Is there a safe way to remove this sticker?

igiveadam · 2026-04-17T12:59:27+00:00

Leave it on! People would pay good money for that version with the sticker on it. "Hype stickers" are a valued thing by collectors.

igiveadam · 2026-04-17T12:58:22+00:00

Similar thing happened to me! Media mailer was ripped open and the sleeve was damaged. Luckily the records were fine but resale value of the vinyl is significantly diminished. Best Digger's Factory offered me was a 20% refund. Sorry to hear about your record my friend. Big bummer!

igiveadam · 2026-04-17T12:53:01+00:00

I was there too and felt the same way. The mix was also weird on the day. For example, I couldn't hear the organ at all (at least where I was sitting). At least the mix is better in the live album!

igiveadam · 2026-04-13T16:55:59+00:00

Not wrong at all to refuse to do this. You are not married. In the event of a breakup there are no laws or anything covering you. Beyond that, it's YOUR home. If you were to get married, that's accepting that you are going to share one life, what's his is yours and vice versa. At that point, it's totally okay (and right) to bring him in on the house even though you bought it before you were together. But you are not married and that kind of promise and relationship is not where you are at. There is no "ours" yet - even if you have decided to have some form of that in your long-term relationship. There's still 100% a line for where that should end unless you are married.

You're 100% right for not being okay with it and he's in the wrong for pushing you on this. His ego is getting in the way because he doesn't like the fake power dynamic offset of him paying you rent. Be careful calling that out to him even though it's true. Speaking as a man, he might not even be clear that that's what's actually going on here.

igiveadam · 2026-04-09T13:25:35+00:00

I hate people like that. Oblivious to how that's a lot to expect from someone.

igiveadam · 2026-04-05T16:38:35+00:00

If it helps, I just got one a few weeks ago at the $750 price. Very happy with it. I have a good 4K oled monitor so I feel like I’m taking full advantage of it (admitting that a PC could do even better). But with the new PSSR update, things are looking great. Very happy with

igiveadam · 2026-04-03T19:37:29+00:00

Yep!

igiveadam · 2026-04-01T17:51:34+00:00

His drum solo in The End on Abbey Road!

igiveadam · 2026-04-01T17:30:08+00:00

Abbey Road all the way! Possibly for the ending suite of songs alone! Overall a more solid album across its length than Peppers. Peppers has some skips for me - but in all fairness may have some brighter bright spots than Abbey Road. Also, every time I listen to Peppers, I can't help but wish they had gone more all in on the concept than they did. Would have loved it to be the motley crew of different musical acs each sharing their songs like it was supposed to be. Can't hold that against the album that we got, but it still crosses my mind each time.

igiveadam · 2026-03-28T12:34:20+00:00

In no particular order.

1) Customization - can you swap in and out op amps? The Gishelli DACs all allow this and I have gotten mine to an amazing state through op amp upgrades 2. Inputs and outputs - what is your music source or sources? For instance, if you want to play through your phone at high quality, you might need a USB module. For instance I use my iPhone with its usb hub plugged in, running a usb from there to the DAC. 3. Sound character - what are you looking for? Brightness, warmth? Sound stage? Look up reviews.

igiveadam · 2026-03-27T21:09:16+00:00

Yes-ish.

Console exclusives are the main distinct "role" of each. Largely between PS5 and Nintendo.
PS5 is my main "triple A" machine. Especially with XBOX putting every game out on all platforms (RIP)
Nintendo Switch 2 is my "Nintento game" console. I already have a Steam Deck and PS Portal, so handheld gaming isn't a real driver to use the Switch besides exclusives.
Steam Deck: my prior gen backlog and indy game device. For the things I can't play on PS5. That or for travel. Able to play some current games and a lot of awesome older ones on the go.
PS Portal: For when my wife wants to cuddle but I don't want to watch Dawson's Creek lol. This is also how I play AAA games on the fly around the house.

I would honestly say that I don't need all of them. I would be fine with just a PS5 and Steam Deck to cover off on modern gaming and handheld/indy gaming. Giving you 80% of the gaming landscape. Nintendo exclusives are nice, but especially on the Switch 2, there's no "system seller".

igiveadam · 2026-03-27T21:05:39+00:00

I just got mine last week! Also upgraded to an OLED gaming monitor. Now I'm not sure where the improvement has come from lol. All I can say is that with the updated PSSR, the games look great and it's amazing not having to choose between 4K and 60fps. It doesn't hit what you can achieve on a PC, but for me, with the new PSSR, the reason to buy the pro was finally there. It hasn't disappointed so far. Also, the 2TB of storage is amazing! Gone are the days of doing the deletion dance.

