Проигрыватели виниловых дисков — Audio-Technica AT-LP120XBT-USB

The AT-LP120XBT-USB is a fully manual direct-drive turntable from Audio-Technica, announced in August 2020 at a suggested price of USD 299 in a black finish. The company built it on the AT-LP120XUSB and added a Bluetooth transmitter to the analogue and USB outputs that model already had, so a single deck can feed a hi-fi system, a computer or wireless speakers and headphones. It plays records at 33 1/3, 45 and 78 rpm.

Key specs that matter

Turning the die-cast aluminium platter directly is a DC servo motor, with a starting torque above 1.0 kgf.cm and an electronic brake. Wow and flutter is below 0.2 percent WTD at 3 kHz under the JIS method, and signal to noise exceeds 50 dB. Measured at 230.5 mm effective, the balanced S-shaped arm uses 16 mm overhang, stays within 3 degrees of tracking error, offers anti-skating from 0 to 4 g and takes cartridges of 3.5 to 8.5 g. The supplied AT-VM95E dual moving magnet cartridge carries a 0.3 x 0.7 mil elliptical stylus and sits in an AT-HS6 universal headshell. The built-in phono stage has 36 dB of RIAA gain, giving 4 mV at the phono setting and 240 mV at line level. Bluetooth 5.0 supports the A2DP profile with SBC, aptX and aptX Adaptive codecs over roughly 10 m in line of sight. The deck measures 452 x 352 x 141.6 mm and weighs 8 kg without its dust cover.

Engineering and use context

Pitch can be moved by up to 10 percent either way with a slider, or locked to quartz reference for exact speed, and a stroboscopic platter edge with a speed indicator lamp shows when the speed is right. Cueing uses a hydraulically damped lift and a lockable arm rest, and a removable plug-in target light illuminates the stylus in low light. The base is damped against low-frequency feedback, while an external AC adapter keeps mains conversion outside the chassis. The USB converter works at 16 bit with a choice of 44.1 or 48 kHz and is USB 2.0 compliant for Windows 7 or later and Mac OS X, and the maker points to the free Audacity program for turning records into files. Because the VM95E body accepts any VM95 Series replacement stylus, the stylus profile can be changed later without swapping the cartridge, and the replacement part for the fitted one is the AT-VMN95E. Power draw is 2.75 W. The box contains a 1.9 m USB cable, an RCA cable with ground wire, a felt mat, a counterweight, a 45 rpm adapter and a hinged dust cover.

Pairing

Set to line, the deck connects to any amplifier input or to powered speakers; set to phono, its signal can go to an external MM phono preamplifier.

Alternatives

Audio-Technica also sells the AT-LP120XUSB, the same direct-drive design with analogue and USB outputs but without the Bluetooth transmitter.