If you’re in the market for a classy-looking and great-sounding turntable, or speaker system, you’ve probably heard of home audio brand Fluance, a relative newcomer to the audio world that has made big waves in recent years for its elegant and affordable products.
On Monday, December 17, the company announced four new products that will have fans of analog audio turning their heads. The new Reference series turntables (with four models called the RT82, RT83, RT84, and RT85) are simple and beautiful turntables that should offer listeners bang for their buck.
All four of the new models feature a multi-layered wooden chassis to inhibit unwanted vibrations through the turntable and come with height adjustable isolation feet. All are belt-driven turntables and feature an optical sensor that actually regulates the speed of the turntable, which means the turntable will always be spinning your favorite records at exactly the correct speed.
In addition, the two highest end models, the RT84 and RT85, will come with a high mass acrylic platter that the company claims will deliver “tighter bass, a fuller midrange, and overall improved clarity.”
Each model will come with an Ortofon cartridge, with the RT82 featuring the Ortofon Super OM 10, the RT83 and RT84 featuring the Ortofon 2M Red, and the RT85 featuring the Ortofon 2M Blue — and impressive addition, considering that the cartridge alone typically retails for around $200.
One thing that you won’t get with any of the new Fluance Reference series models is a phono preamp, which takes the signal from the turntable and transforms it into a line-level signal that you can amplify using a traditional amplifier or receiver. If you are interested in one of these models and need a list of good phono preamps, we have you covered: Check out our list of the best phono preamps you can buy.
Still, no matter which model you choose, you won’t have to dip too deeply into your savings account to snag one. The RT82 will cost $299, the RT83 $349, the RT84 $449, and the RT85 will cost $499. All are available in both black and walnut finishes and are currently for sale at the Fluance website.
Instagram is making its way to yet another screen, and this time, Apple TV is getting a taste of the Reels rabbit hole. The company has launched a dedicated Instagram app for Apple TV, bringing Reels, longer videos, and live shows to the big screen. So, if watching one quick clip on a phone somehow turns into an hour of scrolling, there's now a much larger screen for that.
Instagram brings Reels and more to Apple TV
Audio-Technica, a brand well known for making some of the best studio and professional headphones on the market, has just come out with the ATH-AWX7000, which the company itself claims to be its "finest headphones ever." The new flagship closed-back headphone has debuted at an eye-watering price of $3,799. It combines hand-finished Japanese woodwork with a newly developed 58mm driver.
The earcups are made from Kiso cypress, a prized wood historically used for Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. Each housing is finished by hand with traditional Echizen lacquer, which brings out the grain and is expected to darken over time. The frame and sliders are finished in a deep navy kachi-iro shade traditionally associated with samurai.
This post is brought to you in paid partnership with Best Buy.
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