priate force and resolution such that we could follow subtle instrumental strands even during the most climactic moments. The stereo image delivered was so precise it was easy to identify the position of instruments anywhere across the soundstage. Conclusion The AT-LPW50PB has two speeds on tap — 33 1/3 and 45 rpm — selected via the rotary switch at the front left of the plinth. Although the switch has a central ‘Off The tonearm is a straight-line carbon-fibre statically-bal­anced type with spring- applied anti-skating.

Likewise, a built-in phono-line preamp lets you connect up to a home stereo or powered speakers (that wouldn’t have a phono stage of their own) as soon as you plug the turntable in, letting you get to your tunes straight away. One of my favourite recordings was recorded by Dutch pianist Jeroen Van Veen in two different versions, both of which are on a double-LP set pressed by Brilliant Classics titled ‘Erik Satie Slow Music: Gymnopedies, Gnossiennes, And Other Works.’ Van Veen achieves a sublime perfection that eludes most pianists. I suspect his success might be because he’s not only also a composer but is also considered by many experts to be one of the leading exponents of minimalism in the world today. These traits, along with him being a great pianist, are obviously what’s required to make the music work!The included PU is an AT-VM95E, a budget killer that delivers incredibly good value for money. The replaceable stylus may be upgraded to any in the AT-VM95 series, where the three models AT-VMN95EN, VMN95ML and CMN95SL are all very interesting upgrades at a very moderate price. Read Arve's test of AT-VM95E / ML and SL here . The red trace on Graph 4 shows channel separation vs. frequency and you can see that channel separation reaches a best result of 27dB at 1kHz (7dB better than specification), and maintains this level of performance out to around 6kHz before diminishing to around 20dB at 10kHz and down to 10dB at 20kHz. years as a part of the ‘95’ series. As with all the new AT-VM95 Series, it features the same dual-magnet design which, according to audio-technica “duplicates the ‘V’-shaped arrangement of the magnets in the cutter-head [of the recording lathe] and precisely positions the magnets to match the positions of the left and right channels in the groove walls”

A year ago we announced the arrival of new budget players from Audio Tecnica. Two of these were AT-LPW40WN and AT-LPW30TK. Common to these is that they have strong similarities to the model being launched today - the AT-LPW50PB. Belt-driven budget players Currently at the top of that list is the AT-LPW50PB, available in Australia after some anticipation, given that it launched in the USA at virtual CES 2020. There’s a commitment to good materials, smart additional features and flexibility for adding other audio components of your choice that makes for a turntable that will grow along with your love of vinyl. Those looking to make the next step on their vinyl adventure should definitely stop off here.

How was the LP5X tested?

There is more information to be had too. Switching the phono stage off and moving to the iFi Zen Phono (to say nothing of the Cyrus), drops the noise floor further and reveals more information and better tonal realism at the same time. Judged by the competition, the internal phono stage that Audio Technica has fitted to the LP5X is perfectly satisfactory but - like the competition - there’s more to be had out of it. So Audio-Technica’s latest turntable, the AT-LPW50PB, is designed to enhance the company’s long-standing engineering reputation while offering a little convenience and interior decor sympathy at the same time.

Related: Best turntables Audio-Technica AT-LPW50PB build & features – Connections give it flexibility for hooking up other sources Admittedly there’s not a lot Audio-Technica can do about the overall look of a record player, and sure enough the AT-LPW50PB is the predictable ‘rectangle with a circle on it’ under a clear Perspex dust cover. The AT-LPW50BT-RW turntable made the album sound even better when it had a wired connection to a component system. I tested it with both the built-in phono preamp and through my own NAD phono stage. The dedicated NAD unit sounded better with slightly more detail, but not by as much of a margin as I expected. Should you buy the Audio-Technica AT-LPW50BT-RW turntable? The AT-LPW50PB is equipped with a built-in selectable phono preamp and a detachable dual RCA output cable to enable direct connection to components with or without a dedicated phono input. FEATURES

Best Audio Technica AT-LPW50PB prices ?

Newport Test Labs measured the voltage at the line output of the AT-LPW50PB as 157mV for a 1kHz test signal at a recorded velocity of 3.54cm per second, which is about that specified by Audio-Technica but appears lower simply because Audio-Technica uses a higher recorded velocity than Newport Test Labs (Audio-Technica’s specification is 200mV at 1 kHz at 5cm per second) when testing. It’s a good result.