FluanceRT80 Classic High Fidelity Vinyl Turntable Record Player with Audio Technica AT91 Cartridge, Belt Drive, Built-in Preamp, Adjustable Counterweight, Solid Wood Plinth - Piano Black

I hardly ever write Amazon reviews but I am so thrilled with this, I just had to. I’ve had the same cheap record player for 20 years and now that my collection has grown and I have records that are valuable and don’t want them getting damaged over time. I did a month of research, originally bought a Sony LP LX310BT which just didn’t work at all, then an Audio Technica AT-LP60XBT and both were just made of cheap plastic and didn’t really seem like a true upgrade. I returned both after discovering this option which was actually less expensive than both aforementioned models and is of far superior quality. It’s sleek, sexy, and sounds amazing. The setup was a breeze - instructions were clear and packaging was well thought out. Running it through a Sony receiver and Sansui vintage passive speakers and I’m thrilled with it. Going to add a higher quality pre-amp and see how that improves the sound as typically built in pre-amps are pretty low quality. My ONLY complaint is that the RCA cable provided is very short so you better have your receiver right next to your turntable, although the attached ground wire is a huge plus.

The media could not be loaded. This is the best vinyl player in this price range hands down! It looks like a 300+ dollar player. The dampening legs make it have such clear noise and the audio technica needle is great. The mat would be better as a vinyl or plastic one to reduce static but that’s my only complaint. So easy to put together and has a 33 and 45 speed. Super adjustable and never skips, I have never had an issue with this player after almost a whole year, and it came almost a whole month early!

Have been using the RT81 for more than a week now, a lot, like 4-7 hours per day. I use the internal preamp and have it hooked up to a Pioneer AV receiver feeding Focal floor standing speakers. It's not an audiophile set up, but I am very happy with the unit and the wonderful sound of vinyl. I remember switching from vinyl to CD as a kid and considered vinyl to be inferior for many years, but was intrigued by the resurgence of the medium in the last few years. I had become one for whom music was just digital background noise. I'm loving listening, really listening, to albums again. It is a physical fetishistic thing I guess, but man is it fun, and man do records sound better to me than I remember. Loving it. Back to this unit; it is beautiful. The wood finish and good quality components are differentiating at this price, as is the AT95E cartridge, which I have learned is considered a wonderful phono cartridge at its very low price. I really think that Fluance has a big win with this unit. It provides a way for people who don't want to spend a huge fortune to get back into listening to records. Also, so far there have been no mechanical or electronic issues with it. It just works every time I turn it on. I also have not had the thump that a few others described upon turning the unit on.

I've got a bit of a story to tell about this record player, but for those needing a quick "is this any good?" the answer is "Oh yes, this record player is great."So my parents had been holding onto all these old vinyl records from the 60's, 70's, and 80's. Mostly Beatles and Elton John LPs, and a handful of other stuff, as well as a few 45s. Also, they had a little Sony stereo that had L/R channel RCA input, so all they were missing was a turntable. I spent some time (almost 6 months) searching for the best turntable in my price range (~$200 to ~$300) that had stereo RCA output, a clam shell cover, and multiple speed settings. I discovered a lot of trash, and learned to avoid Bluetooth, integrated speakers, portable record players, and other unnecessary gimmicks. However, removing those aforementioned gimmicks left me with record players as expensive as $1000 or more, so i cut out the need for multiple speeds and voila, Fluance RT80 Turntable appeared. Which, strangely, has 2 speed functions! I bought it and got it delivered just in time for Christmas. Now, I'm a 20-something, never even handled a vinyl record before. So when I did all the set up and breaking in, I had to learn a ton of stuff, and it was nice to connect to my parents with something they cared a lot about growing up. Then, the time came to unveil this thing, and was very surprised by my parents love of this machine. Remember, they grew up in the 60's, graduated highschool in 75, and went to college in the 80's. They really now record players, and the quality of sound blew them away. They remarked about the lack of static, lack of needle bump, the auto stop feature, and even the mere fact that they could hear it in crystal-clear stereo. It's being used for hours everyday with no problems, and the sound quality just gets better and better, as we try and listen to all these records that hadn't been played in decades.Now, to talk more about the turntable itself. Its not to heavy, easy to move around, but it has enough weight that it feels good. There is some assembly required, but the instructions walk you through it. Also, you need to "burn in" the record player for 24 hours before you really set it up, it helps get everything settled in from shipping. The turntable is glossy black, with a clear black-smoked plastic clam shell that covers the entire top of the machine. It has a built in amplifier, which can be turned off if need be. It has 2 speed setting, 33.5 and 45 rpm, an auto stop feature, and an anti-skate control. The tone arm needs to be balanced before use, and is a rather precision instrument. the drive is very quiet, and operation is very smooth. Everything from putting the tone-arm down to setting the speed is as easy as easy gets, and, just to reiterate, smooth. the only real "demerits" are that the supplied cord are rather short, the auto-stop doesn't always work, and that they only painted the top part of the metal plate the record sits on.All in all, at the time of this posting (2/2/2019) this turntable is an absolute joy, 10/10, would buy again.