Average Every Day Player

Background
Growing up I had a record player that was integral to a stereo. The whole stereo cost about $50 in the late 80's. Then when I went away to school my grandmother was parting with her early 1970's stereo. It had a built in changer for seven vinyl's. I suppose I was spoiled having never purchased one on my own when I went to buy one at Circuit City. I have a fairly decent collection of records that I mostly purchased while in college from used book stores. I was not searching for a great turntable, but something that would do the job for the occasional time when I wanted to break out the vinyl.

Presentation
This model has a fairly slick, low profile look to it. It comes in a black plastic body, with a dark plastic lid over the turntable. It has four feet that lift the main body of the unit about 1/2" off of the supporting surface. Each of the four legs has think silver colored band that wraps around it. It gives it just a hint of techiness.

Functionality
Firstly, the dust lid lifts gently up and will remain in its fully open position without support. This makes it quite easy to then load your LP onto the unit. It will play 33 1/3 and 45 rpm LP's. It will not play 78's, but then again if you are looking for something like that you are probably way too into it to consider a model like this. The bed of the turntable has a thin rubber bed that lays over the top of the metal turning unit. This soft bed helps to cushion the record, but also to hold it in place. Once you have placed the LP correctly over the center position rod, then simply close the lid and hit the automatic start button on the front. The needle will automatically be guided up, over and then gently drop down onto the record. The table itself turns quite smoothly and I have had not problems with distortion. (not an expert ear though)

Compatibility
The unit has one output on the back. It requires a Stereo RCA Phono plug (x2). I had mine connected into the auxiliary on a surround sound stereo and it worked great. Additionally, I tried recording the LP's to digital files through my computer. I did this by keeping the turntable connected to the stereo (used as an amplifier) and then ran a 1/8" stereo cable out of the phones jack and into the "line in" on the back of my computer. Then if your computer is configured properly you can record using any program that recognizes the "line in" on your sound card.

Price
For me it was sticker shock. I couldn't believe this was the lowest price model on the shelves. I'm sure if I had spent more time looking around I would have found something less expensive. You can buy a nano-ipod cheaper than this! So you are not going to purchase this because it is a less expensive way to listen to music. You will buy this for a similar reason that I did -- You have some old vinyl's that you would like to listen to from time to time. If you are really into collecting vinyl then you will be too educated to purchase a basic model like this.

Summary
This turntable works well for the user who is looking for a way to enjoy their vinyl collection just a little longer. It is at the lower end of the price bracket and delivers an acceptable quality of sound for the average listener.