Fluance RT85 Turntable with Ortofon Cartridge, Acrylic Platter, Speed Control, and Vibration Isolation - Walnut

Great value for the price point. Looks amazing and solid material. Nice hefty size and clean rotation with exposed motor away from the center. The 2M Blue cartridge makes the vintage vinyl sound clear, bright and presents a good sound stage of separation with vocals and instruments. Setup was fairly straightforward, only issue was zeroing out and setting the counterweight, but after about 30 minutes of research it was good to go. The high density acrylic platter is a nice touch. I paired the RT85 with the Fluance PA10 preamp and they both look great together. 10/10 would recommend for anyone looking to upgrade to a turntable under $600. I upgraded from a Audio-Technica AT-LP60XBT. The Fluance RT85 is a manual turntable, not fully automatic, however there is a switch on the back that can be turned on to stop the record from spinning after 30 seconds if you tend to be forgetful. There is no built-in preamplifier so make sure to purchase one from Fluance or any of your choosing that is compatible with your cartridge/stylus.

I bought this to replace an Audio Technica LP-120X USB. That turntable was upgraded with an acrylic platter mat instead of the rubber that came with it. I had also replaced the cartridge with an AT VM540ML/H. This is a definite upgrade from the cartridge that came on that turntable. Because I have that cartridge, I decided to buy the RT85 with the Ortofon 2M Blue cartridge. I think the Nagaoka MP-110 is probably similar to the VM540. The RT85 came quickly and surprisingly was only single boxed. But the contents were very well protected inside. Setup was like most other turntables. This table is smaller than the AT it is replacing but the bamboo veneer gives it a much better appearance. The acrylic platter gets a 10 vs the aluminum platter on the AT. The tonearm, headshell and cueing lever are similar to the AT. However, the tonearm weight has a scale that is almost impossible to read without the assistance of a bright light and maybe even some magnification. The anti skate dial is only slightly easier to read. The AT is much easier to read. Fluance, this needs to be improved. Maybe my eyes failed me when setting the tracking force, but it was off by about 0.2 when I checked it with my scale which was calibrated (1.6g vs 1.8g). Also, I've seen some reviews where people said the speed knob was cheap. It feels fine to me. I do like the on/off knob and start button feature on my AT LP-120 better. But the Fluance is still good. Also, the AT turntable it is replacing has an indentation for storing the 45rpm adapter and place that actually holds a second cartridge. I don't have any 45s, so that doesn't really matter to me, but the cartridge holder is a nice feature on my other turntable. Once it was setup, I grabbed a Pink Floyd album (what else). I played Shine On You Crazy Diamond. It sounded really good and I have to say, I think there may be a little more bass coming from this cartridge setup vs the AT VM540. But I'll need to do some A/B comparisons. Also, a light finger tap on the right side of this turntable is quieter that when tapping the plastic right side of the AT. The same is true when tapping the top of the plinth and much quieter when tapping the left side. Also, the cueing lever is damped much better than the AT. It will just dump the arm onto the record and this one is nice and slow. For reference, the speakers are Q Acoustics 3050 towers and the power comes from a 1990 Denon DRA 1025 (125wpc) which I bought new for $999. I also have a set of Wharfedale Lintons coming later this week and I'm looking so forward to getting them going. So, this is a $500 turntable out of the box. My AT LP-120X with the upgrades (acrylic mat and AT VM540 cartridge/headshell) is now at $650 or maybe more. I can easily change over to the AT VM540 if I want and I don't know of any upgrades I could make to this table. So, it is a better buy. The veneered MDF is prettier and quieter than the black plastic AT LP-120X. The professional reviewers all over the internet and YouTube are correct about this table. I also considered a couple of Dual turntables, Thorens and even a Technics ranging from $599 up to about $1,100. I'm sure the Technics is probably a much better table than this RT85 but Dual is just not the same company it was in the 70s and early 80s. They are no longer made in Germany. I have about 120 vinyl records, maybe a few more and have about 500 CDs. So, I decided that the RT85 is right where I need to be.

