psst....2/3/2022

100 Pacer

Will trade my copy straight up for an EV Earthing tour pick.

dopazz

RS65573 said:

Hmm. So I have 5 speakers and amp in the front room. I wanna spin it here. I also have a piano in here.  Is this terrible? It’s pretty. Not looking for epic quality. Just to not ruin the record and get the warm feel. 

Vintage Classic Retro Phonograph Gramophone Vinyl Record Player Turntable Bluetooth 4.2, 3.5mm Aux-in/USB/FM Radio with Copper Horn Bronze https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08D3QCMQZ/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_i_Z00AWH3ZH7WZ8S11XQJ6?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

This is not good.  Don't buy this.  You said you already have five speakers and an amp so don't look for turntables with built-in speakers.  Putting the speaker in the turntable is not ideal because the vibrations from the speaker can transfer into the platter / tonearm and add distortion.

SM187650 suggested Fluance, they are pretty nice.  I've been eyeing up the RT-82.  It's approximately the same price as the one you linked from Amazon but very high quality.  Moving up to the RT-82 adds digital speed control that monitors the turntable speed and adjusts the motor for lower wow & flutter (precise turntable speed with no variation).  Fluance claims 0.07% for the RT-82.

Most of the Crosley "suitcase" players are pretty bad, but this Crosley C6 is pretty decent.  Just picked one up as a gift and helped the recipient set it up.  It is not as nice as the Fluance but I think it has a great price/value ratio at only $130.  It includes an Audio Technica 3600 L cartridge which is basic but decent, and can always be upgraded with a better cartridge later.  https://www.walmart.com/ip/Crosley-C6-Bluetooth-Turntable-Black/646319039

If you're a bit more patient you may want to try to find a vintage turntable.  They don't make them like they used to; there just isn't the variety available new right now like we had in the past.  I haven't found any affordable modern turntables with a direct drive motor, only belt drive.  Belt and direct both have their plusses and minuses but I like the stable wow & flutter (0.02%) that my 1988 Yamaha TT-500 direct drive turntable is capable of.  The downside is that the motor is not isolated from the turntable and the motor vibrations can affect the sound quality just like putting speakers in the turntable housing.

Good luck on your search, and enjoy your future turntable and records.

tdawe

I’ll make one more plug for Fluance. I have an RT85 and I think it’s the best value turntable in the game. It’s a perfect blend of fidelity and convenience. You can choose among the various models depending on what features you want vs how much you want to spend, but the 85 comes with a 2M Blue cartridge that is like $250 on its own. 

RoleModelsinBlood31

I’ll put in a shout out for Rega. I have a higher end model but they’re not messing around.  Very nice turntables

Loujoe

RS65573 said:

I want to spin this Friday but need a turn table. Can someone make a recommendation?

Friday is an ETA. You might not get it til later. Enjoy when you do!

timbo1972

RS65573 said:

I want to spin this Friday but need a turn table. Can someone make a recommendation?

I got a pro-ject turntable and a pro-ject valve pre-amp a good few years ago. Can't tell you how it sounds because I keep spending money on records instead of the cables and other bits and bobs I need to get it spinning 

DeLukin

RS65573 said:

I want to spin this Friday but need a turn table. Can someone make a recommendation?

A few years ago my wife surprised me with a Murantz 6100. It's an oldie but a goodie - it did take a while to get it into playing shape but man that thing is solid now. If something ever happened to it and I needed a replacement I would definitely go with the Fluance RT85. A friend of mine has one and it's incredible. And you won't regret paying a little more now for years of exceptional vinyl creaminess.

brianjones

One more comment on the Fluance TT. They have auto stop; which is a cool & useful feature when the music stops and you can’t run to flip the record right away.  I very much appreciated that and it became a must have feature when I decided to upgrade 

DeLukin

If you have money to burn, you could always go with this:

https://www.fender.com/en-US/lifestyle/gifts-novelty/fender-x-mofi-precisiondeck-turntable/9190021010.html

(which costs more than my American Standard P Bass and my Highway One Telecaster combined, LOL).

tdawe

DeLukin said:

If you have money to burn, you could always go with this:

https://www.fender.com/en-US/lifestyle/gifts-novelty/fender-x-mofi-precisiondeck-turntable/9190021010.html

(which costs more than my American Standard P Bass and my Highway One Telecaster combined, LOL).

Looks cool, but for way less money you could get yourself an actual MoFi Ultradeck, which is one of her best turntables out there. It lacks some of the convenience features of he Fluance tables, including the auto stop that @brianjones mentioned (which is crucial, especially if you’re lazy or occasionally fall asleep while listening to records) and a knob to switch between 33 and 45 rpm (whereas most belt-driven tables, like the MoFis, require you to screw around manually with the belt to change speeds). 

RS65573

Thank you all so much. Definitely not that fender at $3500, though nice. 

My wife wants something that looks nice. Which makes this difficult.

Right now I am looking at the Fluence RT85 because fuck it why do this twice.
https://www.fluance.com/rt85w-reference-high-fidelity-vinyl-turntable-natural-walnut

Do I need the preamp, cleaning kit and weight?

lotsalemon

RS65573 said:

Thank you all so much. Definitely not that fender at $3500, though nice. 

My wife wants something that looks nice. Which makes this difficult.

Right now I am looking at the Fluence RT85 because fuck it why do this twice.
https://www.fluance.com/rt85w-reference-high-fidelity-vinyl-turntable-natural-walnut

Do I need the preamp, cleaning kit and weight?

If your current receiver doesn't have a phono jack, then you'll need a preamp. 

RS65573

Old Sony receiver has RCA in's. Thanks.

