Fluance RT85 Reference High Fidelity Vinyl Turntable Record Player with Ortofon 2M Blue Cartridge, Acrylic Platter, Speed Control Motor, High Mass MDF Wood Plinth, Vibration Isolation Feet - Walnut

This is a fantastic record player. For the money it is so well-built and easy to use. With the 2M blue cartridge. It sounds fantastic with crystal clear highs and very deep bass can’t beat this record player for the money.

Definitely recommend this turntable. I believe it is probably the best turntable under $1000. So easy to set up. Sounds amazing. I mean the stylus on this turntable alone is worth half the price of the turntable and you get an acrylic platter. The turntable is dead silent. Even when playing with speakers on the same surface there is no resonance. It comes out of the box exactly as it is stated. When I set it up I used the suggested settings. The weight is spot on. I set it the tracking force as recommended and then put it on a scale and it was within .002 grams. I set the anti skate and then tested it and it was perfectly still. When I pulled out my protractor the cartridge was already aligned. So easy to set up and easy to listen to. If youre looking stop now. This is a fantastic turntable. UPDATE------------------------------------------------------- This turntable produces so much detail. A very spacious sound stage with wonderful reproduction of the instruments and vocals. I can really get an idea of where everyone was standing in the recording studio. I cant say enough about the quality of the Ortofon 2M Blue cartridge. That combined with a great tone arm, a plinth that is built on top of rubber spring loaded feet and an acrylic platter. It is going to be hard to beat this combination for less than $1000. It is very easy to set up. As I previously stated just follow the instructions and you are off and running. You can trust that head shell will be properly aligned and that the tracking force and anti-skate will be accurate. The amount of detail that Fluance put into building this turntable really shines through. It even comes with white gloves to keep finger prints off of the beautiful finish. The motor is dead silent and the speed control really works. There is no detectable wow and flutter with this turntable. Even the queuing lever is top notch. There really is nothing about this turntable that I find to be a negative. If this turntable were double the price I could still justify recommending it. You will not be disappointed. If you find my review to be useful please take the time to vote it as helpful. Thank you for your time and enjoy your new turntable.

High end features at a great price. Most importantly, great sound!!!

I have been shopping for a replacement for my ancient, but still quite solid-performing Thorens TD-145 MKII. I am a mid-fi audiophile and my ears are not as sharp as they were when I was younger, so I wasnt looking for an expensive turntable. Just a nice turntable that is easy to set up with decent sound. The RT-85 met those criteria on paper, but I really wasnt prepared for the clearly noticeable difference in sound. I have read many reviews on a variety of turntables and some folks blather on and on about this and that until it sounds like the same overblown and nonsensical wording you hear at wine tastings. I usually tune out such nonsense and focus on the specs. This time.. I get it. The set-up was simple and easy - note that Fluance provides a pair of white gloves so you dont smudge the finish while setting up the turntable! Once set-up, I put on Art Pepper meets The Rhythm Section. I couldnt believe I was listening to the same album. Granted, my old Thorens has a Shure M95 which is a mid-range cartridge and it is an old turntable - but I was stunned. I just sat down in the middle of the living room and listened. The sax was so clear I could reach out and touch it. There were things that I hadnt even heard before! The RT-85 was a big upgrade for me and well worth the money. It isnt for beginners, but if I were to advise a beginner who has the budget - get this turntable as it will stand you well for many many years. I expect it will stand me well for many years too,

