How to Buy a High-Fidelity Turntable

Whether you are a DJ who loves spinning records or an audiophile who prefers vinyl rather than CDs, the sound quality of high-fidelity turntable will be music to your ears.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Tone Arms
• High-fidelity Turntables
• Phono Cables
• Phono Cartridges
• Phono Preamps

1. Budget the total amount you are willing to spend for record-playing equipment. Include turntable, tone arm, cartridge, cables, phono preamp, isolation products and any other optional equipment you will need.

2. Check the recommended components lists in the most recent April or October issue of Stereophile for prices and suggestions of models worthy of auditioning. Read turntable reviews in audiophile magazines and at Audio Review's Web site to narrow your list.

3. Don't try to compare prices of specific products until you have narrowed your choices to a few models, as some models don't include a tone arm, clamp or dust cover.

4. Take some of your favorite records to the audio equipment stores you visit. Choose familiar records that will challenge the bass, treble, imaging and sound-staging capabilities of the equipment. If possible, take recordings of music you've heard performed live.

5. Arrange to listen to a turntable at home through your own system, if it sounds good to you in the store. Ask the dealer to install a cartridge and provide anything else you will need to perform a fair audition.

6. Compare at least two or three models in a short period of time before making your buying decision.

7. Base your final choice on sound quality in your current system, price, dealer service before and after the sale and upgradability.

Tips & Warnings

• If you don't plan to spend more than $1,000, look for turntables without suspension. A turntable without suspension will be quieter than one with poor suspension and can be upgraded with later fine-tuning.
• Trust your ears. Don't let a reviewer or salesperson talk you into or out of a particular product.

on 8/8/2006 On a suspensionless table, put the needle down on a record with the power off. If the preamp picks up any noise, its a faulty table, and that noise will veil all fine details of the music. Suspension is better.