Turntable Reviews

The Dual 601 is one of Dual's best belt drive turntables. It has a common problem with its motor that may require fixing. Read More →

The Garrard 401 is an extremely good choice for a vintage turntable. Unlike its cousin the 301, the 401 is less sought after, and as a result it is cheaper. The 401s are less sought after due to a small difference in sound quality. The 301 has better sound, despite its slightly inferior design. The 401s were not made as well as the 301, and consequently their sound is not quite as good. The Garrard 401 is not exactly cheap, however, and you can expect to pay at least 500 USD, with good condition 401s fetching over $1000 on Ebay. […] Read More →

The portable turntable: outdated for a reason? Read More →

The Pro-ject Essential must be frustrating for Pro-ject’s competitors. Just when they thought entry level had been defined by the Debut III, Pro-ject go even cheaper. That’s what happens when you sell the most turntables in the world, I suppose. More and more new designs of Pro-ject turntables are coming out each year, much to the benefit of vinyl lovers. The Pro-ject essential is another great turntable for the price, but have Pro-ject made it too affordable at the expense of quality? Significantly cheaper than the Pro-ject Debut III, the Essential has fewer bells and whistles. Like the Debut III, […] Read More →

The Pro-ject Debut III is one of the leaders in the entry level audiophile market. Contrary to the notion that vinyl is for old people, the Pro-ject Debut III is obviously aimed at the younger market. Like its competitor the Rega P1, the Pro-ject Debut III comes in a variety of funky colours that will appeal to those who love sleek looking audio equipment. Vintage turntables mounted on wooden plinths could probably be accused of looking a little clunky at times. There is none of that with the Pro-ject Debut III: this turntable looks absolutely fantastic. The build quality of […] Read More →

The Dual 1019 Turntable Review, Specifications, and Cartridge Recommendations. Read More →

The Dual 506 is part of the belt drive Dual range. Though more renowned for their 12xx series idler drives, Dual did make a few good belt drive turntables under the 500 series. The 506 is a pretty stock standard turntable that was relatively cheap in its day, but there are some interesting points to note. The first is that the Dual 506 has Dual’s ULM (ultra low mass) tonearm. At the end of the tonearm is a headshell unique to the Dual turntables range. The Dual 506 uses a single screw mount, and therefore the standard 1/2″ cartridge will […] Read More →

The Dual 1229 turntable is the most sought after Dual turntable. More probably found in antique stores than yard sales or in dustbins, the heavy, extremely well built Dual 1229 has generated strong interest amongst the Dual turntables fandom for years. The 1229 is considered to be the culmination of decades of Dual’s technological innovation. Unusually, for a high fidelity turntable, the Dual 1229 is fully automatic. The low level of rumble experienced when listening to the 1229 is a real boon for the lazy vinyl listeners. Additionally, the Dual 1229 turntable is capable of playing multiple records at once, […] Read More →

Find out why Crosley turntables should not be purchased under any circumstances, and some alternatives that won't break the bank. Read More →