what to look for in a good turntable

How to choose the best turntable

Become the right vinyl record player for your needs

I've hauled a heavy crate of records across the country from house to house for more than ii decades. Why? Because I treasure the warmth and item of the classic albums I've collected over the years. Only I'chiliad not simply archiving — I find and purchase new favorite albums all the time.

Whether you're new to the vinyl game, or an experienced collector in search of an upgrade, this article volition give you the noesis you need to make the right choice when buying a turntable.

What is a turntable?

Every turntable does 2 very of import things. First, it provides a stable platform that spins records at a constant charge per unit of speed. 2nd, information technology allows a needle to track through the tape groove and "read" the recorded information. Across that, there's a lot of variation in materials and construction that can brand a deviation in how it sounds.

What do you lot go when you spend more?

If you're going to invest in records to go great analog sound, you should play them on something better than a trendy all-in-one record player bought at a vesture store. Build quality and materials make all the difference when choosing a turntable. This list points out key features that brand ane turntable audio meliorate than another.

Good (typically under $400)

• aluminum platter and tonearm
• some plastic body parts
• automatic operation
• entry-level cartridge
• congenital-in preamp

Meliorate ($400-$800)

• carbon cobweb tonearm
• steel or acrylic platter
• manual performance
• medium-quality cartridge
• heavy plinth (base)

Best ($800 and above)

• exotic, sometimes trademarked materials in platter, bearings, and other parts
• loftier-end cartridge
• avant-garde engineering of tonearm associates, plinth, wiring, etc.
• no born preamp

If you demand some explanation of these parts and features, merely keep reading!

Key parts of a turntable

A. Platter — The record sits on summit of this (hopefully with a good mat in place).

B. Spindle and bearing — ensures shine, placidity platter rotation.

C. Motor and pulley — But found in a chugalug-drive turntable, this provides the torque that turns the platter.

D. Tonearm — Fabricated from potent, lightweight materials like aluminum or carbon cobweb, it tracks record grooves with high accuracy.

E. Cartridge — The coil and magnets inside turn the kinetic energy from the tape groove into electric signals.

F. Plinth — Provides a stable, resonance-free base for the moving parts.

G. Feet — Absorb vibrations, so the turntable doesn't selection up skip-inducing rumble from speakers or motion in the room.

Of import features

On casual test, virtually turntables look pretty similar. Permit'south "peek under the hood" to choice out some primal features yous may want to wait out for.

This image shows the intricate structure of a high-end directly drive motor used past Technics.

Belt drive vs. directly drive

This tells you how the motor is continued to the platter, and why that matters.

Directly-drive turntables offering extremely precise platter rotation, which reduces or eliminates "wow and palpitate." They also get upward to speed almost instantly, and the platter spins free of resistance when the motor is turned off. The latter qualities make them very popular with professional DJs.

On a chugalug-driven tabular array, an rubberband band connected to the motor turns the platter. Devotees of belt-drive believe this decoupling reduces motor noise, and may help bring out more than nuance from a recording.

Both drive styles accept big fans in the audiophile realm. It's really a matter of personal preference at the end of the solar day.

A phono cartridge turns the kinetic energy from a record groove into electrical signals.

Cartridge

About turntables come with a cartridge pre-mounted on the tonearm. The cartridge contains the stylus — which most of us casually refer to as a "needle" or "pickup" — that reads the tape'south grooves and produces sound. The provided cartridge is usually a good entry-level selection, just many music lovers adopt to upgrade to get even stronger performance.

An external phono preamp boosts the tiny betoken generated by your turntable then your primary amplifier can plough it into audible output.

Phono preamp

The initial indicate produced past the cartridge is very precise, just as well very weak. That's why your turntable needs to feed into a phono preamplifier to get to a level that tin make music come out of your speakers. The phono preamp tin can be built into the 'table, built into a receiver, built into a powered speaker, or housed in a separate component.

An outboard preamp does add a slice of gear to your cabinet, only if you're using a pinnacle-notch cartridge, this level of detailed command helps y'all become the most out of your investment. Information technology volition often requite you the option to choose whether you want to use a moving magnet or moving whorl cartridge.

To learn more, read our phono preamp buying guide.

