Review: Fluance RT 81 turntable

hi-fi+ Chief Content Officer Tom Martin gives a full review of the $249 Fluance RT81 turntable.

1:28 - Background info
2:23 - Parts
8:55 - Sound quality
10:28 - Bass
11:23 - Midrange
13:26 - Lower treble
14:47 - Wrap
17:58 - Cartridge

For more information about this product, click the link below:

About Tom Martin:

Tom is a long-time audiophile. He began his reviewing career after acquiring the The Absolute Sound magazine in 1997 and then hi-fi+ magazine in 2002. He has worked closely with Harry Pearson and Robert Harley at TAS and with Roy Gregory and Alan Sircom at hi-fi+. Since Tom and his teams expanded the TAS and Plus platforms in the digital domain, he has served as Chief Content Officer.

What is hi-fi+?

hi-fi+ magazine has been a pioneer in the global audio market since the early 1990s. Since the mid-2000s, hi-fi+ has progressively expanded its platforms to include web, newsletter, digital magazine, social media and YouTube. With a focus on high-performance, high-design audio, hi-fi+ serves a global audience of over 300,000 audiophiles.

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[yambo]

Much of what youre judging here sound - wise is the cartridge itself and the 95E has always been a good one - if the table itself is quiet and a good preamp is being used the biggest difference in sound will be seen through your choice of cartridge/stylus, the table is the carrier and the cartridge is the "musical" part of the equation - next step up if one wants to is say an Ortofon blue cart. etc. Just saying the table itself isnt totally responsible for a large part of the total sound. In the table itself you look for mainly silence in operation, lack of hum etc and steady speed control - sound quality and nuance is largely determined by the cartridge - IMO In the end it always gets down to a needle in a groove.

[gigabyte]

Thank you for your assessment, I've just bought one of these for my son, so pleased you think they are pretty good, he's no audiophile, but I've just given him his late mothers LPs, she bought them in her teens and early twenties, so decided he needs a turntable to play them, but I wanted a decent one, as those LPs are special and beyond priceless as far as my son is concerned, so didn't want him buying one of those all-in-one cheapo jobs which that will ruin an LP in no time ! Thanks again.

[doodahdavesrecords]

Thank you for this thoughtful review I am seriously considering this Table as I like the auto shut off the project carbon evo has my eye as well

[wrdr]

Just got this turntable in gorgeous Piano White. Amazon had them for $200. Tied into my Yamaha C-45 preamp then into my NAD 7020e receiver being use as a simple power amp. Plugged into my Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro and WOW! count me impressed. Just listening to England Dan and John Ford Coley Nights are Forever album and loving this blast from the past. Build quality seems beyond price point. One ding is that the auto stop takes longer than I prefer. Keeper? Oh heck yeah!

[garyscarpulla]

I have one, upgraded to an acrylic mat (Fluance) and an AT95EN cart and headshell, external Fluance preamp. Made a nice difference, very happy with it overall

[axeami]

After looking a lot and taking price in to account i decided to buy the rt 80 because it was £100 cheaper, mechanically it's the same as the rt 81 but just has a AT91 cartridge, and felt anti-slip mat which are things i can upgrade if i'm not happy with the sound.

[eagleone]

Would you want an external pre amp on this like a Schitt Mani or the built in is fine?

[meropealcyone]

Would it not have made more sense to test this with the sort of amp or powered speakers most purchasers are going to use? That would likely be an integrated amp in the $500 range--at most. No one is going to pair it with a Burmeister costing $24, 000 or Magnepans. Maybe it sounded amazing--in parts--because of all the high-end associated equipment. Maybe all the faults you noticed would be worse with low-end equipment.

[Sebastianpl]

Hello.
Which turntable to choose?

Fluance RT81
Audio Technica AT LP5X
Audio Technica AT LPW50PB

Thanks for help.

[Zebrajellyfishphoto]

What's the "step up" from the included ATN95 cartridge at $50-$75 more?

[prterhorst]

Buyer beware on the RT81. The cueing damping failed on mine and their suggested repair did not work, so they said I need a whole new tonearm. But -- they don't have one to sell! They have sold tens of thousands of these tonearms, and still are selling them, but have no parts. Very poor customer service.

[stevecardenaz]

Skipped ahead to get to the review, could not watch this guy anymore. Quit watching at 12 min. point.

[deputy]

Most annoying music I've ever heard.