So....decided it was time to get my vinyl up and running. Had a Denon dp300 table + Onkyo nr777 receiver + Polk 65t towers. I just wasn't getting the sound I felt like I was expecting so, the chase began. Started with an Ortofon 2m blue cartridge....sounded pretty good but....then bought a Project S2 pre thinking the pre on the Denon probably wasn't that great still.....meh. I even bought directional RCA cables the were...mid high end. Had begun to look at new speakers. The Polks were very highly regarded when I bought them but felt like maybe something better. In the meantime, I bought a handful of remastered old favorite LPs and one evening I noticed that the needle on the Denon table was running across the label before returning. My wife and I had moved a couple years ago and the Denon did not have an arm lock. I took the cartridge head off before moving but, I started to wonder if the tonearm hadn't taken a beating during the move. so....started looking at tables....Project, Music hall etc....etc....One evening I stumbled across the RT85 so I began to look into it. I liked the autostop feature for obvious reasons. The more reviews I read, the more I felt like I could take the chance on a,unknown to me company. Besides, they threw in a Ortofon 2m blue with it.....($300) cartidge. The unit arrived well packed. I am in my sixties so am very experienced on putting together and setting up turntables. Setting this thing up was a breeze...not sure why some folks have such a hard time. (I did need to align the cartridge a little bit but, the instructions come with a protractor so...no issue). Once I got it all leveled and hooked up, I pulled out the remastered Steely Dan "Aja". More stereo systems were sold in the 70s by demoing Aja than any other....blah blah blah. Anyway....as soon as I dropped the needle, there was the sound I was looking for. Clear separation.....full eq with punchy low end without being rumbly (have a sub for that)...midrange was right their. No need for new speakers....the Polks were as advertised. Was glad I bought the Project preamp. Everything these days needs to be "broken in". Ortofon says 40 hours plus on the blue needle....hell, the RCA cables recommended 100+ hours....sounded stellar first time so I expect my set up will just keep getting better. Bottom line....buy this table. For about $500 bucks you get a quality belt drive, auto shutoff (lots of music puts me to sleep), a nice acrylic platter and maybe the best, somewhat, lower priced end cartridge in the biz all wrapped in a gorgeous package. The sound quality is amazing. I am an ardent reader or Sound and Vision as well as Stereophile and guarantee you won't find a better quality turntable, with the features, anywhere close to this price.

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 you've 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 cartridge's 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 didn't want a glossy model since they are fingerprint magnets! My turntable isn't 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 I've used in the past). What I don't 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 you're 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. I'm 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. I'm also not a huge fan of the tone-arm locking mechanism, it works ... but just doesn't 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 you'll end up jamming the stylus cover into the stylus and ruining it! Overall, I'm 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.

I got my first turntable in 2000 when I was 15 years old. It was an old Marantz 6110 Semi Automatic with an AT cartridge. I loved that machine and it sounded great paired with my Marantz 2220B receiver. I used that until 2012 when it gave up the ghost. My next turntable was a Technics SL-DD22 Semi Automatic which I've used paired with a Shure cartridge until now. I always missed the feel of my heavier Marantz with its solid feeling S shaped tonearm and removable headshell. This Fluance RT85 is a slick looking player with a classic feel, much closer to my Marantz than the Technics ever was. The plinth is heavy and stable on its three adjustable feet. The frosted acrylic platter is rock solid. The S curved tone arm is sturdy and doesn't feel cheap at all. The detachable headshell is equally well made. The cuing lever mechanism is incredibly smooth. The antiskating adjustment and and vertical tracking adjustments work very well. The dust cover and its hinges also feel solid. The cover raises and stays up while playing. Everything about this table has a quality feel to it. The turntable's component parts do their job without getting in the way of playing music. The Ortofone 2M Blue cartridge and stylus paired with the RT85 sound simply amazing and overall compared to my previous tables this is simply my best experience listening to vinyl thus far. I hear tambourines, bells, backup vocals, etc in my albums that I've never heard before. The bass from my Klipsch R-41M speakers (which aren't the strongest in that department and will ultimately benefit from a powered subwoofer) is also quite improved with this table/cartridge/stylus combo. I'm impressed with what $500 has bought me. The value here is also impressive. The Ortophone 2M Blue costs half the price of this turntable on its own. So you're basically getting a heavy, well built turntable with acrylic platter, selectable speed control, removable headshell, adjustable feet, and auto shutoff for $250 with the purchase of a $250 Ortofone 2M Blue. If you're considering purchasing a Uturn or some other similarly priced TT with an acrylic platter you'll be paying more than $300 and you won't be getting an Ortofone 2M Blue included. If you're looking at Uturns, the Rega P1, or even the other Fluance models do yourself a favor and consider the RT85. I so not think you will regret your purchase.

