Please don't be too technical with me because I have no clue what I'm doing. I would ultimately like to hook up speakers to my HD TV and to have my new turntable hooked in to the proper amp with the speakers. I've just purchased a Gemini USB Turntable so that I can also take my old 33s and burn CDs from special selections (I think this will be the easy part). The turntable says it has a pre-amp. Do I need a receiver or an amplifier? Second, can I use my old speakers with wire connectors to connect to the amp? How do I connect the HD TV to the same speakers? Help, please!
Eva, a new receiver will provide all the connectivity that you need, except maybe the USB. If your turntable also has red and white RCA plugs, then you are OK there, and a receiver need not have a dedicated phono input. Your old speakers will work fine, as long as they use bare wire for connecting, and not a plug of some sort.
A receiver need not cost you more than 250$, if you choose a mass market bigbox unit.