Review Details

RT82 Reference High Fidelity Vinyl Turntable

Product Rating:

Product Review (submitted on December 5, 2022):

HUGE upgrade over the Audio-Technica AT-LP60XBT I purchased after deciding to flirt with vinyl again. Don't get me wrong... it was that turntable that convinced me to dive back in. Perfectly fine starter BUT it's biggest limitation is you can't change or upgrade the cartridge as you can with Fluance. And it's super easy to do with the removable head shell (LP60 is fixed). You can just buy a premounted cartridge and do nothing more than change the head shell and set the tracking force and anti-skate (easy).In hindsight, RT82 would have been a better choice. Superior in every way, the Ortofon OM 10 cart is a vast sound quality improvement with it's elliptical shape. The sound is much more defined.The isolation feet make it easy to have turntable and speakers on same surface with no fear of cranking up the volume. Balancing the tonearm was a snap. Personally, I like the auto-stop function just fine, but it's not an automatic return. The LP60XBT is fully automatic which I appreciate getting back into it.The RT82 does not have a preamp so you do need to have one or buy an RT81/80 that have an installed preamp. Another option is my set up. I have Klipsch The Fives speakers that are also preamp, amp, BT and more. I didn't love those speakers at first but Klipsch now has an app that allows you to tweak the sound AND I paired with a Klipsch sub... with that... chef's kiss!HIGHLY RECOMMEND the Fluance RT82 to beginners and those on more of a budget. I bought a "used" one on Amazon but ships directly from Fluance... it seemed all perfectly new, but saved me enough to buy "The Stranglers: Peaches". The turntable is the exact same as the 83/84 except the cartridge. If you have the clams, you might just buy the RT85 with the Ortofon 2M Blue cartridge or the Nagaoka MP-110.