JBL Spinner BT

First up is a new entry-level turntable from our friends at JBL. While JBL is mostly known for their very high-performance home and professional speakers, they have some of the best engineers in the industry, and when they set out to make something they do it right. The Spinner is made for the person who might have a simple system that wants to get into or back into vinyl. JBL has thought of almost everything that this type of buyer might want.

Many people getting back into music these days use a pair of Bluetooth speakers and nothing else. Very few turntables think about this customer as usually, you have to make a physical connection. The Spinner has the best type of Bluetooth called aptX HD allowing you to connect to your Bluetooth speakers wirelessly with ease.

The Spinner has nice isolating feet in case it has to be on the same shelf as your speakers and you can even level them out.

U-Turn Audio Orbit 2 Plus

U-Turn Audio is one of Audio Advice’s favorite brands out there. Their turntables are made at their factory in Woburn, Massachusetts, with their parts sourced from local vendors. The U-Turn Audio Orbit 2 Plus version comes with an acrylic platter, a very nice mat, and a great turntable bearing for really good speed stability.

The gimbal tonearm got a big upgrade in 2023 and was changed to the OA3, which is longer, better made, and tracks better. It comes with a pre-mounted Ortofon OM 5E phono cartridge, which is a great value, but the arm will allow you to move up to a better cartridge down the road. You can even buy the Orbit 2 Plus with a built-in U-Turn Pluto 2 phono preamp to eliminate the need for an external one. Other improvements for 2024 in the Orbit 2 Plus are a better belt and motor speed control, making it an even better value.

Finally, the Orbit 2 Plus is a beauty to look at, with several color options to choose from to match it to your environment. We should point out that the Plus does not come with a cue lever, but you can purchase it as an optional accessory. This is one heck of a great performer for the money, especially if you are looking for something made in the USA.

Audio-Technica AT-LP120XUSB Manual Direct Drive Turntable

If you see yourself playing DJ at your house or if you are considering digitizing your collection, take a close look at the Audio-Technica AT-LP120USB from Audio-Technica. It has a high-torque direct drive motor for instant start-up and comes with a slip mat and adjustable speed control, all favorites of professional DJs.

The S-shaped tonearm is really good and has a removable headshell which makes it really easy to change cartridges. It comes with the highly regarded Audio Technica AT-VM95E cartridge and what is cool about this model is you can upgrade to a better cartridge simply by purchasing a new stylus body. An anti-resonance plinth, built-in phono preamp, and USB outs complete this great deal of a turntable.

Pro-Ject T1 Manual Belt Drive Turntable

Pro-Ject helped launch the turntable revival with their Debut line of turntables and has several factories all over Europe where everything but the cartridges they source from Ortofon is made in-house. The Pro-Ject T1 comes from their decades of turntable experience. There are options for getting it with or without a built-in phono preamp, electronic speed control to switch from 33 to 45 with the push of a button, or even a model with Bluetooth. But all of them have the same great platform.

The T1 benefits from a newly designed isolation foot, a plinth, a sub-platter, and the main glass platter for a good flywheel effect. You’ll get an Ortofon OM5E moving magnet cartridge, and the built-in phono stage was designed to match this cartridge perfectly. The new tonearm designed for the T1 is also made to go with the Ortofon OM5E. This arm has some of the best bearings we have seen in this price range.

Denon DP300F Fully Automatic Turntable

Denon used to make some of the best-looking and highest-end turntables you could find but got out of the turntable business when CDs were taking over. We are happy to see them getting back into it, and one great choice for those of you who want an automatic turntable is the Denon DP300F. This nice little belt drive turntable just needs the push of one button, and you’ll soon have a sweet vinyl sound.

We like the fact the plinth is heavy-duty with anti-resonant properties. The tonearm is very well put together for this price category and allows you to change cartridges should you wish. There is a built-in phono preamp, making the DP300F plug-and-play ready.

We do have to say we think the models before this one sound better, but they are fully manual, making the DP300F the perfect record player for someone worried about damaging their stylus on a manual table.