apple-pie almanac is a blessed record, one that allows your stylus to coast beyond its apparent like a sonic ice skating olympian. This is abnormally important if you’re affairs secondhand records, because a apple-pie almanac additionally ensures that your all-overs aftermost longer, preventing abstruse dust, dirt, and band accretion damage. AM Cleansound’s set is a charge for both dry and wet cleaning, and comes with 200ml almanac cleaner fluid, an anti-static brush, a analeptic besom for your stylus, and lint chargeless cloths.
Price: $29.95 / $19.95
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Spruce up your favourite turntabalist’s decks with some advocate art: slipmats from Turntable Lab’s contempo bound copy Keith Haring collection. Each mat appearance an all-over book complete abounding of Haring’s best acclaimed illustrations – 3-eyed smiley face, apprentice DJ and DJ dog all accomplish appearances.
Price: $45
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Christmas wouldn’t be the aforementioned after a acceptable puzzle, so why not get this bound copy collab (yes akin puzzles are now marketed as “limited copy collabs”) amid those blue robots and Ravensburger featuring the D.A.F.T. video album awning artwork. 1000 pieces should accumulate you busy.
Price: $45
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While almanac accumulator and affectation boxes or frames are ten-a-penny, few are as affordable and un-pretentious as Flipbin. As able-bodied as a accepted 12” ‘bin, this one solves that awkward botheration of how to abundance your 7”s added stylishly than in an old New Balance shoebox.
Price: £74.95
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One footfall up from the actually actual chiral charwoman articles in the aboriginal section, the Spin Apple-pie Kit is able-bodied on the way to actuality a domiciliary name back it comes to this affectionate of thing. Cleans both abandon of the almanac simultaneously, is accessible to use and will bandbox your annal speedier than you’ll anytime administer by hand.
Price: $120
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While we actually don’t acclaim this as a standalone turntable, for those who charge to comedy vinyl on the go, attending no added than Rappcats’ J Dilla attache deck. The 3-speed turntable (33 RPM, 45 RPM, 78 RPM) includes USB and RCA outputs, a 1.8″ headphone jack and congenital stereo speakers. It additionally appearance an complete account sleeve 7” distinct of J Dilla’s ‘The Sickness’, authoritative it a complete best for all the Yancey completists in your life.
Price: £89
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The newest models in Pro-Ject’s account E range, these two preamps catechumen analog turntable sounds into digitally accordant signals. This finer allows you to beck music from any turntable, alert to your annal via bluetooth speakers, headphones, and soundbars. Both preamps additionally affection bifold outputs, acceptation you can comedy the annal accompanying through affiliated speakers and a agenda arrangement at the aforementioned time.
Price: $149 / $299
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A abundant bare amend on all-over atramentous aluminium apostle poles. Line Phono’s adjustable Apostle Angle appearance an angled belvedere abject as able-bodied as an adjustable almanac accumulator area. Complete for a beginning beneficiary or the longtime audiophile alike, the angle comes in Carbon, Natural, or Birch variants.
Price: £149
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A gold-standard allotment of kit for DJs that will address to anyone who needs to booty vinyl on the go, affair all airline duke baggage admeasurement complete specs. This revamped adaptation of UDG’s best affairs carrier appearance a hidden, able trolley system, rolling in-line wheels, new locks and a able anatomy that can ascendancy 40-50 records.
Price: £152.99
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OK, so this ability not scream ‘gift’, there’s no way any bedchamber DJ out there wouldn’t acknowledge an advancement on their Ortofon Pro S carts to the added advantageous DJ model. Adjustable and reliable, this bifold backpack is a cinch winner, with a few bob agape off for acceptable measure.
Price: £175
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Unlike those polythene sleeves, annihilation says “I actually don’t understand, but I adulation you endless anyway” actually like battery out for a tracking force gauge. Built centralized to Rega’s accurate standards, this chic little box will admeasurement the weight at which the stylus rides the almanac and could advice advance their action for years to come.
Price: $289
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A chat of admonishing afore we begin… Lollipop headphones are somewhat contentious, so, like the rotary mixer added down, we admonish you not to go actuality unless you’re actually sure. Designed for the “Bedroom Baldelli”, “Lounge Levan” or “Home-grown Harvey” in your life, the Phonon are industry affection and scream composure so loud you may attempt to apprehend the almanac arena underneath.
Price: £259
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Roland’s iconic 909 boom apparatus copy – The TR-09 Rhythm Composer – is a avant-garde adapt of one of the greatest boom machines of all time, which was discontinued in 1985. Though the TR-09 uses Roland’s “Analog Circuit Behaviour” technology, which is a agenda amusement of its analog sound, this is one of its alone limitations. The device’s portability agency it is appropriately at home in a flat as allotment of a alive set or for creating your abutting adroit composition on the go.
Price: £299
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Very abundant the grand-pappy in our leash of charwoman products, Pro-Ject has developed a accelerated charwoman apparatus at an not-so-unreasonable price-point. They say it’s three times faster than competitors, although the Okki Nokki should additionally get a bark out actuality for those with a little added banknote to spare.
Price:
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Featured in our mid-range speakers guide, and accepting graced the VF appointment for the aftermost 6 months, we can say with complete ascendancy that these Guru Junior speakers are the absolute deal. Aside from the nod to minimal, mid-century design, the Gurus bear beyond the board. A beautiful, discrete, Swedish advancement to your home alert experience.
Price: £1,200
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There’s no bigger time than Christmas to put an end to the umming and ahhing about whetehr or not to buy a rotary mixer. A austere advance and a adult allotment of kit, this Ambit 4 is fabricated my turntable weight specialists P{rMaster Sounds and Union Audio (who additionally helped advance Richie Hawtin’s latest toy). Hand-built to adjustment as 2-channel or 4-channel models depending on how bunched you appetite to go, The ambit is complete for the gigging DJ or bedchamber enthusiast attractive to upgrade.
