top of page

The 5 Essential Considerations for Picking a Turntable

 

Contrary to the assumptions of many people, vinyl records continue to grow in popularity even as digital music seems to have flooded the scene. The top reason for such fame is the coolness of vinyl records, which is conspicuously absent in their digital alternatives. Also, the fact that you can "hold the music" in your hands is appealing to many people. It is now possible to play that music if you pick one of the best turntables that the market has to offer. Here is how you go about making such a selection.

 

The cash you intend to splurge on the top turntables will determine the type and quality you end up with. So, the more money you hold, the better the device. Music experts recommend going for the best turntable, especially if you need it as part of a hi-fi system because it is the source of sound and music quality for the rest of the devices. If the sound quality emitted by your turntable is poor, not even the best speaker for record player or amplifier can correct it.

 

You need to choose between manual, semi-automatic, and automatic when buying a turntable. These terms are in reference to the way you place and remove the needle from your vinyl record where an automatic variant allows you to do it by pushing a button. On the other hand, you will have to place the needle on the record by hand with a manual alternative, which is the case with the best vintage turntable. With a semi-automatic turntable, the placement of the needle is similar to that of a manual one, but you don't need to lift it off at the end since the machine will do that for you.

 

Rotational speeds of turntables vary and matter a lot. A majority of the modern ones come with 33-1/3 and 45, so you need to be careful about RPM capabilities if you intend to spin 78s that are rare and feature wider than normal groves. The best turntables for 78 RPM records are those classified as three-speed. Check out http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/record-player/ for more details about record player.

 

Upgradability of your best vinyl records is a critical concern because you may want to increase the capabilities of your device with time. The tonearm, platter, and stylus are parts that most people upgrade, but that does not limit you to improve others that you have in mind. Just note that an upgradable turntable doesn't come cheap.

 

Space considerations must not be forgotten; otherwise, you will find that you don't have somewhere to put it. While this aspect may sound trifling, it is quite significant due to the sensitivity of the device (especially the needle) to vibrations. If external vibrations are excessive, the sound emitted from the device will form a hum, and may even result in the jumping and skipping of the needle.

bottom of page