Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I do think this was mislabeled as a "turntable." Back in the day, I thought of a "turntable" as a piece of a stereo sound system with a clear, softly- closing lid that completely covered the record you were playing and that you hooked up to your amp and speakers; this would have been a "record player." But the true nature of this product is obvious from the picture, so I wasn't expecting a "turntable." Compared to my early 1970's-era record player, it fares quite well. It does have a gentle-drop lever so you can softly drop the needling into the right place. The sound quality and volume are very good for one of these gizmos. Nice carrying case. I figured out how to use it without looking at the directions. Overall, I had a joyful experience sharing my old records with my kids, who loved working it. What I did not expect it to do: I did not expect it to connect to a high-quality sound system, I did not expect it to contain speakers like my little Bose guys (think about it - although those little Bose are small for speakers, they would not fit inside this thing along with the turning mechanism and motor), I did not expect it to withstand jumping nearby without skipping, I did not expect it to produce sound volume to power a party, and I did not expect it to play warped or scratched records. If I wanted a turntable so I could play new records and hook up to good speakers, maybe for a party, I would: expect to spend quite a bit more money than this, get something with a clear lid that covers the record as it plays, and never, ever get something with built-in speakers I also think there is something you have to expect in exchange for the true sound of this type of recording. From a CD or iPod, you hear a pure and sanitized sound, without crackles. The needle of a record player is so sensitive that you inevitably hear some crackles, but in exchange for having to "put up" with those, you get the full sound, not a digitized version. For me, the initial crackles at the very beginning were conditioned from a very young age to be akin to the aroma of cookies in the oven - my auditory mouth would water in anticipation of the coming sound. For someone born in 1990, you lost that opportunity for conditioning, but if you think of it as normal and just a price you pay, maybe you can put up with it.