Welcome to Volume 27 of Record Roundup, my feature on the latest developments in the world of turntables. This edition is rather packed, but I’ve narrowed it down to the latest stats on record sales (they are not down, contrary to some reports), mid century modern furniture from Canada’s Vybe, news on U-Turn Audio Orbit turntables, a new Pro-Ject flagship, new releases from Victrola, and a Fluance RT81+ review update.
Missed the last Record Roundup? You can read Volume 26 here.
Record Sales Are Not Falling…
Turntables, record players and turntable-friendly audio gear has been a popular category for the past decade at least, thanks to red-hot record sales. What happens if music lovers sour on their love of vinyl, though? You may have seen headlines a few weeks ago claiming U.S. sales of records had plunged 33% in 2024 (the first decline in 17 years), an apparent victim of high prices and a high cost of living. However, this is not the case. Record sales have actually continued their growth streak.
Online record marketplace Discogs has an excellent explainer on what happened and why so many media outlets misinterpreted the results of a Billboard report. In a nutshell, a company called Luminate provides the sales data the report uses, and Luminate changed its methodology for counting sales for the first time in 30 years. This resulted in year-over-year numbers being out of whack. When comparing apples to apples, Luminate clarified that record sales are actually up 6.2% in 2024.
U-Turn Audio Orbit Turntable Review Updates
A year ago, I reviewed the popular, American-made U-Turn Orbit Basic turntable. While it was a nice deck for the price, I was caught off guard that it lacked a cueing lever. That’s an extra cost add-on. The company has since sent me the optional cue lever to install and my review has been updated to reflect the fact that the extra $50 makes for a much more compelling entry level turntable.
U-Turn also sent their top of the line Orbit Theory turntable, complete with an upgraded Ortofon OM Bronze cartridge, for evaluation. Watch for a review of this stunning turntable coming soon.
Fluance RT81+ Review
It was a busy summer here. Unfortunately, that meant my review sample of Fluance’s RT81+ turntable sat in storage for longer than I’d like. However, I was finally able to unbox it a few weeks ago and it’s been spinning records in my office test setup since. That delayed Fluance RT81+ review will drop shortly.
Vybe
One of the biggest upgrades in years to my office/record listening setup took place late in the summer–and it had nothing to do with electronics. I discovered Vybe, a Montreal-based furniture company that makes killer mid century modern record consoles.
Vybe designs and handcrafts everything to order in Montreal, using FSC-certified pine, oak and maple from Ontario and Quebec forests. Options like stain, number of doors and door colors are offered and the company will even further customize pieces on request (my ALDA record consoles were both made with three inches lopped off the standard width so I could fit a pair of them in here). Shipping is free, with minimal assembly–all I had to do was screw in the legs.
The ALDA cabinets not only look groovy, they freed up a ton of floorspace in my office by letting me move hundreds of records out of crates into handy cabinet storage, while also providing a place to set up a new test system. Prices are more than reasonable for handcrafted, solid wood pieces (ALDA is priced at $462 and at time of writing, Vybe was offering a 25% Fall Sale order discount).
New Victrola Releases
Victorla recently released a collection of new record players and turntables. The Century 6-in-1 Music Center and Eastwood LP Record Player are at the affordable end of the spectrum. At the upper end of the range, the new $1,299 Victrola Stream Sapphire takes the company’s Sonos-friendly Stream to a new level, with a real walnut veneer plinth, an Ortofon 2M Blue cartridge and support for up to 24-bit/48kHz lossless FLAC wireless audio to Sonos and UPnP-compatible Wi-Fi enabled speakers and devices.
New Pro-Ject Flagship Turntable
Finally, for those of you with a passion for records and $14,999 burning a hole in your pocket, Pro-Ject has a new object of lust available. The company’s Signature 12.2 turntable is an 80 pound brute loaded with CNC-machined components, a 22 pound mass loaded aluminum platter, a flywheel belt-drive system, a new 3-point pivot tonearm and spring-loaded feet. You’ll need to save a few dollars to buy a suitable cartridge, though–that’s not included in the price.