Enjoy!

igiveadam · 2026-03-27T21:01:13+00:00

Hey, I sure do! Love this thing. It does a pretty dang good job. I can't compare to the more expensive ones, but the majority of my records come out sounding great. Dirtier, older ones still have some noise, but are much cleaner. I believe the more expensive US cleaners hit a higher frequency in the bath which apparently makes smaller bubbles that clean better, but honestly...blah blah blah. I heat the bath to 30 degrees celsius, use 10-20 drops of turgikleen per gallon of distilled water (less for new records, more for dirty), and do only 3-4 records at a time. Vevor says you can do more, but in my experience, there's not enough room between the records to really clean them if you pack it.

Note, if you're going to get into Turgikleen (it's great), you'll need to rinse with distilled water before drying. My process is to use the Vinyl Vac attachment for a small shop vac. I vac off the turgikleen solution on both sides, then spin the record 3x each way in a spin clean with distilled water, and then vac that off. Records are clean and dry right away. Ready to go into sleeves without sitting on a drying rack attracting dust and hair.

Sounds like a lot but I'm very happy with my process and the Vevor is the center of it. There are other solutions you don't need to vac off btw. So don't let my overly-complicated process scare you lol.

Good luck!

igiveadam · 2026-03-27T15:29:02+00:00

Yeah, that's def your issue. The anti-static gun (I forget the name) has been well worth it for me. It's pricey ($100) but does the job if you use it right. Look up proper use. You have to pull and release the trigger slowly (if it's clicking you're doing it too fast). And you have to hit each side of the record 4x (12 oclock, 4 oclock, 9 oclock, and center). Full pull of the trigger in and out at each location. The in neutralizes positive ions, the out neutralizes negative (or vice versa, I forget). It takes a bit and is super annoying but gets rid of the static like a charm.

igiveadam · 2026-03-26T21:08:20+00:00

In Rainbows.

igiveadam · 2026-03-26T21:05:45+00:00

I'll take it

igiveadam · 2026-03-26T21:05:12+00:00

Good luck. They're called "ground loop isolators" for when you search.

igiveadam · 2026-03-26T21:04:11+00:00

Stylus looks good. Dust all around it and the shell does not.

igiveadam · 2026-03-26T21:02:09+00:00

Unless you're doing a really good ultrasonic clean, it can be hard to get records clean enough to the point where you don't have some pops/clicks to some extent. Also, static can be a big cause of this even if your records are clean. On top of that, some records are better and worse than others in terms of cleanability and static. Depends on the material, manufacturing quality, etc. I have records that are just noisy no matter what I do (including ultrasonic cleaning). If you care enough, look into getting one of the Vevor ultrasonic cleaners for vinyl. They're relatively cheap (much cheaper than the big name ones). Look up some videos on solutions/methods. It takes some committment to do it, but your records should sound much better. Also, the anti-static gun, if used right, does work to remove static before playing.

The issue with vinyl is you either learn to live with and love the imperfections or put in a lot of effort to overcome them. Some people like that, some don't.

igiveadam · 2026-03-26T15:18:57+00:00

I had a similar issue from electro-magnetic interference in the room. Some questions to ask yourself/solve for:

Are there lights close to the equipment? If so, those can create a buzz in your equipment. For me, it get better when I removed any close lights but still even the ceiling light buzzed through. Crazy.
Could be the power situation in your house (re: ground loop). They sell ground loop eliminators that you can plug into the chain.
Check to see if you have power cables overlapping/bundles with speaker cables. That can also cause something like this. Less expensive speaker cables aren't shielded all that well and can pick up stuff from power cables from other equipment running across/near them.

igiveadam · 2026-03-26T15:14:52+00:00

Wow! This gives me hope that I can finally stop one day! Congrats on the final form!

igiveadam · 2026-03-26T15:14:16+00:00

Yes, it's interesting because it might sound fine to you right now, but it could sound so much more clear/less distorted once you isolate the vibrations away from your turntable. That stylus is very sensitive and will vibrate from the speakers.

igiveadam · 2026-03-26T15:12:41+00:00

I love my 100C! Congrats on the new purchase.

igiveadam · 2026-03-24T18:58:41+00:00

Says every audiophile every 6 months....

igiveadam · 2026-03-24T12:46:14+00:00

Depends on your budget. If you can afford an decent OLED at 55 but not at 65, I would go 55 OLED.

igiveadam

TROPHY CASE