Looking for a beginner turntable and near field speaker
I recently got my first vinyl (Breach by Twenty One Pilots) for my birthday. I've had it on streaming nonstop but want to play it properly and start a small collection.
I've seen a lot of recommendations for the Audio-Technica AT-LP60 as a beginner option (affordable and apparently decent quality) but also read that spending a little more can get something more "serious", though I need speakers too.
The thing is that it needs to be new gear only or easy to buy: My partner plans to gift the setup for Christmas and marketplace/used gear is hard to source locally where we live, so that's probably out. We have a budget of around €150 for the turntable and other €150 for the speakers, or €300 total. Open to a modest stretch if it avoids an early upgrade. Manual or semi-auto is fine but preferable plug-and-play.
Prefer compact powered speakers with good near field clarity, not necessarily loud since they'll sit behind my PC monitor on my desk.
Questions:
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If I'm considering the AT-LP60, what's the smartest "slightly more €" upgrade path for a first set-up?
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For small desks, which powered speakers pair well with entry-level turntables (good clarity but not boomy)?
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Anything to avoid or other advice you may have for a beginner?
Appreciate any guidance. I’m looking forward to spinning Breach and building out a few more records.
Ps: Already ordered anti-static inner sleeves, outer sleeves, and a carbon-fiber record brush to keep things clean!
I wrote out a long comment about the benefits of buying second hand gear, and then I reread your post and saw that you want specifically new equipment. My audio system is basically all pre-owned, and all of it at least 30 years old, so I don't have a huge amount of recommendations for you within your stipulations. However, the Yorkshire-nationalist in me would implore you to get hold of Wharfedale speakers if they're available in your region. They sound and look excellent, and are handmade in the UK. A pair of Diamond 9.1s runs about £130, which converts to around €150.
I have just learned that:
Thanks!
There are dozens of us!
Thank you for your input! I understand the many benefits of buying a used table but doesn't seem to be an option for us here. We live on an island so the second hand market is not as varied as other places. Our city is not small at all (almost a million people) but shipping from outside can be tricky, so for this we're trying to stick to new gear.
I checked for Wharfedale Diamond 9.1, and from what I can tell these aren't being made anymore, so availability here is spotty. I'll keep an eye out in case something interesting pops up locally, though. Besides, these are passive, right? If I end up going for the LP-60 I would need speakers with built-in amp, isn't it?
can recommend the wharfedales — the common room in my (yorkshire) uni accom is kitted out with diamond 9.1s
I just got into the hobby myself this year. After much deliberation, I ended up going with the AT-LP60 and Edifier R1280DBS speakers and have been very happy. The speakers seem relatively well balanced and I think this combo is a great "bang for your buck" set-up which is what I usually go for.
I owned (well technically still own) a AT-LP60, and I do not think it is worth nearly what they charge for it. I had issues with a lot of the functionality (e.g. the auto-stop would sometimes work, sometimes restart the album, sometimes do other things), and I kept having issues with the play speed varying. New belts and manual adjustments couldn't keep it consistently working. I ended up buying a Sony PS-LX310BT for around the same price I paid for the LP60 and I am much happier with it. I just checked the price on Amazon for the Sony and it is quite literally triple what I paid for it less than a year ago, so it may not be a great option now as there are much better turn tables in that price range. Amazon could be a fluke though.
For speakers I use some Edifier RT1700BT. These are also far more expensive now than then I bought them (I paid $150 vs $220 now), but that likely factoring in US tariffs which may not affect you. I really like these speakers, I've owned quite a few powered speakers of this type over the years (Klipish, Polk Audio, some cheaper Edifiers) and these are my favorite by far.
I looked up what I purchased back in 2017 and am floored that the price of the turntable has gone up so much.
Turntable: Fluance RT80, currently $250 on Amazon, I paid $170 for it.
Speakers (not what you're looking for as they're connected to a receiver and double as my home entertainment system): Fluance Bookshelf speakers (unsure of specific model but I think it's the "Signature HiFi 2-Way"), $200 for a pair. Still that price on Amazon.
Everything's been going strong since - almost 10 years now. I haven't done any modifications- same cartridge/needle, etc. I'm not an audiophile but I'm pretty happy with it.
Well, this is a bit of an unwanted answer, but I think it's worth it to pay, well, about twice that for speakers, because for that you can often get JBL LSR305 or Kali LP-6 (usually more expensive but better), which are the cheapest speakers that I know of which get close to truly hi-fi sound, something that is frankly amazing at this price point and was not nearly possible 20 years ago.
I believe it's worth it to save a bit more and wait for black friday sales because the difference in quality that you get from that in this budget category really is rather large. The Kali speakers especially are something you'd likely happily keep even if you win the lottery, become an audiophile and buy 10k € speakers for your living room.
Does the same logic apply to CDs? I'm thinking of starting a collection. Since they're digital, I assume the player matters less than with vinyl. If so, I could put my entire budget towards the speakers. Thanks for the suggestions, btw! I'll probably start with Kali's you recommended before making my way to a Klipsch Heresy IV!
CD players will have various points where quality can affect the sound, most importantly are the DAC and the amplifier. CDs are digital, but the PCM data has to be converted to an analog signal somehow, and then that has to go through amplification before the signal is strong enough to drive speakers. If you have a cheap DAC, it can fail to faithfully reproduce the audio or it can introduce noise or whatever.
I can't speak for products or brands, because I live fully in the world of computers, phones and streaming services now, but I do dabble in music production. Chances are any CD player designed for external speakers is probably not going to have any issues at this point, though.
100% yes. As redwall_hp says the DAC quality matters, but more theoretically than practically, DACs have mostly been a solved issue on a casual listening level for some time now. Ignore the amplifier thing, pretty much no hifi CD players contain an amplifier and the Kali/JBL speakers are active, meaning they have their own built-in amps.
Can't really give any specific recommendation either because I just use a computer with a cheap external sound card for music. I would probably just purchase an external USB drive for it these days if I wanted to listen to CDs.
Thanks, that's really helpful.
I don't have a particular preference for physical media like a vinyl collector might have, and I'm okay with digital. My problem is that I find it difficult to do active listening when I'm controlling the media with a computer / smartphone.
My ideal setup would be a kind of "dumb" device. Something with media controls, maybe a screen for album cover and lyrics, that can play my local files (bonus if it can also connect to streaming services). So I thought CD playing would be closest to that.
Sorry for going on a tangent, but I feel like you may have solved this problem, and if you did I'd love to pick your brain!
Interestingly, I have been working on creating a device myself for that (although does not do local files) based on a Raspberry Pi. My code base is not something that is worth sharing at the moment, but I will share an article of the original project that I am building mine off of. I would recommend getting an audio device that is not a computer or phone though, so even the CD route will be a great experience for you
I think the AT-LP60 is the best option for you, and at your budget you're not going to find much else that's better.
A few years ago, I would have suggested springing for something like the AT-LP120, but it looks like the price has gone up 50% since I bought mine, from $300 to ~$450, which is a lot steeper than what you're looking to pay. The biggest advantage of the 120 is the replaceable cartridge, which gives a reliable upgrade path without having to buy a whole new turntable. Something to consider, if you're looking to future-proof your setup at some point.
Advice: instead of getting too in the weeds for the audio gear, focus your budget and energy on building a collection of records that you want to listen to. That's where the real fun of record collecting is: the music itself. Seems like you're thinking like this already.