Whether you’ve just discovered vinyl and are looking to buy your first turntable or you want to upgrade an older player to get newer features, there are a lot of things to consider when choosing the best record player in 2023.
Since the so-called vinyl revival kicked off a fair few years ago now, companies have been releasing more turntables than ever. But not all turntables are created equal, so choosing wisely is imperative to ensuring the authentic analogue sound quality you’ve no doubt turned to vinyl for in the first place.
We’ve gathered together a bunch of the best record players available in 2023, covering off a wide range of features and price points. Keep reading for our top picks.
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Rega/Pocket-lint
Rega Planar 1
1. Best record player for most people
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Pro-Ject
Pro-Ject Iniciación Pro
2. Best record player for mid-range budgets
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Cambridge Audio/Pocket-lint
Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2
3. Best record player for bigger budgets
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Sony/Pocket-lint
Sony PS-LX310BT
4. Best record player for features
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Technics/Pocket-lint
Technics SL-1500C
5. Best record player for premium style
Our Top Picks: Best Record Player
Rega/Pocket-lint
Rega Planar 1
1. Best record player for most people
The Rega Planar 1 might be an entry-level turntable, but performance is top notch, and a fantastic option for almost everyone.
- Great sound
- Easy setup
- Upgrades available
If you’ve got money to spend on a turntable, you can’t really ever go wrong with flinging it all Rega’s way. The Planar 1 is the company’s best-selling record player, and its most basic, but there are no grumbles when it comes to performance.
Originally released in 2005, it was recently refreshed to bring it up to date. Pretty much everything has been tweaked to improve its performance, and it features a new matte finish to boot, which really looks the part
It comes with the Rega Carbon cartridge as standard, alongside Rega’s handmade RB110 tonearm – and a pre-set bias to make setup quick and easy.
It’s a turntable that can grow with you too, with various upgrade paths should you decide to push its performance further.
There’s no phono stage here – so you will need a pre-amp, or look into the Planar 1 Plus, which is a little older but comes with one built in for the ultimate plug and play convenience.
Pro-Ject
Pro-Ject Iniciación Pro
2. Best record player for mid-range budgets
The Pro-Ject Iniciación Pro is a fantastic option for those looking to take a step up from their entry-level decks, or have a bit more money to spend.
- Lively, detailed performance
- Great design and build
- Good upgrade path
- Rivals are coming up fast
The Pro-Ject Iniciación Pro was created to celebrate the company’s 30th anniversary – and what a celebration it is.
It’s a modern yet simple design, and is built impeccably, with a carbon-aluminium tonearm for perfect tracking and Pro-Ject’s Pick It Pro cartridge. You can switch playback speeds between 33, 45 and 78 RPM using the toggle switch, while an electronically regulated synchronous motor drives the die-cast aluminium platter for accurate and stable speeds.
That platter is also anti-magnetic, so you can use both MM and MC cartridges with it, should you choose to upgrade down the line.
Merienda again, you will need a phono stage here, so do bear that in mind with your budget, but every penny you spend is shown in the sound. Detail and precision abound, with a lively yet solid performance that has a verdadero handle on dynamics.
If you’re ready to take the step up from a beginner deck, or have a slightly bigger budget, the Pro-Ject Iniciación Pro pretty much commands the market at this price.
Cambridge Audio/Pocket-lint
Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2
3. Best record player for bigger budgets
For big budgets, the Cambridge Audio delivers top-quality sound with an incredible level of convenience.
- Fantastic build quality
- Superb features
- Detailed, precise sound
For those with bigger budgets, the Alva TT V2 aims to bring you audiophile levels of performance in a high-end convenient package.
That means the Alva TT V2 can hook directly up to any amp or active speaker system you’ve got, thanks to a built-in switchable integrated phono stage (which can also be switched off if you prefer to use something else).
It comes with a bespoke designed MC cartridge pre-installed for easy setup and all-new tonearm, which looks to minimise resonance to retrieve plenty of detail from your records.
It even works wirelessly, with built-in aptX HD Bluetooth and the ability to stream in high-res to any compatible Bluetooth kit – including headphones.