FR181798

RS65573 said:

Thank you all so much. Definitely not that fender at $3500, though nice. 

My wife wants something that looks nice. Which makes this difficult.

Right now I am looking at the Fluence RT85 because fuck it why do this twice.
https://www.fluance.com/rt85w-reference-high-fidelity-vinyl-turntable-natural-walnut

Do I need the preamp, cleaning kit and weight?

This is going to sound super negative. Can I be the first to suggest you dont start collecting records unless you just plan on buying a select few or a particular band.   Its too late for me, save yourself. Sell your fresh press for some decent cash to someone (not me) otherwise you will probably never have money again. Buying records is like an addiction, you start with one or two and before you know it youve got rooms full of the stuff, telling yourself its an investment. Starting a collection in 2022 is going to be very difficult and very costly, you have been warned

RS65573

Hahaha your not wrong. I've been getting the PJ Vaults since the beginning and have a few other recents, No Code Clear, and now the Fresh Earthlings, which I've never heard, so would be super cool to hear first time on a record.

Having said that. I have been a poster guy since 96, and I couldn't disagree more. Yes I have 100s of posters, call them an investment and am completely addicted. That said, I've gotten much better at letting some old stuff go and I did very well on some of those old posters. Kind of crazy.

I dont plan on collecting any additional bands or anything, but I may spin some of dads old Zeppelin or Stones. Gateway drugs...

brianjones

RS65573 said:

Thank you all so much. Definitely not that fender at $3500, though nice. 

My wife wants something that looks nice. Which makes this difficult.

Right now I am looking at the Fluence RT85 because fuck it why do this twice.
https://www.fluance.com/rt85w-reference-high-fidelity-vinyl-turntable-natural-walnut

Do I need the preamp, cleaning kit and weight?

The RT85 has an integrated preamp that is decent. So no, you can just plug and play and decide later if you want to upgrade anything. 

A $25 brush is all you’ll need. Fluance sells a decent one. Might as well get theirs while your at it. After that, it just depends how serious you wanna get and what rabbit hole you want to go down in. 

The Fluance tt are beautiful. Im sure your wife would love it. 

Another amazing table with auto-stop (auto lift this time) is the Technics sl1500.  It’ll cost you more though. 

A very solid, more traditional looking tt. I upgraded to this from a Fluance and would never go back.  The turntable is of enough quality to invest on a better cartridge or a KAB damper if you ever want to. 

And on and on it goes 🤦‍♂️

RS65573

Right now my mom is in the basement looking for dads old turn table before I buy anything. He had a 70s something I guess I could get fixed up.

brianjones

RS65573 said:

Right now my mom is in the basement looking for dads old turn table before I buy anything. He had a 70s something I guess I could get fixed up.

That could be a gem🔥! Or crap lol. 

Definitely worth looking into and getting it fixed if it’s worth it. A quick online search will tell you what you have. Tuning and a new cartridge may do the trick. Good luck!

there appears to have been only a few copies released, so do that bad boy justice and spin that black circle!

tdawe

brianjones said:

RS65573 said:

Thank you all so much. Definitely not that fender at $3500, though nice. 

My wife wants something that looks nice. Which makes this difficult.

Right now I am looking at the Fluence RT85 because fuck it why do this twice.
https://www.fluance.com/rt85w-reference-high-fidelity-vinyl-turntable-natural-walnut

Do I need the preamp, cleaning kit and weight?

The RT85 has an integrated preamp that is decent. So no, you can just plug and play and decide later if you want to upgrade anything. 

A $25 brush is all you’ll need. Fluance sells a decent one. Might as well get theirs while your at it. After that, it just depends how serious you wanna get and what rabbit hole you want to go down in. 

The Fluance tt are beautiful. Im sure your wife would love it. 

Another amazing table with auto-stop (auto lift this time) is the Technics sl1500.  It’ll cost you more though. 

A very solid, more traditional looking tt. I upgraded to this from a Fluance and would never go back.  The turntable is of enough quality to invest on a better cartridge or a KAB damper if you ever want to. 

And on and on it goes 🤦‍♂️

I don’t think the RT85 has an integrated preamp. You can get one for pretty cheap and upgrade later. 

I have the exact model you linked to (I use an external preamp) and love it. Also had a great CS experience with them as I was getting it set up. Highly recommended. 

brianjones

tdawe said:

brianjones said:

RS65573 said:

Thank you all so much. Definitely not that fender at $3500, though nice. 

My wife wants something that looks nice. Which makes this difficult.

Right now I am looking at the Fluence RT85 because fuck it why do this twice.
https://www.fluance.com/rt85w-reference-high-fidelity-vinyl-turntable-natural-walnut

Do I need the preamp, cleaning kit and weight?

The RT85 has an integrated preamp that is decent. So no, you can just plug and play and decide later if you want to upgrade anything. 

A $25 brush is all you’ll need. Fluance sells a decent one. Might as well get theirs while your at it. After that, it just depends how serious you wanna get and what rabbit hole you want to go down in. 

The Fluance tt are beautiful. Im sure your wife would love it. 

Another amazing table with auto-stop (auto lift this time) is the Technics sl1500.  It’ll cost you more though. 

A very solid, more traditional looking tt. I upgraded to this from a Fluance and would never go back.  The turntable is of enough quality to invest on a better cartridge or a KAB damper if you ever want to. 

And on and on it goes 🤦‍♂️

I don’t think the RT85 has an integrated preamp. You can get one for pretty cheap and upgrade later. 

I have the exact model you linked to (I use an external preamp) and love it. Also had a great CS experience with them as I was getting it set up. Highly recommended. 

I believe you are correct on the preamp. Some lower level models of theirs do, but not rt85