What separates a good first turntable from a poor one, explained plainly: drive type, phono preamp, connections and room to upgrade.
Turntables come in an enormous range of shapes, sizes and prices, and most of what separates a good choice from a poor one has nothing to do with brand. Whether you call it a turntable, a record player or a vinyl player, the same few decisions apply. This guide covers the ones that matter most for a first purchase: drive type, the phono preamp, how many outputs you need, and how well the deck can be upgraded later. None of it is complicated once you know what each choice actually changes.
Portable turntables show up often on marketplaces like Amazon. They are smaller, usually built into a case or fitted with a handle, and some come with built-in speakers and other outputs. They suit a narrow use: previewing records at a shop, or taking a handful of favourites somewhere without a proper system.
For home listening, we would advise against one. Portable models generally have fixed cartridges, which limits sound quality and rules out most upgrades later. A standard-sized turntable gives you a proper platform to build a collection on, and it is worth starting with one rather than replacing a portable within a year.
The two most common drive types are belt-drive and direct-drive, and understanding the difference will help you choose the right record player for how you listen.
On a belt-drive turntable, the platter is turned by a rubber belt connected to a motor mounted to one side or, in some designs, housed entirely separately from the chassis. Audiophiles tend to favour belt-drive because the belt absorbs vibration from the motor before it reaches the stylus, keeping unwanted noise out of the signal. The trade-off is the belt itself: it wears over time, and on an older turntable a worn belt can affect speed consistency.
Transrotor takes the separate-motor idea further, housing the motor in its own unit beside the platter.
A direct-drive turntable has the motor mounted directly beneath the platter, which makes it simpler to set up but leaves the stylus more exposed to motor vibration. DJs generally prefer direct-drive because the speed stays consistent under handling, with little ongoing maintenance required.
Once you have settled on a drive type, the next decision is whether you want a built-in phono preamp, also called a phono stage, or an external one. The phono preamp boosts the signal coming from the cartridge before it reaches the rest of your system.
Built-in phono stages are common on more affordable turntables, and they let you connect straight into your hi-fi system’s amplifier without extra equipment. On a higher-specification deck you will most likely need a separate preamp matched to your cartridge. Cartridges come in two types, Moving Magnet (MM) and Moving Coil (MC), so confirm with your dealer which preamp suits your cartridge before you buy. Either way, matching the preamp to the turntable matters more than matching it to the price tag.
The outputs you need depend on the system you are connecting to, so ask your dealer directly. As a general rule, a turntable with a built-in phono preamp connects to an integrated amplifier or a pre/power system with a standard pair of unbalanced RCA cables. If you already own an amplifier, check its inputs before you choose a turntable, since not every deck suits every system.
Some newer turntables add Bluetooth, letting you pair directly with wireless speakers rather than running a cable across the room. Others combine a built-in phono preamp with an optical output alongside USB and RCA connections, so a single deck can serve more than one kind of system.
Upgradeability is worth weighing before you buy, not after. Some entry-level turntables have fixed cartridges and let you replace only the stylus once it wears out. A turntable with a replaceable cartridge gives you room to move up as your system and your ear improve. The same goes for a built-in phono preamp with a bypass switch: once you outgrow it, you can switch to an external preamp without buying a new turntable, which matters if you later move from a Moving Magnet cartridge to a Moving Coil one and need a preamp to match.
The clearest example of upgradeability done well is Linn‘s Sondek LP12, in continuous production since 1973 and still built today at Linn’s factory near Glasgow. Rather than being replaced, an LP12 is upgraded: a deck bought decades ago can be brought up to current specification piece by piece, which is the whole point of the design. It is not the only turntable built this way, but it is the clearest argument for choosing a record player you can grow with rather than one you will eventually replace.
Sumiko does not make turntables, but makes the cartridges that sit at the end of the tonearm. A cartridge shapes the sound as much as the turntable it sits in, and it is the most direct upgrade a vinyl player offers.
Choosing a turntable does not need to be complicated: once you know your drive type, phono preamp, outputs and upgrade path, most decks narrow quickly to a shortlist. Our sister company Absolute Records sells the vinyl to fill it. A turntable is only one part of a hi-fi system, so it is worth thinking about the two together, and you can see the turntables in our store. Tell us about the room and how you use it. We will take it from there.
Tell us about the room and how you use it. We will take it from there.
Tell us a little about your space and how you’d like to listen.