Manual vs. automated

This feature lets y'all know how much you'll have to interact with your turntable as information technology begins and ends playing a tape.

Manual: With the assistance of a manual lever, y'all physically lift the tonearm and place the needle in the record's lead groove and lift information technology off at the stop of a side. An automated machinery tin can introduce noise, so manual functioning is standard for those who intendance more about sound quality than convenience.

Semi-automatic: You lot get things started by manually lowering the tonearm. When the record is done, the turntable returns the tonearm and shuts off the motor. You don't take to worry most the stylus bumping effectually in the end of the groove while you're up to your elbows in a task.

This fully automated turntable automatically puts the needle on the record, plays a side, then returns the tonearm to its rest and shuts off.

Fully automatic: With a fully automatic turntable, y'all push a push button and walk abroad. The tonearm moves into position and gently drops the needle onto the leading border of the tape. When the concluding song is over, the tonearm lifts itself upward, returns to its resting position, and shuts off the motor.

This turntable has a built-in phono preamp and a USB output for connecting to a computer to digitize analog albums.

USB output

You buy a turntable considering you value analog sound. But some 'tables accept a feature that lets you create digital copies of your favorite albums so you can preserve them, and take the music with you when you lot leave the business firm. If that sounds practiced to you, await for a turntable with a USB output.

Of import specs

Looking at pictures of a turntable won't tell you much about how information technology performs relative to other models. Manufacturers use some esoteric-sounding specs to help you brand comparisons, so allow'southward figure out what each one means.

Signal-to-noise ratio: Measures how much background noise yous can hear. A higher number is amend hither because y'all want a lot more than music signal than noise. Wait for something above 65dB.

Playback speeds: Virtually turntables give you 33-1/3 and 45 RPM adequacy. If you purchase a 'table for spinning 78s, it tin handle modern "microgroove" pressings, just not older vintage recordings. Brand certain you get a specialized cartridge that's equipped to handle the wider grooves of these increasingly rare records.

Wow and palpitate: This spec tells you how accurately the turntable spins the platter. Too much divergence tin can crusade an audible wavering outcome. A lower number is better hither, ideally below 0.25%.

Side by side steps

Once you've bought a turntable, you may get the crawling to commencement tweaking it to make it audio fifty-fifty meliorate. Bank check out our

Pairing a turntable with speakers

The traditional — and still very popular — mode of hearing sound from a tape is to connect the preamp output to a receiver with phono input or a preprocessor/power amplifier philharmonic, and listen through a pair of belfry or bookshelf speakers. This kind of setup provides superior results, but it can be costly and have upwardly a lot of space.

A powered stereo speaker with built-in phono phase like the Kanto SYD offers a space-saving option for record lovers.

As an apartment dweller myself, I've enjoyed pairing my Pro-Ject Debut Carbon with a pair of Klipsch Reference R-41PM powered stereo speakers. The speakers accept the connections I demand, and a congenital-in power supply, so I don't need to make room for any other components. Powered speaker manufacturers often build in a phono preamp as a nod to us vinyl lovers.

Some manufacturers are adding built-in wireless functionality for added flexibility. The popular Sound-Technica LP-60XBT (and others) characteristic convenient Bluetooth® output. Yamaha'south TT-N503 turntable has MusicCast built in, which lets y'all put your turntable anywhere yous like, and wirelessly broadcast music to uniform speakers throughout your unabridged home.

Adjacent steps

Once you've got a nice setup, y'all'll probably start feeling an irresistible urge to beginning tweaking details to make it sound fifty-fifty meliorate. Don't worry, this is very normal. Read eight Tips for Getting Amend Sound from your Turntable to get an idea where to get-go.

Demand aid?

You may desire some assist choosing a turntable and matching it to components similar preamps, receivers, and speakers. One of our expert Advisors can talk to you about what gear you take, and what you might demand to add. They're knowledgeable, friendly, and they love music as much as you do. Contact u.s.a. today.

And don't hesitate to telephone call u.s. if you striking a snag during the install procedure. Free lifetime tech support is included with every Crutchfield purchase.

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Source: https://www.crutchfield.com/ISEO-rgbtcspd/learn/learningcenter/home/audio/turntables.html

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