ION iTTUSB USB Turntable

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Great product -- not perfect
Reviewer: GB from Clarksville, IN on Dec 1, 2006
858 out of 941 found this review helpful

THE GOOD … … …:
This is a very good product that does exactly what it is advertised to do. I would buy it again in a heartbeat. I purchased it knowing all of the bad points listed later on and I am certainly not sorry I did. I have a large vinyl collection for which I am using some 70’s, mostly Altec-Lancing, equipment including a Garrard turntable with a Shure cartridge tracking at 1 gram, not the 3-5 grams of the Ion’s cartridge. Of course the Ion and my PC cannot approach the fidelity of that system, but I was pleasantly surprised at just how good the old LP’s sounded via the Ion and my $70 Altec 5.1 PC speakers. … … …

Unlike some other reviewers, I found the user’s manual easy to follow and assembly was quick and simple. … … …

The Audacitysoftware (freeware) is extremely good and quite intuitive. I was making WAV’s and MP3’s from my old LP’s in a matter of minutes. (I have not yet burned any CD’s from them, but that involves neither the Ion turntable nor the Audacity software.) Like someother reviewers, I found much of the supplied software manual to be just plain wrong. It is better to use the online help screens. It is even better to go to the Audacity website. There you will find downloadable manuals, tutorials, FAQ’s, various Audacity forums, and an Audacity wiki with tips and how-to’s from users. I have not tried the noise elimination feature of the software mainly because I don’t think there is an algorithm out there that can really do the job. All must assume uniformity ofnoise which is never true. I am used to some slight rumble and hiss between tracks and in the quietest places, perfectly acceptable for casual listening on the PC. … … …

THE BAD … … …:
1.>>>----- >While it looks metallic the unit is almost entirely plastic. The tone arm counterweight accounts for at least 95% of the visible metal.
2.>>>----- >The platter mat is felt not rubber.
3.>>>----- >The RCA audio plugs cannot be disconnected from the turntable. If not used they can get in the way and the endsneed to be wrapped or kept separated.
4.>>>----- >The operation is totally manual. The tone arm is not automatic nor is there any kind of cuing device to manually gently raise and lower it. Great care must be taken not to scratch the record when positioning the cartridge by hand.
5.>>>----- >The software manual that comes with it is full of inaccuracies. Use the help screens or the many resources at the Audacity website.
6.>>>----- >Neither included manual tells the user that when this device is connected to the PC via the USB port, the turntable hijacks your speakers. If you want to leave the USB cable permanently connected and hear any other PC sound, you must go into Windows audio setup and change the playback device back to your soundcard. … ……

THE UGLY … … …:
There is no dust cover for this turntable. I am using the plastic bag that the turntable came wrapped in as a dust cover. Stylish it ain’t, but it keeps the dust off. It looks like they surely could have opted for including some sortof cheap, thin plastic box that would sit on this product as a dust cover without cutting too deeply into their profit. It would be better than nothing or packaging. … … …

THE BOTTOM LINE … … …:
This is a great product which I recommend, but withtheknowledge it has some shortcomings, the two greatest of which are no dust cover and a completely manual tone arm.

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Love it
Reviewer: Jax from Amarillo, Tx on May 28, 2008
10 out of 10 found this review helpful

This unit works great. I had no problem downloading the software from the internet for Windows Vista. It was up and running fairly fast. Also like the way the controls are laied out. Have not tried 78's yet and have not used the Audacity software yet anddont see why i even need to. I am very pleased with this turntable.

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Very good for what I got it for.
Reviewer: Mike from Glendale, California on Apr 12, 2008
31 out of 32 found this review helpful

I got the turntable to transfer my LP's to my computer and then to CD's and maybe an i-Pod. It does that just fine. An added bonus is that I can plug my tape deck into it and transfer my tapes too! (You would need a cable from your deck with a 1/8' stereo jack for the turntable). Downside to the unit is that the gain control knob is in the back of the unit underneath and the 1/8' jack is in the front on top which interferes with the turntable. Minor points. Software is a snap to use and setup was easy (I could do it, so can you!).

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