Think SL-1210 (one of the world’s truly iconic turntables) minus all the DJ paraphernalia and you’re pretty much there. The Technics rebirth has been more than a little problematic - but with the SL-1500C (£899) the company hit the bull’s-eye. Speeds: 33.3, 45, 78 | Auto-stop: Yes | Drive: Direct The novelty of listening to a turntable that’s only plugged into the mains takes a while to wear off – and even when it does, you’re still the proud owner of a poised, balanced-sounding record player that is worth every penny of the asking price. Put your record player anywhere you like (and there’s not many turntables you can say that about), wirelessly pair it to your hi-fi system, your wireless speaker or your wireless headphones, put the needle on the record and you’re in business.
BEST BUDGET TURNTABLE BLUETOOTH
It’s Bluetooth that’s the real draw here, of course. Everything about the Sony PS-LX310BT (£195) is as painless as possible, from the pre-attached cartridge and pre-set tracking weight to the arm up/down button and 7in/12in disc size selector. Instead, it’s delivered a turntable with an integrated phono stage (so it can be wired into any system at all) and Bluetooth (so wiring doesn’t even need to be an issue).
Speeds: 33.3, 45 | Auto-stop: Yes | Drive: DirectĬonvenience has never been a vinyl strong-point – no pain, no gain, right? Well, Sony’s not having that. Other similarly priced decks may sound a little more attacking, but none sound more convincing. Its management of rhythms and tempos is instinctive, its ability to unify individual musical strands into a coherent and convincing whole is unarguable, and it delivers detail in torrents. The RT85 makes an unequivocal case for the vinyl format. Really, what else do you need to extract maximum pound-for-pound enjoyment from your record collection? But the stuff it does have is well thought-out and effective: an S-shaped aluminium tonearm with a brilliant Ortofon 2M Blue cartridge on the end of it, a high-mass acrylic platter and a solid, low-resonance and pleasantly shiny wooden plinth. It’s a purposeful device inasmuch as there are no fripperies here – no Bluetooth, no USB output, no preamplifier. But don’t let the relative lack of brand-name profile blind (or deafen) you to the important fact: the Fluance RT85 (£499) embodies more of vinyl’s audio virtues than pretty much any price-comparable alternative. Unless you’re a super-patriotic Canadian, Fluance probably isn’t the first name you think of when considering where to drop £500 on a new record player. Speeds: 33.3, 45rpm | Auto-stop: Switchable | Drive: Belt It’s lots of fun to listen to, but the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo is a very serious machine. It digs an awful lot of detail out of the groove of your record, and is completely unfussy about the sort of music you like to listen to. Its sound is warm and luxurious, but it doesn’t dawdle – instead it snaps along, integrating every area of the frequency range in the most natural manner. Its rigorous engineering, from the height-adjustable damped feet and decoupled motor assembly to the thermoplastic-damped steel platter, results in a sonic performance that’s long on the vinyl virtues and very short indeed on the drawbacks. Happily, the Pro-Ject looks, feels and – most importantly of all – sounds every penny’s-worth.
None of this can be said to be remotely ‘entry-level’. It’s been on a relentless march upmarket since then, though, and in its current guise – this Debut Carbon Evo (£449) – it’s reached the point that it’s packing a carbon-fibre tonearm fitted with an Ortofon 2M Red cartridge, automatic speed-change (33.3, 45 and 78rpm are all available) and is available in a choice of nine (count ‘em!) finishes. When Pro-Ject introduced its ‘Debut’ turntable at the end of the last century, it was the company’s entry-level deck. Speeds: 33.3, 45, 78rpm | Auto-stop: No | Drive: Belt
0 kommentar(er)
