Turntables — Rekkord Audio F300

The F300 is an advanced automatic sub-chassis turntable from Rekkord Audio, put together by hand in the German Black Forest town of St. Georgen. Its styling follows turntable designs of the 1980s, and unlike the F100 and F110 below it, it allows the tonearm to be fine-tuned. Priced at about 549 euros, it is a mid-range model in the Rekkord catalogue.

Key specs that matter

Speeds are 33 and 45rpm, set by a belt-coupled DC motor. Rekkord quotes 0.035% wow and flutter and 72dB of weighted signal-to-noise, both better than the figures for the F100 and F110. The 8.3-inch weight-balanced aluminium tonearm turns on ultra-low-friction bearings. The factory cartridge is the Audio-Technica AT-91 moving-magnet model. Output is on RCA phono sockets with a ground wire. The deck measures 430 x 130 x 365mm and weighs 6.0kg, in deep satin black or cherry wood.

Engineering and use context

As in the F110, the automatic system, tonearm and damped aluminium platter sit on a floating sub-chassis, separated from the rest of the high-density wooden cabinet. This construction keeps outside vibration and motor rumble away from the arm and platter. The cartridge comes mounted on a carbon-fibre-reinforced headshell, and downforce and anti-skating are set before shipping, so the owner has nothing to adjust. In automatic mode the arm is lowered onto the record, plays the side and returns to rest at the end. A manual mode is also provided for owners who prefer to cue by hand. The box contains a hinged dust cover, a 15V DC power adapter, a single-record adapter and pre-installed cables, and the deck is usually ready to play within about 10 minutes of unpacking.

Pairing

The F300 has no built-in phono stage, so it connects to a separate phono preamp or to an integrated amplifier with an MM input. The cartridge sits on a standard half-inch mount, which makes it simple to fit a different pickup later.

Alternatives

The Rekkord F400 sits above the F300 in the same automatic sub-chassis family, with further refinements.