How do you think this would compare to the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Espirit or X1?

i have a 2204 pro-ject debut lll with several tweaks including upgraded Ortofon OM 20 stylus , projuect speed box and acrylic platter. i too was wondering how it would compare with a pro-ject debut carbon.

If one wanted to upgrade their tonearm down the line to one fully adjustable, would that be feasible? Do you have any recommendations as to what could work well here? Thank you.

Jim;
I have a feeling Mike won't answer your question. Besides being broad and vague, it contains inherent contradictions. No deck that "meets all of [Mike's] criteria, should one even exist, comes with a cartridge and likely does not come with a tonearm either.

I have a soft spot for people who ask earnest questions, use real names, and post a photo to-boot. So my answer to the question I THINK you meant to ask is that there is one that is pretty close-an in my humble opinion based upon Mike's own past reviews, the table that comes to mind would be the GEM Dandy Polytable and Super Polytable 12. Do a search of Mike's reviews and you decide. There are no doubt others that come close to the question I THINK you MEANT to ask. Certainly the Marantz TT-15 comes close as does the VPI Scout.

Purchased the RT85 based on the review and love it! I paired it with a Cambridge Audio Duo. I broke it in with the MoFi remaster of The Band - The Band and an original Stereo (AS-63) McCoy Tyner - Today and Tomorrow. Excellent clarity, good low end and great dynamics! Thanks again Michael!

Hi,Thought I would add my comments to this as I have first hand experience of both. Firstly I will point out that I have recently revived my vinyl collection and was looking to replace a Rega P5 / RP700 with a turntable with a removable headshell. I am a bit old school SME Arm Shure V15, and Stanton 681EEE combinations in the past. I read good reviews of the Fluance the added attraction of the Ortofon Blue in the price won the day, set up was easy but I was not happy with the sound nor the fact that when a light carbon cleaning brush was very lightly applied the turntable stopped completely! I returned the turntable but was now without as I had sold the P5.

So on the hunt again I was drawn towards direct drive units Technics SL1500C and the Thorens TD402, I had always fancied a Thorens so that was my choice, in setting up I did notice some parts were shared with the Fluance, the perspex lid and brackets. I replaced the Audio Technica cartridge with an old Pickering XV15 D625E which is far better than the AT-VM95E. Have found it difficult to obtain a spare angled headshell for the straight arm the Reloop Turn 3 headshell is very similar to the Thorens as works well. Now looking to change the cartridge to a Grado Prestige 2 Gold. With regards to some reports of background hum from the TD402 I did experience this but found it to be AC hum from my Audiolab 8000 which was sighted beneath the turntable, as soon as this was re-sighted the hum was gone. Fully tested the TD402 is excellent, tracks the Pickering at 1g, great turntable!

Yeah, bet me on that one! I have bought numerous Hanpin manufactured turntables. Most have had loose arm bearings. Some have even had speed issues. They put out slop!

Love your reviews Michael!

Mr. Fremer rightly and tactfully avoided speculation on this.

I'm reminded of a recent comment on a vinyl playback forum. One, who worked retail audio recounted the margin (90 points!) on a certain moving magnet cartridge "back in the day".

(this, of course, helped dealers to pay for the customary installation)

Fluance may not be getting 90 discount points on this particular pickup, but 75 for three-figure quantities may not be out of range.

Michael, regarding your calculation of a 7 Hz natural frequency, I'm using 28g for effective tonearm mass (per Fluance website), 7.2g for the cartridge mass (per Ortofon website), and a compliance of 20. I'm calculating a 6 Hz natural frequency. Could you please share how you got 7 Hz? I'm a little surprised that using the formula on the Ortofon webpage results in the 2M Blue being in the "questionable" area so I'm questioning the 28g effective mass number. Any thoughts or tips?

Michael,
I'm new to Analog Planet and just love your website. I purchased the Fluence RT85 a few months ago and was wonder what your thoughts would be of replacing the orto blue with an orto bronze. Do you think it would improve the sound quality on my vinyl records? Thanks in advance for your response.

Michael, I'm a novice at trying to find a better listening experience with my vinyl records and could use your experience of better setting up my sound system. After reading your articles on the different cartridges dated 10/22/2013, what are your thoughts on if an Ortofon bronze or and Ortofon black would be worthwhile to putting on my Fluance RT85 turntable. Or would they be overkill on a $500 turntable? Thanks in advance.

I was wondering if the effective mass specification for the tonearm is accurate as it seems pretty high.

If it is accurate, it might be a great inexpensive table to use with one of my favorite cartridges, the Denon DL-103. You could sell the Ortofon and pick up a Denon. High quality affordable turntables with high mass tonearms are pretty thin on the ground.

Thoughts? Anyone tried it?

I tend to believe Fluance is close to correct in spec-ing the RT82 arm at 28 grams.
My Denon NEEDS around that much mass to get good bass from the cart.
I added a heavy headshell and a rear armtube counterweight booster to beef up the arm tube mass on my own RT82---but it wasn't NEEDED so I took it all off.
Running just stock the little Fluance got its best sound out of my Denon carts with no added mass necessary or wanted.
So I tend to believe it IS a high mass arm!

Which app are you using in this review that I see in the screenshots?

My son is a first time buyer of turntables, and he first thought the Rega P-3 was his choice. I finally convinced him to look at this turntable, and I'm happy you've given it a good review.

I think the tapered spindle base will definitely give it both precision and stability to the platter/bearing interface. Will be purchasing this soon. click here

this is really cool i love this

The “S”-shaped 8” arm with an H-4 Bayonet mount head shell is a solid choice.
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Effective mass calculations show a slight mismatch with the cartridge—any audible impact?
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The 12” acrylic platter driven by the servo-controlled D.C. motor sounds impressive.
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Overall, the Fluance RT85 seems like a high-value proposition, especially for audiophiles on a budget.
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I love turntables!!! This review of Fluance's RT85 turntable highlights its high value proposition, making it a compelling option for vinyl enthusiasts. Kudos from Inner West Windscreens!

Bringing back the old is a great improvement to our music nowadays. I love these turntables we used to have them before. It's a classic! Landscaping Lethbridge

This is amazing! It’s great to be able to exchange different perspectives, learn from others, and even collaborate. Looking forward to seeing more of this in the future. Also, be sure to check out deck builders central coast

What a detailed review!

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