I’ve collected vinyl for many decades and have several turntables ranging from vintage Thorens and several Technics to an expensive VPI with Clearaudio Maestro cartridge. I’m a big fan of the Ortofon line and when I saw that the RT85 Reference came with a 2M Blue installed I had to jump at the opportunity. I had purchased speakers from Fluance some years ago and was impressed with their quality and customer service so I expected nothing different with this purchase. I read several of the online reviews that were impressed with the quality of the build, the ease of use, the wonderful Ortofon 2M Blue cartridge and the outstanding sound quality. My unit arrived professionally packed and assembly was a breeze. Kudos for a clearly written user manual. Even though I am not a beginner the clear instructions would be easy for anyone to follow. Once installed I put it to the test with a wide variety of genres and styles of music. I’m still impressed and I’ve been listening every day for a few weeks now. This is a killer combo and I’m still shaking my head in amazement that Fluance has been able to pack so much quality in such an inexpensive unit. The auto stop feature is especially appreciated as my other manual turntables lack anything like that, requiring me to get up and replace the tonearm at the end of each side. While auto stop is not as convenient as semiautomatic, it’s a welcome addition to an otherwise manual turntable. Well done Fluance for putting a quality audio product within reach of almost anyone who is into vinyl. It really shines with my Parks Audio Budgie Tube preamp and has become my favorite turntable!!!! Five solid stars!!!!

Couldn’t be happier. Running it with my Sansui 5000x and it sounds perfect to my ears. After sound of course, attractive minimal design and ease of use is what I was looking for. Setup was about 30 minutes and easy. I did use a digital scale to set the stylus pressure. I recommend this. Love this turntable!

Gorgeous, quiet and sounds great. The number of turntables and conflicting reviews made my head spin. I currently use a Technics SL-B2 since new. That's a basic but very good sounding turntable but I wanted to upgrade so I bought a Technics sl1200mk3d. Great build but soso sound and I returned it. Was heavily leaning towards a Rega Planar but before dropping close to $2k I figured I'd give the Fluance RT85 a try and boy I'm glad I did. The plinth is gorgeous (walnut). It's unbelievably quiet and the Ortofon blue sounds amazing. I replaced the blue with an ATVM540ML from my current turntable. Even better sound but I'd be happy with either cartridge. And I'm $1500 richer. 2 days in and after clearing my head of all the data I decided to just relax and listen. Sooo happy with this turntable.

Probablemente el producto más equilibrado y con menos conflictos técnicos en su gama de precio. Muy buen funcionamiento, suave, silencioso, con una buena cápsula MM de origen (Ortofon 2M Blue) y un magnífico acabado. Renovar -mejorando- un veterano Pioneer con 38 años de trabajo en perfectas condiciones de uso y con cápsula PC5 MC no era asunto fácil. Confieso que estoy encantado. Además: es muy bonito; qué quieren que les diga.

