Contrary to popular belief, vinyl is anything but dead. Unfortunately, turntables are becoming less and less common in some clubs and venues, and wax-spinning DJs often have to bring their own gear, which is difficult when you're also lugging your favorite records, a mixer, a laptop, and an external hard drive. Enter the Numark PT-01USB, a portable, battery-powered USB turntable that's equally qualified for your next laptop symphony in front of a crowd of hundreds or a quiet night ripping your vinyl collection to your iPod.

Audiophiles still hunt down their favorite old songs on vinyl, online and in thrift stores, and DJs and import-music lovers still dig through crates at local independent music stores to find their favorite new and old releases. I'm one of those DJs who still believes that spinning vinyl requires more skill and soul than relying on MP3s, but even I have to admit that carrying a record case full of vinyl is a chore. The Numark PT-01USB gives me an easy way to rip my vinyl to my laptop or an external hard drive; then I can take my collection with me to any gig anywhere in a carry-on bag.

Ion's USB Turntable has been available for a while, and though it's a solid product, Ion isn't exactly a name in the DJ community, nor is it well known for performance DJ equipment. Numark, on the other hand, is known among performance DJs for its turntables and mixers.

The PT-01USB is a belt-driven turntable, so it's more suited to home music studios and consumers than for performance DJs looking for fine control over their record. Audiophiles will appreciate the belt-drive though, since direct-drive turntable motors create a low rumble that can be audible in high-quality rips. Even so, since the PT-01USB turntable is portable and can run on battery or wall power, you can take it with you to a gig, and because you can connect it to a computer via USB you can use your laptop as a mixer if you want to do a hybrid MP3-vinyl set.

Numark's USB turntable features everything you would expect from a professional turntable, including +/- 10% pitch control; support for 33-, 45-, and 78-RPM records; and an included cartridge, although you may consider using or buying your own. The turntable has a built-in speaker, so you can listen to your records while you rip them, and has RCA and headphone outputs if you'd like to connect it to a mixer or your own headphones.

If you're not planning a gig at a huge nightclub, Numark's USB turntable can help you archive your vinyl collection at home as well. It comes with Numark's EZ Vinyl Converter 2, a software package that's designed to make archiving your record collection easy. Additionally, the tool supports Gracenote's MusicID (formerly CDDB) technology, which names and tags music automatically as you rip. The software is included with the turntable, and supports Windows 2000, XP, and Vista, as well as Mac OS 10.4 and higher. The Numark PT-01USB is available now for $99.95 from retailers such as Guitar Center and Musician's Friend.