The vinylphile is a very niche audiophile, and therefore the average audio/hi-fi gifts simply won’t apply! But don’t worry, if the vinyl-freak in your life is in need of a gift, be that for their birthday or Christmas, there are plenty of reasonably priced things out there that they would absolutely love. How do we know? Well, we’re vinyl-freaks ourselves!
You’re not limited to getting them a new turntable/phono stage/a pile of vunyl (although I’m sure they’d love you if you did!), there are a whole host of useful things out there that would make any vinylphile’s day… that won’t cost the earth. But just in case you’re a little bit stuck, we’ve had a good dig through our accessories stock, and picked out the gems. Look at them shine!
1. Vinyl Hi-Fi System with Pro-Ject Elemental USB + Yamaha NX-50 – £249
Okay okay, yes this is a turntable. And speakers. But if your loved one is only just started expressing an interest in all things analogue, this is a great place to get them started. This is a complete vinyl playing system of the highest calibre for a serious bargain price and is guaranteed to will blow the socks off any “suitcase style” turntable system you can buy from the non-specialist (re: hipster!) stores. This is a package with a proper hi-fi turntable with the hugely impressive (yet very compact) Yamaha NX-50 active speakers. The whole setup takes up no more than around 40cm square, making it a perfect choice for lounge, bedroom or even student digs. It may be small, but it sounds big.
See for yourself!
2. The Q UP Automatic Tonearm Lifter – £49
![The Q UP [large view]](https://www.audioaffair.co.uk/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/The-Q-UP-large-view.jpg)
Vinyl is becoming more and more user-friendly, thanks to clever little gizmos like this! A great value yet highly effective (and very innovative!) This very simple (yet genius) device sticks to the surface of your turntable near the tonearm. When the tonearm gets to the end of the record, it will automatically lift the whole thing off the record avoiding it skipping round and round – and we’ve all fallen asleep to wake up to this (believe me!) Not only does it offer the benefit of no skipping, it helps avoid wearing your needle and stylus out with necessary wear.
Check it out, it’s really very clever…
3. Hi-Fi News Test LP – The Producers Cut – 180g LP – £24.95
This is one for the… more experienced vinylphile. For a more serious turntable setup, it helps to get it thoroughly tested. Your loved one may have already done that, but it’s unlikely they’d have done it with this! Once you’ve setup your turntable and cartridge, this LP will allow you to test the capabilities of your analogue system and make sure everything is calibrated correctly. A wonderful gift, especially for the serious hi-fi owner.
4. Chisto Easy Groove Vinyl Record Cleaner – £24.90
Do you know what vinyl’s biggest enemy is? It’s very simple: dirt. Grease. Dust. Most of it, you’ll never even see! A happy vinylphile is one with clean records and a clean turntable, so any cleaning gift would be gladly received! With the Easy Groove cleaning kit is a highly effective yet great value cleaner to keep records in tip top condition. Simply brushing off the dust doesn’t cut it, but this stuff will.
5. Pro-Ject Clean It Stylus Brush – £11.99
More on the whole ‘vinyl hygiene’ thing: brushing a record before playback will remove (some of the) dust… but what about keeping your stylus clean? Yes, that gets dusty too, qhich is not good for a stylus! This brush is designed simply to brush dust off the needle prior to use – just make sure to brush along the stylus (from the back to the front) and be very gentle. And if this a gift, pass that information on! Needles are delicate, hence the need for special apparatus!
6. Milty Zerostat 3 Vinyl Gun to Remove Static – £48.95
Another of vinyl’s biggest enemies (… it’s been around a long time, you get a lot of enemies that way!) is static. And yes, there’s a way around that one too! This one requires (perhaps) a little more faith, but its hugely popular among analogue audiophiles and we have never had one returned so they must be onto something. A few members of the AA staff swear by it too! Essentially this removes static prior to playback. Simply push the trigger a few times above an LP to remove any built up static and then proceed as normal.
… and let us know how you get on!
7. Tonar Pure Cork Turntable Mat – £13.50
You know what else vinylphile like? Upgrades. And they really don’t have to be complicated ones either! An effective upgrade for almost any turntable, this cork mat is designed to replace a “standard” felt mat in order to better “dampen” the sound of the turntable. We’ve found it improves all turntables – in some cases quite significantly – and is excellent value for the improvements possible. In the world of hi-fi a little tweak can go a very long way!
8. Acc-Sees Pro Vinyl Carbon Fibre Cleaning Brush – £7.19
Back to the cleaning! This is a great budget gift (or indeed a stocking stuffer!), simply designed to remove dust from the surface of a vinyl record before playing, simply brush it round one revolution of the record and then brush the dust off the record, and you’re ready to go. See? Vinyl isn’t that scary. At least, not until you get onto the slightly more hi-tech stuff.
Speaking of which…
9. Clearaudio Concept MM Phono Cartridge – £139
Cartridges! If you know someone who has owned their turntable for a while and is pretty serious about their vinyl, this is an excellent gift. An upgrade to their existing cartridge will always be well received, and as a very rare warehouse find we’ve slashed the price, so it’s great value too. There is no way they’d expect to get one of these as a present, so see to it.
Speaking of cartridges…
10. Clearaudio Aurum Beta Mk2 MM Phono Cartridge – £269
Like the cartridge recommended above, this is an excellent upgrade and even more so than the Concept V2 model! It might seem like a small difference to you, but to your vinyl-headed loved one, it would be a huge change, and one they will never fail to notice.
If you’re at all confused by all of the above, or are looking for further recommendations then give us a shout. We are vinylphiles. We know what other vinylphiles like.