For Christmas, I got the Fluance RT80. I had about 4 or 5 U2 records on vinyl that I had bought over the years, just because I love the band and loved having the physical object with the big 12" covers and inserts and the cool looking albums. Fast forward several months, and I had fallen deep in love with vinyl. I had expanded my U2 collection to all the major albums, most of the Record Store Day singles, and a fair bit of other bands and artists in my eclectic taste like Gorillaz, Bjork, Beatles, Rush, Tame Impala, REM, Huey Lewis, Inhaler, and more... I upgraded my speakers to Paradigm bookshelves, a higher end Yamaha Amp and a good pre-amp, and I was loving it, really enjoying the music but I just needed some more from my RT80's. Just some more punch, high-ends and mids. I loved the sound stage I was getting and other aspects, I just needed more. Digital music from Tidal and even Apple Music was sounding better to my ears. I looked into upgrading my stylus on the RT80 from the Audio-Technica ATN91 Conical Stylus to the Audio-Technica AT95E Elliptical (Eliptical stylus' can get in the groves a little deeper). I was also having a problem levelling my turntable on the surface I needed to use without using annoying shims. Also wasn't sure the AT95E was going to be enough. I decided to sell my RT80 and order the RT85 which I got setup to my system a few days ago. All I'll say is WOW. I know my setup isn't super high end audiophile equipment. There's a world of McIntosh receivers and pre-amps and speakers that go $10,000 and up and it's a world I'll probably never afford... but ****** do I love the sound of this setup! I couldn't stop listening to all my albums. It was the sound I was looking for. I once heard advice that you have an awesome system if you can get emotional about the music you're hearing, and I absolutely love my setup. There's probably still I could get more out of it if I had a better listening room design, which I hope to setup sometime in the future when moving. But for now, I love my setup and this turntable / Ortofon 2m Blue cartridge. The sound stage is bigger... and my ears just hear a lot more of the music and the brighter highs and mids my ears were yearning for. It's a great overall sound now, not to strong in any area and not weak in any area for me... Just a full, clear, punchy but not tiring sound. The thing looks and sounds so good. Love the 3 point levelling feet (Have it perfectly level now), love the motor that keeps accurate time while. super quiet, love the acrylic platter, love it all. The acrylic platter looks so cool, especially at night with a light close by it... it looks like it glows. Coloured records spill their colour into it. Not that looks are the main thing, but I love records for the tactileness of it, the album covers and artwork, and I love it that I love the looks of this turntable. I have zero complaints from it and I highly recommend. I'm listening to albums every evening whether listening intently or playing some tunes in the background while I do dishes. Make me relaxed and ready for the next day and is great for Saturdays and some relaxing with friends and a drink or your buddies who love listening music.

I moved to this turntable from a Rega RP3/RP1 hybrid setup, and while I understand why Rega is so respected among purists, this player suits my needs much better overall. The biggest reason for switching was convenience. The auto-stop feature alone has been a huge improvement in my house, since people constantly forgot to stop the record once playback finished on the Rega. Small thing, but very appreciated in daily use. I also really like the removable headshell design. I already had a Nagaoka cartridge mounted on its own headshell, and since this turntable came with an Ortofon setup installed, swapping between them is incredibly easy. No tiny wires, screwdrivers, or cartridge alignment stress every time. Just change the headshell, rebalance the counterweight, and it’s ready. Other quality-of-life improvements over the Rega: * dampened dust cover * detachable RCA cables * electronic speed change with a knob instead of manually moving the belt on the pulley All of these make the turntable much more enjoyable to live with day to day. Looks and sound quality are both excellent as well. The only thing that feels oddly cheap is the cueing lever for raising and lowering the tonearm. It’s a very thin piece of plastic, and while it works perfectly fine, it feels out of place compared to how premium the rest of the turntable feels. Overall, I’m extremely happy with it. Rega may still have the edge for absolute purist sound-focused setups, but for me the combination of sound quality, convenience, and design makes this a much better fit.

I bought this player to upgrade from a PS-LX310BT. The difference was fantastic and I love this player. It looks and feels premium, and the Ortofon 2M Blue gives a clear and well presented sound. Couldn't be happier and if you're looking to dip into the 'audiophile' world, then I really recommend this player.

