Turntable Reviews

The JBL Spinner BT turntable may very well be among the least expensive tables ever to land a review on AP. Belt-driven and built around a black MDF plinth, the Spinner BT sports a die-cast aluminum tonearm with removable headshell, adjustable counterweight, and adjustable anti-skating — features you don’t always find at its price point. Read Ken Micallef’s review to see if the Spinner BT table is able to punch well above its weight. . .

In the world of high-end audio, turntable design is defined by strict minimalists, creative maximalists, and those who refuse the confines of traditional geometry altogether. The late Tom Fletcher was one such man. Fletcher’s table designs debuted in the 1970s at Nottingham Analogue, and, eventually, at his own company, Fletcher Audio — and his design wisdom is very much in evidence in the way Pear Audio Analogue constructed their all-new Captain John Handy turntable. Read Ken Micallef’s review to see if the Pear Audio Blue Captain John Handy table meets or exceeds Fletcher’s design aesthetics. . .

Rega’s Planar 8 turntable was inspired by the company’s flagship turntable, the Naia. Developed and engineered to capture the “essence of Naia at an affordable price,” the Planar 8 is a striking vinyl spinner that struck down our assumptions about lightweight turntables. Read Ken Micallef’s review to see if the Planar 8 table delivered the playback goods, and see if it punched above its weight class (pun intended). . .

After hearing a top-tier Muarah turntable and Circle Labs amps driving Ilumnia Magister Novus MkII loudspeakers at High End Munich 2025, our chief product reviewer Ken Micallef was quite eager to get his hands and ears on the Polish manufacturer’s entry-level table, the Muarah MT3. Read on to see Ken’s impressions of Muarah’s MT3, a quite impressive turntable in the $3K price range. . .

Legacy British company Cambridge Audio fully embraces vinyl playback with their latest offering, the Alva TT V2 turntable. Read Ken Micallef’s review to see how the Alva TT V2 table tracks in terms of how it handles detailed resolution, dramatic impact, and performance nuances alike. . .

With the vinyl resurgence, we live in a golden age of well-made turntables, many of them at prices affordable to one and all. With that in mind, we wanted to present you with a buying guide of sorts that takes into account all types, interests, and wallets, covering a wide-swath price range starting around a baseline of $650 on up to a champagne level of around $30,000. Read Ken Micallef’s in-depth turntable primer, which should be able to help you find a truly great table that fits your current needs, handles your upgrade aspirations, and/or addresses all the essential parameters of solid design and performance for practically any price. . .

We’ve long dreamt about a true mid-fi revolution wherein affordable gear can perform at a top-tier level — and, as if right on cue, the Gold Note T-5 turntable arrived for a hands-on evaluation. Read Ken Micallef’s review to see how and why the T-5 consistently delivers great sound well above its price point. . .