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

Took me to get the arm correct, digit are difficult to read on the tone arm.

My RT-85 and we were very much looking forward to enjoying an afternoon bathed in the wonderful sounds of a Ortofon Blue cartridge. The turntable assembled easily. I balanced the tonearm and then set it tracking to 1.8g using an external electronic gauge. I checked cartridge alignment by using a Hudson HiFi alignment disc. I set tracking using the gauge on the tonearm to 1.8. The turntable was perfectly leveled. We put on Bill Evans live at the Village Vanguard to enjoy our Sunday dalliance with him. This is a remarkably well recorded album. Song one on the A side was pretty remarkable considering the cartridge had zero playtime. But as the tonearm approached the middle of the album there was distortion and then skipping. We had played this album previously on my Thorens so we knew this was not a record defect. I double checked skating first, then the alignment and reset the tracking force as well. As a check I broke out in old but clean copy of Welcome by Santana which is an album I know note by note. I also know that it worked fine on turntables that are not a match for the RT 85. Unfortunately the first track played fine but as the tone arm moved towards the center of the album once again there was distortion and then skipping. Update: I contacted Fluances tech support. I was impressed how quickly I could actually speak to a knowledgeable person by the name of Brent. Real and accessible tech support is always a very pleasant surprise. I doubt that some of the other turntable manufacturers have anything close to this level of tech support because few distribute directly to consumers. They made a couple of suggestions and when they did not solve the problem they told me to exchange the turntable. Amazon made this process easy and quick. So I now have my new RT-85 and it is everything that I could have hoped for and then some. Im very happy!

Absolutely love this turntable. Easy to setup and looks amazing in my audio cabinet. I can’t believe that it came with the Ortofon Blue cartridge. Very happy with this purchase.

For the money and its looks this turntable knocks it out of the ballpark! I looked and studied this table for a year before I pulled the trigger and purchased it. My previous table is a Technics SL-1200 MK2 and it is in excellent condition. I mounted a Audiotechnica AT-120E on it, and after learning how to align the cartridge,adjust tracking weight and anti-skate along with the VTA and arm height I thought was sounding great! I thought of ordering the 2M Blue and putting it on the technics table for an upgrade. Once I received the Fluance table and set it up I was blown away by its sound! I was hearing things I hadnt heard before on my 1st table. The sound and seperation was truly amazing. It caused me to go on a vinyl spending spree that Im still on! My lps I purchased in the 70s and 80s sound amazing along with the newer 180 gram albums Im collecting. Just wish I purchased the table sooner!

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.

I suggest watching the video on YouTube for the tonearm balance; otherwise set up was easy and the quality is outstanding.

just hooked up my turn table, sounds awesome, have klipch speakers, and a harmon kardon 730, so clear, i think i just fell in love, if you are looking for an awesome turn table this is it, had a rega turntable for 40 years, it went bad, got this turn table and am totally happy. give this one a try, you wont regret it

Definitely worth it

Dont overthink like I did, you will love it. Get a solid preamp and itll sound amazing. Clear rich full bodied balanced sound. High quality, sturdy, beautiful. Looks amazing in white. Setup is fairly easy, read the instructions carefully and have some patience.

My husband was very happy with his first test runs. The sound is great.