what are the differences between record players?
Hello! in about a month its gonna be my boyfriends birthday, and i've bought him a couple of records since hes starting to collect them. And now that i think about it, I should get him a record player to go along with it! can someone tell me the differences between a turntable and just a record player? Also where i can find one about 50 or up to 100 dollars? Im looking on eBay but everything is so confusing and I dont want to buy him something that doesn't work... vintage is fine... I dont want anything new or shiny.
Thanks for your help 
I cant even play cassette anymore...
I guess the term ‘record player’ could infer that there was an amplifier and speakers included (ie. everything you need to be able to hear your records), a turntable (or deck) would normally refer to simply the component that spins the records.
A full ‘Hi-Fi’ system would include the record deck, an amplifier with a suitable input, and speakers fed by the amplifier.
What he needs is going to depend on what he has at the moment… If he has an existing Hi Fi set up which incorporates a suitable input (usually called a ‘phono’ input), then buying him a simple turntable will be fine.
If he has a Hi Fi with only an ‘aux’ input suitable for a CD player or MP3 player, then you will need a turntable AND a ‘pre-amp’ (examples here:)
http://www.cassette2cd.co.uk/DIY/accessories.php
…because the output from a turntable has no internal amplification unlike all other Hi Fi components.
If he has no Hi Fi (maybe just an MP3 player…) then you will need a complete system…
I have bought components like this from eBay - only buy from people with good reputations, ideally from someone local that you can pick up from, and if it doesn’t work you should be able to return it… Don’t buy from anyone that says ’spares only’ or ‘not tested’…