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JVC JL-A40 Direct Drive Auto-Return Turntable. Get your vinyl on! (click link for more pic's) This one has a lot of memories for me, but it's time to clean out the house and make room for some construction which is about to begin. I mention the memories, not because I believe it would (or should) influence the sale price, but to explain how someone so anti-vinyl as myself would have such an apparatus in his possession. I recognize that there turntables costing tens of thousands of dollars, and this is not one of them, but when my brother bought this JVC turntable in the late '70's it was THE Shit. He had landed a pretty decent job for a guy in his late teens, and was starting to accumulate some decent audio gear of the time, so on the recommendation of an audiofile friend of our Father's, he decided on this turntable. The fact that it still spins (and does so beautifully, by the way) after all of the use my brother, sister and I put it through is a testament to the way they "used to make 'em." It sounds funny and trite to say that about something made in Japan in an era when that was something which was still sort of strange to see, but there's no denying the quality of this unit. We used it A LOT. Everyday. Sometimes ALL day. The first time I heard Queen - this turntable. The first time I heard The Ramones - this turntable. The first time I heard Jeff Beck's "Wired" - this turntable. The first time I heard Electric Ladyland, London Calling, Candy-O, Dark Side of the Moon, and yes, even Cheap Trick at Budokan - this turntable. It was the device which provided the soundtrack to all of the "pot parties" he threw while our Mother was at work, and the same turntable she would entertain her friends with on the weekends. When Big Brother moved out, I inherited it. Sure, it was in the living room for all to use, but it was always referred to as "Joey's turntable," even years after he had moved out. This same turntable was what I used to add ambiance to those after school make out sessions with my first "real" girlfriend, if you know what I mean...and I think you do...and years later when I moved out, as seemed to be the tradition, I left it behind for my sister and Mother to use. CD's had long since taken over music duties at the house, but "Joey's turntable" would still see the occasional use. Once Mom passed on and we emptied the house, this was one of the few things I took with me, and into my basement it went - nearly 20 years ago - and there it stayed. After all, this was a once indispensable tool which provided the soundtrack for my youth, and I'm not over-stating things by saying so. So Fast Forward 20 years to this afternoon. The wife and I were cleaning out the basement; looking for things to throw away, things to donate to Good Will, and thinking if there was a friend who would have a use for this or that something-or-other which we no longer wanted to take up space. When I came across Joey's turntable, my first inclination was to throw it away. It had certainly served me well, and the last time I had spun a vinyl record I was probably still in high school. Seeing as I have no further intention of doing so, what was I to do with it? Then I remembered that there are some of you nuts out there who get boners over this stuff, so I wanted to offer it up to you. I'm not looking to make money on this, even though from my research it appears these things are still worth something. I honestly want this to go to someone who will use it, knowing that every time the platter spins 33 1/3 times there is a tremendous amount of history which comes with it. The problem, however, is that when you sell something, you forfeit your ability to dictate the terms of its fate. If I were to Pay It Forward (which I am tempted to do), it could just be thrown on ebay and offered up to the highest bidder. That's certainly something I could do myself, were I not concerned about it going to the first douchebag with a hundred bucks in his pocket. As I type this I realize that I've never cared one way or another where any inanimate object that I've passed along ended up, just as long as I got my money. In fact, any of you with an ebay account can look at your To Date Sale History and see the total of everything you've ever sold on ebay since the day you joined. For me it happens to be over $116,000 over 12 years and not once in all of that time have I felt sad about selling something - not scores of guitars and not my prized '68 GTO, which I built from a bare chassis. This is different. All I can do is ask. I ask that if you buy it, you use it. That you do not buy it just to flip it. I can't put a price on memories (even if my memories meant anything to you), so I won't try. My cursory research reveals that they are selling (when you can find them) for over $100 all day long, but that's not what I want. $40 ought to cover shipping and insurance, or you can trade me something of equal value; a decent pickup, 3/4 a tank of gas for my S5, or you can buy me dinner the next time we're together. Those are my terms, and since I have no power to enforce them, we'll just have to function under the rules of the Honor System (remember that one?). More photos. Here's to youth! (...and where the f**k did it go?)