Fluance RT82 Reference High Fidelity Vinyl Turntable Record Player with Ortofon OM10 Cartridge, Speed Control Motor, High Mass MDF Wood Plinth, Vibration Isolation Feet - Walnut

I get that this is an entry-level turntable. It is the first new turntable I have bought in over a decade, and I was cautious, and did what I thought was an adequate amount of research. But I am extremely disappointed. I spent a long time setting this up, and was especially careful adjusting the tonearm weight - too often I have heard people complain about the sound of their LP player when it just turns out that their setup was faulty. The first night that I tried out the RT82, I was amazed: the motor hum, which I admittedly read was loud on this model, was not loud; it was obscene. Any music with soft passages was more or less unlistenable, unless I wanted to crank my receiver and belt out every record I play. As tempting as that is, its not the best long-term solution. I wanted to give the turntable the benefit of the doubt. This could easily have been a mistake of my own. I re-checked the assembly, and for the umpteenth time used a level to check the shelf that has housed with no similar issues my past record players. Nothing was off-kilter, everything looked good. The motor continued to scream. Dismayed, I walked away from it, and decided to get online and look for suggestions on how to handle this before simply packing it up and returning it. About an hour later, I decided to give it one more try, and sure enough, the motor had quieted down. I could still hear a light buzz, but it was far less egregious than it had been. Fine. While I was not about to throw away the box it came in, I chalked up the initial motor shriek to the table needing to be broken in. For a few weeks, thats exactly what I did. Eventually, the motor grew loud again. I dug in and looked up articles about some things I could do to combat the noise, and once again I re-checked my assembly of the turntable as well as the shelf on which the table was placed. This was all within the first month of owning the RT82. And it was within the first month that the speed issues began. Less than a minute into the start of an LP, the sound would begin to crackle and the rotation speed would slow to a crawl. So now Im legitimately frustrated. I have owned several older belt-drive turntables, and when this issue comes up, my first inclination is to check for a worn-out belt. But...a worn-out belt on a turntable that is less than a month old? Could the belt-twisting elves have snuck in during the night and twisted the belt around the platter? No, the belt looks fine. My next step is to check the motor pulley cap and make sure the alignment is secure. Check. Now I lift the tonearm and the motor doesnt even start. Oh wait, it just started. Oh wait, now its slowing to a crawl. Now it stopped. Ok, check the tonearm again. Maybe the counterweight is somehow no longer locked in place. No, the tonearm is fine. Maybe the.....ok, what is happening right now? Look, I understand what I did wrong. I read the bad reviews and the good reviews, saw that the good outnumbered the bad, and decided to gamble. I rolled the dice and lost. I could take it to be serviced by someone who knows what theyre doing, but really, why throw more money at it? I realized that I could either return it, or try to pop it open and look at the motor myself. Of course, then I would be left with a turntable that I may never trust to function properly without a monthly tune-up, which seems ridiculous. And, as Im sure I have made clear in this review, Im no technician. But I can pack a box, which is what I decided to do. Overall, I am very disappointed. The loud motor is one thing, there are a few tricks that you can find online to try to get that worked out (I cannot attest to these because I did not get to the point of trying them) but the speed issues, which have been documented in RT model reviews by other repentant customers, are a whole other matter. And the fact that it stopped working after a month is unacceptable. On Amazon, when I chose the option to return it, I was contacted immediately and they were very easy to deal with. The rep asked if I wanted him to contact Fluance to inquire about replacing it, but, as much as I wanted this to work out, I will very likely buy something else. I guess the timing of this thing sputtering to a complete stop worked out, since it happened within the return window. My protection plan, after a quick and friendly phone call, was also refunded almost in its entirety, so all told (so far), it could be worse. If you absolutely intend to buy this model, there are some good things about it. I can definitely say that its nice-looking. The instructions for assembly are easy to follow. Its also...I dont know, packed well? Im struggling here. It stopped working after a month. Did I mention its nice-looking? I cannot recommend the RT82. I certainly cannot recommend buying one without a protection plan. Based on the reviews, it seems that there is a good chance that you will get one that works. I did not. And I am sorry I bought it.