I am a conductor, no not one of those big-name maestros who occupy podiums in front of the finest musical ensembles I am a conductor of music, one who more than 50 years has had the privilege and expereince waving arms or baton in front of singers, orchestras, showbands, rock bands, jazz groups, soloists, childrens choirs, heck even trained hogs! I KNOW what live music sounds like. And I confess, I have been obsessed with audio stuff since I could say Heathkit and Dynaco. So what in the name of melody, harmony and rhythm does any of that have to do with this review of the Fluance RT85 turntable? This marvelous machine also knows music. Once you follow the set-up instructions , which are easy to follow IF you follow them, The RT85 sits elegantly and unobtrusively making music; music as it is intended. Sure you purist audioholics out there can spend hours hooking up the poor thing up to an endless chain of analytical devices testing wow, flutter, rumble, anti-skating, (Hailing form Minnesota, I have nothing against skating) and other four-syllable calibrations. But if you truly want to savor your music, be it Bach, Beatles, Coldplay or Coltrane, trust this music man. When that vinyl sphere centers on the RT85s eye-catching and perfectly-balanced acrylic platter, and the nude diamond of the high-quality Ortofon Blue cartridge finds its groove, get ready to hear and feel MUSIC! The superb craftmanship and outward beauty of the turntable combined with its dead-silent operation and dead-on speed accuracy make the RT85 the perfect choice and a true value for anyone who just wants to enjoy music. In Summation, WOW! ( there is no flutter), Thank You Fluance!

I did my homework looking for a solid mid-priced quality turntable. The Fluance R85 has some great reviews out there and it lives up to the accolades given in those reviews. I grew up with an expensive high end Technics direct drive turntable that was amazing. I can honestly say that the RT 85 sounds just as good to me as that classic turntable from my youth. The included Ortofon Blue cartridge and stylus is probably a big part of the reason, as is the included heavy weight acrylic platter. You cannot go wrong with this turntable.

If you are looking for a TT in this price range, and you’re going back and forth among options, I will encourage you to stop looking and buy the RT85, even if it takes a while to get delivered. This is the best TT you can get ~$500, if you are going for new and not vintage. This thing is built for ppl with audiophile leanings. 3 lb acrylic platter, beautiful gloss finish, speed switch, and, most importantly, the Ortofon 2M BLUE cartridge included (those usually go for ~$250 separately). All of these features seem more high end than the price suggests. No unnecessary parts, so in that sense, pretty minimal and not distracted. The only thing that may hold u up is the belt drive. Some say this is less reliable than a direct drive, but this TT has a servo motor that checks the speed 500/sec. The speed on my table is always spot on so far. The plinth seems solid. The dust cover is a little annoying to install, but you can get it with patience. The sound coming out of this thing through my ART DJ PRE II preamp and active speakers is so crisp and realistic. I feel like I’m in a room full of performers. The instruments are separated well. All in all, amazing purchase. Get it. And if something goes wrong, the customer service at Fluance will be pretty accommodating.

TL;DR: The RT85 is a fantastic turntable, the absolute best overall package for the money! BUY IT! Detailed review: Assembly and setup: In my opinion, assembling the turntable is very basic and simple, however, if youve never done this before, I HIGHLY recommend you watch some videos on balancing the tone-arm and understanding the anti-skating weight. Doing this wrong WILL absolutely damage or DESTROY your beautiful 2M Blue cartridges stylus. I highly recommend buying a digital scale to measure the tracking force of your 2M Blue cartridge (1.8g) I did it manually as described by the manual and even though I was VERY careful with how much I turned the weight dial, it measured 1.85g on my digital scale when I verified it, so I ended up using the digital scale to fine-tune the manual effort! Probably not a big deal, but something to keep in mind. Also, get yourself a protractor and measure the alignment of your cartridge! Mine was spot on from the factory, but you should never assume this to be true! Wrong alignment can degrade sound quality and damage your stylus. Leveling the turntable takes time, so be patient! I recommend you fully assemble the turntable and hook it up to your HiFi before you level it in its final resting location. What I LOVE: The sound quality of the 2M Blue cartridge is fantastic! Its really bright and flat, no extra bass and no weird sound curves. Its a beautiful listening experience with a well distributed sound-stage. The bamboo plinth (my specific model) is fantastic - its NOT glossy, its matte! I really didnt want a glossy model since they are fingerprint magnets! My turntable isnt a show-queen, I intend to use it daily! A glossy one will just look terrible after handling it all day AND its easier to scratch up (especially micro-scratches). Acrylic platter is awesome! No mat required. It sounds good, feels good, and looks really good too! It offers plenty of potential for custom LED lighting and what not. The dust cover hinges are really nice! They are actually spring-loaded - its very easy to operate and feels solid (unlike other turntables Ive used in the past). What I dont really like: Semi-auto mode is kind of weird, I like the fact that it will stop a record from spinning if you forget to turn it off. However, just make sure you understand this! Always lift the stylus using the cue lever BEFORE handling the tone-arm! If you fail to do this, you will scratch your records and or possibly destroy your stylus. I noticed that with semi-auto mode, the platter will spin again momentarily while you move the tone-arm back to its resting position after it has automatically stopped. It will also NOT start spinning until the tone-arm is positioned over the record (even if you have already selected a playback speed). All these layers of logic add complexity to the usability and the steps required to operate the table. If youre used to fully manual turntables, you could find yourself doing something out of order and damaging your stylus by mistake, so just try to understand the operational flow of the RT85 in semi-auto mode. OR, you can turn this whole feature off completely. Im not a huge fan of the cue-lever on the RT85. It feels kind of cheap and its weirdly positioned. I wish they would have made it more pronounced and distanced it a little bit from the rest of the tone-arm assembly. Im also not a huge fan of the tone-arm locking mechanism, it works ... but just doesnt feel as premium as the rest of the turntable. Lastly, and this may be nit-picking ... the 2M Blue stylus cover is a little difficult to put back once removed. Its easy to remove it off of the cartridge, but a bit hard to put back on. Be careful here, one wrong move and youll end up jamming the stylus cover into the stylus and ruining it! Overall, Im very happy with my purchase! Highly recommended table for the money - you will not find a better deal IMHO than the RT85 at this price-point. NOTE: the record weight pictured in my review is purchased separately.

