How to Use a Laser Turntable

Play that record without causing it any harm by using a laser turntable.

If you are one of the many people who still listens to records at home, you most likely have come across the problem of deterioration. That is to say, after listening to your favorite records, they begin to wear down. This is because the stylus, the little needle that "reads" your records, physically passes through the record's grooves. If this is a problem for you, a needle-less turntable may be the solution. Ever since Robert Reis introduced the idea in 1983, laser turntables have been a thing of interest and debate in the world of audiophiles and archivists.

Instructions

1. Select a favorite LP, 45 or 78 you would like to hear.

2. Turn the on your stereo system and laser turntable. Press the eject button to open the tray, onto which you will load the record.

3. Carefully place the record in the turntable tray and press the eject button again to close the tray.

4. Press play and wait for your record to being playing. You will be able to tell it is playing when you hear the telltale "popping and cracking" familiar to anyone who uses records.

5. After your record has finished playing, press eject again to retrieve it or to flip it to the other side.

Tips & Warnings

• Laser turntables are favored by archivists for their ability to play records without ever actually touching the media.

• Only black vinyl records are able to be read by the laser turntable. Other colors will not work.

• It is worth noting that although it uses unconventional means, a laser turntable still is an analog device. At no point does the turntable digitize the media.

• Never look directly into a laser.

• Laser turntables are extremely expensive, so use care and caution when operating one.

• There have been recent public claims by former business partners of ELP that laser turntables are based on questionable research and science.

References

• Laser-Turntable
• ELP Laser Turntable; About the Laser Turntable
• ELP Laser Turntable; History of the Laser Turntable and ELP Corporation
• ELP Laser Turntable; How the LT Works
• Visual Audio Project; VisualAudio: an Optical Technique to Save the Sound of Phonographic Records; Sylvain Stotzer, et al.
• Boing Boing; Laser turntable plays records like CDs; Cory Doctorow; February 2006

Resources

• The ELP Laser Turntable
• Laser Turntable Plays Vinyls Without a Needle!; DJ One; January 2009