This a laser gadget that can burn a hole in your pocket, but at least it leaves your vinyl discs undamaged.

I really miss music on vinyl. I still have 50 or so LPs in one of my Mum’s cupboards and she keeps nagging me about it them but I’ve never let her get rid of them because I knew a gadget like this would come one day.

The problem with vinyl music was that it was too easily scratched or warped. I’m guessing that many of you have grown up with audio CDs and have never had to suffer, listening to your favourite album track with a “tuck tich”, “tuck tich” sound playing on top of it.

When I switched to CD, I thought the music was a bit “tinny” and the picture covers were too small, but it was a price worth paying for the chance to listen to music unblemished by hissing, clicking, and scratching noises.

The problems with the classic turntable were often produced by wear from the diamond-tipped needle. With the ELP Laser Turntable there’s no contact between the probe and the delicate vinyl surface. The technology’s quite complex though. The turntable uses 5 lasers, two lasers to centre the probe, one laser to control the height, and the remaining two pick up the stereo music channels.

The light from the laser probe is reflected off the walls of the vinyl groove with a deflection angle that can be translated into a sound signal. As well as being a non-contact probe, the laser avoids electro-mechanical distortions that you would otherwise get from a needle and cartridge. In fact the audio reproduction is claimed to be the closest to perfection that you can get from vinyl.

I’m feeling very nostalgic now; I think I’ll give my Mum a call and find out if she’s still got my LP collection at home – maybe she’ll lend me $15,000 to free up that cupboard space .

Found via Gadget Madness and Tech Digest.