I’ve had the Fluance RT85 now for a week, I went for the piano black one. I wanted something to upgrade and replace my very old (1981) Technics SLB-210 that works fine and sounds OK. I liked the look of the specs for the Fluance RT85, the simplicity and raw features seem to offer a lot for the money when compared to many others that seemed to come with all the snake oil I didn’t want! But it wasn’t available in the UK so I was looking at a few options including the, Sony PSHX 500, the Project Classics and Debut Carbon, and the Technics SL1500B. I’d decided that if the RT85 became available I’d go for that, otherwise I’d step up to the Technics SL1500B in April but consider upgrading the stylus to the Ortofon 2M Blue (as on the RT85). Packaging and unboxing: The product box arrived within a larger Amazon box with a good amount of packing material. Product box showed no signs of any transportation damage and was confirmed while unboxing the turntable. Everything in the box was there and well packed and protected in perfect condition. As others have noted the inclusion of a pair of cotton gloves is a nice thought. Assembly: Set-up instructions are very clear and simple to follow but I did have trouble following the instructions for the tone arm balancing. Balancing the tone arm was the most time consuming bit, I fiddled and tried to do it for a while following the instructions but just couldn’t get it right. Fortunately, I’d also ordered a Stylus Force Scale so as soon as I made use of that the balancing was done and set to the recommended 1.8g in no time. The included phono leads seem to be a decent quality and they are shorter than the Cambridge ones I was intending to use so I used those into my Project Phono Box USB V. The turntable sits high on its three legs, well feet, and it’s nice and stable. I didn’t even need to make any adjustments to level it, popped the supplied mini bubble level on the deck and it was already spot on! Play and Sound: Well it’s a step-up in the gramophone stakes, makes me think of an old “Not the Nine O’Clock News” sketch so I might be heading to upgrade my speakers and amp et-up too. No sign of any vibrations getting through to the tone arm and pick-up from the motor or bits of kit in the rack. The old Technics did introduce some motor noise and a bit of artefact on the left channel into the mix that were evident when recording using Audacity. Neither are evident with the Fluance, no addition of anything that’s not on the vinyl, the sprung feet, MDF, acrylic platter, and external power source all doing their job well. The dusk cover doesn’t have soft close but it’s not problem to close it gently while the tonearm drops slowly onto the vinyl which is so gentle you’ll only notice it has actually made any contact when the music starts. Keep a hold of the dust cover when opening it though, it will want spring open if you don’t. When the music does start you will not be disappointed, it’s clear and clean and I’m hearing little details I’ve not heard before. It handles all the vinyl I’ve thrown it’s way so far, and it’s been fed a variety, even my very old and well payed Tubular Bells which has lots of clicks and crackles seemed to actually play better on the Fluance, perhaps the Blue doesn’t pick up as much of the surface noise. I can’t detect any issues across the range, it seems very precise from the highs to the base, percussion on the Police LPs sounds really precise and sharp. I’ve got this really annoying whisper in my head though… Turn me up…. Turn me up… it’s so tempting but I don’t think the neighbours will appreciate it too much! Although next up might be ELO and Out of the Blue so that could all change, no one could have an issue with that. At the end of the record the auto stop feature is nice, occasionally it’s stopped the turntable before I’ve got to it. All my vinyl gets a good rub down with a velvet brush before dropping the tone arm. The dive motor does seem to have less grunt than my old Technics (which is probably comparable to the torque of a Land Rover Defender given that it’s ripped the brush from my hand more than once!), it’s not going to pull the brush from your fingers and slows to a stop if you apply too much pressure. As I tend to just let the brush rest with very light pressure to hold it in place, I don’t think this is going to be an issue for me. Overall: The Fluance is a very good package and I believe offers very good value for money in terms of components/features and performance. It does have some small deficiencies; the dustcover hinges could be better with a softer close action and not spring open as you lift the cover up, the drive motor could have a bit more torque, and the queuing arm could be a bit longer and substantial. However, for me these are very minor things and don’t detract from the actual music experience. If I was going to buy again, would I buy the Fluance RT85? Yes I would. By the way yes ELO’s Out of the Blue (1977 original) did play very well and did get turned up! Next up Queen Live Killers or Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon.