GUTBI have this table in stock form and an Ariston RD40 with a Nag cartridge. The Denon sounds not bad, and better than the previous U-Turn I used to have. Unless someone is buying a $1500+ table then this is honestly fine. Quit being a gatekeeper.
Blze001If not this, because it's a pretty competent table and semi-auto which is nice, then the Fluance RT85, Pro-Ject Carbon Debut, A Rega P3 if you can find one on sale at that price point, a low end Music Hall MMF series, etc. There's lots of pretty competent $500ish tables that are gonna sound really good. You really don't see a tonne of difference in the table/playback quality until you jump up to $1500-2500 at which point you're getting a better tone arm, and you're also buy your cartridge separately usually. The Marantz TT-15S1 was a weird exception of a $1500ish table that came with a $900 cartridge.
dr.grinchStating facts. $1500 might be good entry point if you can find really good deals. I'd say the entry point for a high audio quality turntable system is around $2500-$3000. If someone knows of a high-mass, high-quality armed, good MC and phono stage for less I'm all ears.
darwin"For the price" is just a code phrase for "it sucks". When you are looking for quality audio from a record player system, you are looking for:
High-mass platter and chassis.
High-quality platter material and strong vibration isolation controls.
High quality arm, a very well-engineered, very accurate and well-dampened arm and pivot mechanism.
Quality MC cartridge.
High quality phono stage, preferably a tubed MM phono and high-end step-up transformer.
Quality speed controller.
Moreover, the need of a high quality MC also greatly increases alignment difficulty so that you'll also want a high-end protractor or the ability to tune by ear, a channel balance checker, etc. Microscope-assisted angle adjustment is also recommended.
Frankly, most people here are probably not that interested in audio quality from their record player, as even if they got, say, a Basis, Xtension, SME, etc, they wouldn't have the amp or speakers to realize the true strength of records. How many of them don't even have a linear amp, let alone 60 lb speakers in a listening room? Anyone can be happy with the warmth of record playback, you don't need a quality system for that, but the true power of record playback -- big dynamics, realistic tone, and black backgrounds almost as good as digital (with the best audiophile pressings virtually indistinguishable from CD) -- sadly costs a significant amount of money.
GUTBI really like this turntable. 33/45/78 on a knob is wonderful, platter speed is reliable and stable, small size, good looks, and auto-return is nice and the better than full-auto. Cuing is easy, and cart replacement is nbd. For what it is, it might be the ideal turntable for some people. I'm currently rocking a Schiit Sol and a 103R, but this Denon is a special case.