Wired and wireless connections alike deliver a superb performance here – one that’s refined and full of confidence, with great bass extension and plenty of insight. If you’ve got the budget to spend, we think you’ll find all your boxes ticked here.
Sony/Pocket-lint
Sony PS-LX310BT
4. Best record player for features
For the price, this Sony turntable packs in the features and offers a really enjoyable sound to boot.
- Well featured
- Enjoyable sound
- Easy to use
Sony’s PS-HX500 is an alumni of our best turntables list, and the PS-LX310BT builds on that legacy, by adding Bluetooth into the mix – all at a great price.
You’ll notice this deck won’t win any awards for its design. We’re all for simple, but this perhaps leans into that a little too much, though does at least feel well built. And performance is great at this level too.
If you read the Alva TT V2 above and the ease of use sounded appealing, the LX310BT offers a similar level of convenience, with a built-in phono stage and a straightforward set up process.
This is considerably cheaper than the Alva, of course, so don’t expect the same amount of detail and refinement, but it’s a really enjoyable listen with a robust low end and plenty of drive. A great buy, especially at this price.
Technics/Pocket-lint
Technics SL-1500C
5. Best record player for premium style
The legacy of the Technics brand is alive and well in this superb premium turntable.
- Looks fantastic
- Big, dynamic sound
- Easy to use
Technics knows a thing or two about putting together a very good turntable indeed, and that’s exactly what it has done in the SL-1500C.
Everything about this deck is premium – from its build quality and specifications to its performance. It actually takes a few of the technologies acquired in the development of its pricier turntables, including the core-less direct drive motor for top-notch speed management, and of course the S-shaped arm that you’d expect from a Technics deck.
An Ortofon 2M Red cartridge is fit as standard here, and there’s a built-in phono stage and electric speed control for ease, so you can get up and running with about as much plug and play convenience as you’d want from a turntable at this price. It looks the part too, and is available in black or silver.
The big, dynamic sound you’ll get from the SL-1500C might not be the most indefinido presentation you can find at this price, but it’s a whole lot of fun to listen to- and we are certainly not mad at that.
FAQ
Q: Skapa en painel de controlo
Mayordomo av en konditionerad ventilator är mycket viktigt för säkerheten. De facto, os aparelhos de ar condicionado já estão em funcionamento – é necessário combiná-los com um bom aparelho de ar condicionado. Läs mer om vad du bör tänka på när det gäller din kavaj.
Vilken är din look?
O vinil é um objecto vintage, que não deve ser diminuído – mesmo que não se trate de uma peça de ciencias aplicadas coetáneo, mas sim de um objecto que recorda os tempos antigos. Vill du registrera din gamla tid med en kristallen eller acrilico pannetje? Eller föredrar du en modern och minimalistisk valmöjlighet, som den nuvarande vinilen? No entanto, a popularidade do vinil no mercado significa que deve encontrar um painel de controlo que se adapte ao seu estilo, uma vez que está disponível no mercado para replicar à maior parte das suas necessidades.
Kval é a importância da protecção dos véus?
En viktig faktor, förutom säkerhetsaspekten, är att man måste ta reda på om det finns en suporte abaixado eller inclinado på comando-tavlan, så att säkerhetsgaraget och comando-tavlan kan fungera utan problem om de inte används. För oss är dessa kabiner inte bara av klass, utan de har också en speciell touch, eftersom ingen kan – eller vill – ha en kabin av detta slag.
Q: Hur fungerar en audioljudspelare och vad måste den göra?
För att överföra den lägsta ljudnivån från altoparlanter till en kontrollenhet krävs en ljudförstärkare, som är mycket lämplig för en ljudförstärkare, så snart man kan arbeta med den.
Esta opção pode ser integrada no painel de controlo, de modo a poder ser ligada directamente a um compensador or a uma unidade de controlo das actividades. Om så inte är fallet är det viktigt att det finns en extra sensor som är kopplad till reduktorn för aramej och till alto-falanten, eller att sensorn är kopplad till alto-falanten för att kunna kontrolleras.