It used to be that every elementary school classroom had a standalone record player with its own speakers. Still, they needed to be plugged in. Not the Turntable01, which is truly portable, has its own amp and speakers, and powers up for 25 minutes of playtime after the user cranks it for a few minutes. That should be good enough to get through side one of Spiderland with only a little sweat.
Jymy Parhiala designed Turntable01 at Lund University as part of a project to embrace "cyclical living strategies," but we're hoping it becomes widely available at some point. Perhaps before our next soul 45 picnic?
As vinyl has worked its way back into our hearts and music stacks, the modern music lover sometimes faces a dilemma. Sure, vintage turntables are an option, but they are becoming more difficult to maintain. New turntables are either prohibitively expensive (above $400) or cheaply-made USB units for the digital-transfer market.
Enter the Orbit Turntable by U-Turn Audio, an all-analog, precision turntable with a high quality needle that comes in at a fraction of the price of similar turntables on the market.
Designed by a group of young engineers, musicians, and entrepreneurs from the Boston area, the turntable prototype was created with a grant from Northeastern University. It should please audiophiles and casual listeners alike.
Naturally, with the stats and quality the Orbit is boasting at its nice price ($150 gets you one on Kickstarter, $250 the limited edition Kickstarter green edition), the Kickstarter fund has done quite well. That said, you can still nab one before tonight's deadline, or even pledge your way to a custom-painted, Renaissance Edition at $500, still a good deal for a turntable in its class.