Panasonic Technics SLBD20D Semi Automatic Turntable

I got this for my husband. He likes it. It works great. We haven't had any problems. We did need to order a pro amp to go with it so it would hook up to our system, but you can get that from the same place. Fast delivery also.

I must disagree with parts of two previous reviews.

Regarding the review of Aug 11th: I am running the table with a Grado Black cartridge and it works perfectly. As a matter of fact, it is essential to ditch the supplies low quality cartridge and go with something else to get decent performance out of the table. There are very few full-frequency (range of at least 20-20,000 HZ), quality P-mount cartridges available and the Grado Black cartridge is one of them. Just make sure that the grounding wire is solidly attached to both the turntable and your phono preamp (or integrated receiver.)

Regarding the review of April 22nd: I have not noticed any speed instabilities. As a matter of fact, this tables listed specs with regards to speed variations / wow&flutter (0.06%) rank up there with, or actually better many high-end table (for example the $1200 Clearaudio Emotion turntable has wow/flutter of 0.2%, over 3X worse than the Technics.) Poor speed stability is very common among `high-end' tables for some unknown reason, and one reason why I feel no rush to `upgrade' tables anytime soon.

I wanted a turntable that was an automatic or at least had automatic return. There are very few decent-quality automatic turntables on the market when I purchased. About the only other game in town was Thorens, and I read many reviews mentioning their quality had gone far downhill some years ago. I even tried a head-to-head comparison against a fully-manual Project Debut III turntable, but the Debut III skipped like crazy no matter what I did, had no convenience features, and had no sonic advantage I could hear over the Technics.

Though no set up is required when using a P-mount cartridge system, I did check cartridge downforce using a cartridge scale and the cartridge alignment using several alignment gauges, just out of curiosity. I found the Technics to be set up with typical Japanese perfection. The alignment was spot on, as was the downforce. I have heard the Project turntables have terrible quality control as far as cartridge alignment and downforce setting from the factory. Improper set-up can ruin your records in a hurry.

I have had this table for over a year and have been extremely pleased with it. I even bought one for my mother. My system could be considered a true entry-level audiophile system (if there is such a thing) and while this table is the most inexpensive piece, it does not seem out of place because of its good sound quality when using the after market Grado Black cartridge. I am using the turntable in conjunction with a Cambridge Audio 640P phono preamp ($200, has a switchable rumble filter), Vincent Audio SP-31 Hybrid Tube preamplifier ($500), Onix Sp-3 stereo tube amplifier ($1,000), and Strata mini loudspeakers ($2,000). I clean all records on a Loricraft record cleaning machine ($2,200) before playing. Once cleaned, they can go years before needing another cleaning.

Last piece of advice for those thinking of upgrading to the high-end manual turntables. Go for it if you want, but before the table upgrade, I believe the best investment anyone can make is buying a good wet record cleaning machine. This opinion was stated in an article in Stereophile magazine. It may sound counterintuitive, but investing in a record cleaning machine, such as a VPI, Nitty Gritty, or my favorite, a Loricraft, will make a greater audible difference per dollar spent than dropping a fortune on a high-end turntable or cartridge. This is because most of the noise heard from records is from the gunk on them and no matter how great your table or cartridge, a dirty record still sounds like crap. A little-known fact: even brand new records have mold release compound on them (so the pressing plant can remove them from the pressing molds) that must be removed by a wet cleaning in order to remove built-in surface noise from the record. In short, a record cleaning machine is essential.

This is a very good turntable for home use, especially at it's price. You WILL need a phono pre-amp (Amazon carries several) to hook this up to either a home stereo or the audio inputs of you computer's sound card.

The cartridge/stylus combination is okay, but not great. I believe it has a conical stylus. You can make a big improvement by getting a better cartridge and an elliptical, bi-radial, or linear contact stylus. The analogy I'd make is the ear-buds that come with most MP3 players -- you can use them to hear the music, but you can make a big improvement by getting better headphones. This turntable uses P-mount cartridges, so it's very easy to swap them out.

This unit is replacing my old SL-BD1, which finally died after 20 years of good use. I expect this turntable to last a good long while..

This is an extraordinary value, an excellent turntable for a modest audio system. I am using it with an Onkyo receiver and Polk 4a speakers and am thereby enjoying my record collection in the dining area of my kitchen. One important caveat is that the Grado black cartridge does not work with this turntable, it produces a strong hum even with the ground wire attached. The good news is that the cartridge which comes with the turntable is just fine. Very nice indeed!

I've been using this turntable regularly for 8 or 9 years and it still works fine. It generally tracks records very well and I've never had to worry about skips. Sound quality is decent -- as another reviewer pointed out, inner groove performance is somewhat weak. The last third of every LP side never sounds nearly as good as the first third. But still listenable. You'll also notice some speed fluctuation if you listen to solo piano. But for the price it is a very good deal.