Mar 5, 2023 4:00 PM

The Best Vinyl Accessories to Jazz Up Your Analog Audio

From record cleaners to slip mats, these extras are for budding enthusiasts and die-hard collectors alike.

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Whether you've just started spinning analog audio or you’ve been building a collection for years, good vinyl accessories can take your enjoyment—and your records’ longevity—to the next level. I’ve spent the better part of the past decade messing with some of the most lauded tools for cleaning, setting up, and maintaining record players, and these are my favorites. Plenty of these accessories are affordable, and they make great gifts too.

Before you dive deeper, I recommend watching this video on proper turntable setup. Many of the accessories below are meant to aid you in making sure you’re getting the most out of your gear. For more, check out our Best Turntables guide and our how-to article on upgrading your home audio.

Updated March 2023: We've added the Vaultz record storage container and recommended a few books we like.

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Photograph: Boundless
A Quality Brush
Boundless Audio Record Brush
A nice antistatic carbon-fiber brush will help you dust off your records before a spin. I like this one from Boundless because it has a sleek gray color, but any similar-looking brush will do. A tip for gift givers: You can never really have too many. I lose them about as often as I misplace my TV remote.
$16 at Amazon
Photograph: Amazon
A Stylus Cleaner
Kaiu Gel Stylus Cleaner
Even with clean records and a dust brush, your needle will eventually get a bit gunky. There are brushes and cleaning solutions to deal with this, but I've always found it scary to rub them on my delicate stylus. Instead, I like gel-based cleaners like this one from Kaiu. You drop your needle into the sticky goo and it gobbles up any junk around it. You'll get a few hundred drops out of one before it needs replacing. It comes in a wooden storage case with a magnetizing mirror on the lid—great for seeing just how gunky that needle really is.
$16 at Amazon

Photograph: Amazon
A Stylus Scale
Neotek Digital Turntable Stylus Force Scale
Every stylus has a recommended tracking force (the downward pressure it exerts on your record). The tracking force is typically set by turning the counterweight on the back of the tonearm. You'll often find markings on turntables to indicate relative tracking force so you can set it manually, but I never trust myself. For less than $15, use this tiny little scale to get it right. Peace of mind doesn't often come this cheap.
$17 at Amazon
Photograph: Craftsman
A Good Level
Craftsman Torpedo Level (9-Inch)
A key component to records sounding good is a proper turntable setup. For that, you'll want to make sure you have a good level. If your turntable isn't perfectly flat, you can typically adjust it using the feet attached to the bottom. In a pinch, you can use playing cards or another object to adjust the feet even higher if that's necessary for level playback.
$20 at Amazon
$20 at Lowe's

Photograph: Amazon
A Little Weight
Hudson Hi-Fi Big Ben Record Weight
Record weights hold your records to the platter more securely, and the added mass may help with bass response. You'll find super expensive ones when you shop for 'em, but don't be fooled: They're basically just hunks of metal with a hole in the bottom. Pick one that you like (or drill a hole in a hockey puck) and move on.
$26 at Amazon
Photograph: Amazon
A Rubber Mat
Feir Rubber Platter Mat
There is a lot of debate about what the best material is for optimal anti-slip and antistatic performance, but between cork, felt, and rubber, I'd choose the latter. It's the most durable, it sticks to the surface of your records for good grip, and this one even has some grooves to make it easier to lay perfectly flat on your disc.
$14 at Amazon

Photograph: Amazon
For Grimy Finds
Record Rescue Record Roller
Crate digging and used record shopping is one of the joys of the analog audio hobby, but the vast majority of records you'll pull from the bin are pretty nasty. Before you give something a test play, save your gear by giving it a once-over with this lint-roller-like device. It will get all the biggest, grossest stuff out of the way of your stylus, so you don't mess up your (or the shop's!) gear.
$14 at Amazon
Photograph: Vinyl Vac
Cheapest Record Cleaner
Vinyl Vac 33 Combo Record Cleaning Kit
A record roller is fine for surface cleaning, but the only way to really get into the grooves of a record is with a cleaning solution that is then sucked out by a vacuum. Grooves are too small for the fibers of cloth to reach all the way inside. If you're on a budget, get a small wet/dry vacuum, an old broken turntable, and this Vinyl Vac kit. It attaches to the hose of your vacuum to suck all the gunk out when you're done wiping down a side with the included solution. I've used this method many times to great effect. You'll be surprised how great clean records sound!
$40 at Amazon

Photograph: Pro-Ject
Best All-in-One Cleaner
Pro-Ject Audio VC-E Record Cleaning Machine
If you don't want to go the do-it-yourself route mentioned above, then try the Pro-Ject Audio VC-E. It's not cheap, but it spins in two directions to ensure full suction from the powerful internal vacuum, and it has a nice screw-down clamp that keeps a record's label dry while you're giving it a wash.
$499 at Amazon
Photograph: Amazon
Protect Your Investment
Invest In Vinyl Inner Record Sleeves (50)
The paper inserts that come with most records are annoying to get in and out of sleeves, and they're not as good at protecting your vinyl as aftermarket ones like these. A rice paper lining means your discs easily slide in and out of these jackets, and arrows printed on the sleeves let you always know which way is which.
$20 at Amazon
$13 at Walmart