I recently purchased this to go along with a Denon DRA-800h receiver, Klipsch R61F towers and a Polk psw10 sub. The Polk is the only holdover from my old setup which included an old Yamaha receiver, an Audio Technica AT-LP 60 turntable. As an upgrade from the Audio-Technica, it has helped transform my listening experience. This due to the Ortofon 10 cartridge, along with the expert craftsmanship that goes into the manufacturing of this piece. Installation was a snap. It didn’t take very long at all to install the cartridge and install and balance the tone arm. The included white gloves was a nice touch as the walnut finish is EXTREMELY glossy. Going to have to have a talk with kids about clean hands when using, but society has been doing a pretty good job of making sure we ALL wash our hands these days, so no worries here. The one place that I could downgrade Fluance was that only one of the two clips that connect the dust cover to the plinth were included in the package. No worries: I just called up Fluance and they sent a new one right away. Considering we are all dealing with COVID these days, I won’t begrudge Fluance this mistake. It in no way affected the performance of a turntable, and their customer service was was spot on! I’ve been using the table for a couple weeks now and am still amazed at the sound quality! The first two records I played were remasters of Regatta De Blanc by The Police, Rush’s Hemispheres and Def Leppard’s Pyromania. In all three records, I actually heard sounds that I did not hear when played through the much cheaper cartridge in the AT-LP 60. This was most evident when listening to the Def Leppard record, but that also has a lot to do with the fantastic job Def Leppard did on the the recent remasters for their box. If you’re looking for a great way to improve the sound of your record collection, this is 350 very well spent!

Nice unit. Great price. My bad boy sansui is rocking vinyl again. Excellent sound . I played my old stuff and it sounds good. Bought some new albums and wow what great sound .

Love the turntable love the speakers love the preamp. Only problem is Every other record I’ve bought for this record player on Amazon has arrived damaged

This is awesome. Love it. Cant recommend it more. All you need to have a great listening experience.

Its a really nice machine. Easy to set up. Very simple. does the job well :)

Be aware that this is a manual turntable. Plays beautifully and was easy to put together. Replaced my 45 y.o. turntable that had more features, but for the price, I am very happy with this baby. Got the walnut base and its very pretty. Would definitely recommend!

Just received the RT-82 and I feel like a kid in a candy store. When cds hit the market in the 80s I moved away from my LPs, but with the renewed interest in LPs and turntables the last few years I have been considering jumping back in. I didnt want to go cheap, but on the other hand the Pro-ject and Rega models i was considering were at the top end of what I wanted to spend, but they are totally manual, and I wanted auto-return. I came across some reviews of Fluance and suddenly I realized that I had found what Ive been looking for. The RT 82-85 are all the same base turntable, but as you move up you get better cartridges and a heavier platter, but I went for the 82 for only, $300, knowing I can upgrade in the future. Its solid and heavy...I didnt want a light, plastic tt, and I had heard the pro-ject was lightweight. It took 30 minutes to set-up...pay close attention to the instructions for balancing the tone arm...but when I lowered the stylus onto the record it played perfectly the first time. And, though it doesnt have full auto return, the platter stops turning at the end of the record, so I dont have to worry about it continuing if I had something take me away. And although the sound is first rate, I wanted something aesthetically pleasing, and this is a beautiful, minimalist design. The piano black finish is gorgeous, and it perfectly matches my Peachtree amp. Bravo Fluance for a brilliant design!

Very good turntable for beginner or intermediate audiophile.

Everything about this turntable...looks, sound, quality build and size. I know I dont sound like an audiophile , but size actually matters. I needed something that would work well with the dimensional limitations that exist with my entertainment stand and this turned out to be an excellent fit! Having the speaker stands cutom built for the speakers (which have incredible bass for bookshelf speakes) to finish off the ensemble. Only complaint is that Fluance did not have the needed preamp available, so I purchased an inferior brand to get my turntable operational. Still sounds great, just wanted to stay with all Fluance components.