When, I first purchased the FLUANCE RT85, It was mainly due to the positive reviews. And upon my first impression I was astounded at how great it sounded! I was ecstatic. It was like hearing music again for the first time. But, after listening to it for 30 hours of play or so, I noticed the cartridge riding dangerously close to the records. So, being a $500 purchase, I immediately contacted FLUANCE via Amazon, and related the issue, they were tremendously eager to take care of the problem as it was less than 30 days and within the 30-day satisfaction guarantee period. They had me send pics as shown and then sent me return label to send the stylus back for repair or replacement -- I would have to PAY for POSTAGE!!! --NOPE. So, I returned it thru AMAZON! It took several weeks for the return to process! VERY VERY SLOW! And then (not having learned my lesson) I purchased another FLUANCE RT85 thinking it was just a fluke. NOPE. The replacement turntable did the EXACT SAME THING. See the last pic. This time I missed the 30 day return window, and when I contacted FLUANCE, they pretended to be concerned then said that I mishandled the stylus and that the faulty product was my fault. (see quote) Upon careful review, the pics shown in the photos does not indicate a manufacturer’s defect and is excluded from warranty coverage. The stylus of the 2M Blue and other cartridges in its price range and upwards are very sensitive, fragile audio components and great care must be taken during set up, cleaning and regular use. Damage that appears to have occurred in these scenarios is not covered by the Fluance warranty. Please do not hesitate to let us know if you have any further questions. Best Regards, Julie Fluance Customer Expereince Team So, if you are about to purchase the FLUANCE RT85, I would buy something else. Especially, since the company doesnt stand behind its product and blames faulty product issues on the customer. I shouldve bought the PRO-JECT CARBON, which is what I was going to buy in the first place. DISSAPPOINTING!!!!!

I love the sound produced by this turntable. I upgraded to the Blue Ortofon 2M cartridge. I am using it with the Fosi Audio Box X4 Phono Preamp. My set up includes a Denon receiver and passive speakers. I am amazed by the warmth and beauty of the sound. I listen to all styles of music, but it is especially beautiful for classical and jazz. I am still in the break in period so I am looking forward to how it will sound in the near future. Turntable assembly was simple, but I did have to attempt the tonearm leveling several times until I got it right. For some reason, I had trouble following the instructions even though, in retrospect, they were very clear. Once I did, the sound was amazing. I followed the instructions which said to position the speakers away from the turntable and NOT on the same surface as the turntable. I cant emphasize enough how much difference this made. I am extremely satisfied with my purchase.