Photograph: Amazon
Light Up Your Record
Reliable UberLight Flex Task Light
The owner of Reliable is an audiophile who realized this task light—originally intended to be an industrial light for manufacturing applications—is the perfect record lamp. It's bright, USB-powered, and easily clamps onto most tabletops, with no unsightly base to get in the way. You can pick between warm white, natural white, and ultra-bright filters, so it's easy to match the look of your space.
$59 at Amazon
$59 at Home Depot
Photograph: Joseph Shin
A Record Display
Flipbin Model 33
The Flipbin is an attractive combo of a storage case and a “now playing” display for your records. Each colored bin holds around 33 records—depending on thickness—and is made of durable metal that will last a lifetime.
$89 at Flipbin

Photograph: Tavenly
Pack 'Em In
Tavenly LP Storage Cube
If you're always buying new records, it can quickly become hard to find a place to store them all. This cube-shaped bin from Tavenly is a great expandable solution to the LP hoarder problem—it is even strong enough to double as a stand for your record player, if space is limited.
$39 at Amazon
Photograph: Amazon
Portable Storage
Vaultz Record Storage Box
If you bring your records to a club or parties, you probably want to keep folks' grubby hands off your collection. For that, we recommend this adorable teal lockbox. You'll know it's yours from the color (and the label you can put on the front), and it will keep your records safe from spills, tumbles, and competitors trying to bite your style.
$105 at Amazon

Photograph: Pro-Ject
An Outboard Phono Preamp
Pro-Ject Audio Phono Box DC Preamplifier
Turntables put out a low-level signal that needs to be amplified to the “line-level” signal your amplifier is used to seeing. Most cheap turntables have a middling built-in phono preamp, but this button-less box from Pro-Ject is a great upgrade. It's also great if you have a turntable without a phono preamp, which allows you to connect it to any amplifier, even if it doesn't have a dedicated phono channel. I like this model, which adds a bit more clarity than what you'll hear from typical built-in preamps.
$129 at Amazon
Photograph: Cambridge Audio
A Better Preamp
Cambridge Audio Alva Solo
The Pro-Ject Phono Box sounds solid, but if you want even more clarity and life in your music, I recommend this excellent preamp from Cambridge Audio. It has great subsonic filtering for more worn discs, and it feels like every record you play through it has a bit more shine.
$229 at Amazon
$229 at Crutchfield

Photograph: Ortofon
A Fresh Cartridge
Ortofon 2M Red
If you are still rocking the cartridge that came with your turntable, this nice cartridge from Ortofon is a great upgrade or replacement if yours seems like it's getting tired. Most manufacturers recommend replacing your cartridge after about 200 hours of playtime, so if you listen to a lot of records often, it's worth swapping out yours. Worth noting: your stylus will last longer if it is always spinning across clean records!
$99 at Amazon
Photograph: ATS
Acoustic Treatment
ATS Acoustic Panels
Your room matters just as much as your gear. Consider adding acoustic panels like these to the first reflection points—where the sound energy from your speakers first hits the wall and reflects back to your ears. Doing so will open up your soundstage considerably and help the speakers better disappear into your musical space.
$69 at Amazon

Photograph: Koeppel Design
Strut Your Stuff
Koeppel Design The LP Block
The biggest problem with most “now playing" record holders is that they're not thick enough. Special edition music releases with multiple disks make the whole thing much chunkier than normal. You won't have any trouble fitting them on this gorgeous LP holder from Koeppel design, which can hold up to 10 records for easy analog playlisting. It even has “Now Spinning” etched in the top.
$83 at Koeppel Design
Photograph: Amazon
For Heavy-Footed Neighbors
Sound Isolation Pads
I've never found that shock-absorbing feet for my turntable make it sound better, but I have found that they make for a better time for those who have heavy-footed neighbors. Feet like these can help reduce skips and bounces, and these are a good, cheap option. Don't be fooled by versions that cost many times as much. These are just fine.
$13 at Amazon

Photograph: Amazon
Books About Records
Books About Records
One analog format compliments another, right? Below are some books about records:
Dust & Grooves, by Elion Paz (forward by RZA): This coffee table book showcases some 250 record collections, including those of famous musicians like Questlove and RZA.
Vinyl Junkies: Adventures in Record Collecting, by Brett Milano: This early-2000s book features interviews with indie rock heroes like Thurston Moore, Peter Buck, and cartoonist Robert Crumb, among others.
Around the World in 80 Record Stores, by Marcus Barnes: This book showcases some of the coolest and most specialized record stores, boasting picks from “Iceland to India.”
A Record of My Vinyl: A Collector's Catalog: This is a blank book with spaces for personal liner notes, disc cleaning tips, tips for evaluating records, and a few perforated pages that you can tear off and take with you to the record store. It's a helpful accessory if you want a specialized notebook for your stuff.

Parker Hall is a senior editor of product reviews at WIRED. He focuses on audiovisual and entertainment products. Hall is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where he studied jazz percussion. After hours, he remains a professional musician in his hometown of Portland, Oregon.

Writer and Reviewer