Fluance RT85 Reference High Fidelity Vinyl Turntable Record Player with Ortofon 2M Blue Cartridge, Acrylic Platter, Speed Control Motor, High Mass MDF Wood Plinth, Vibration Isolation Feet - Walnut

So, you have $500 to spend on a turntable. What to do after all the research youve done? The problem is you cant compare the sound of different TTs. Most people reading this are not in the weeds audiophiles. We dont constantly buy and sell components looking to tweak this or that. We just want something that sounds really good for the money and we plan to keep that gear for years. I can answer the sound part. My Fluance RT85 sounds fantastic to my ears. After years of listening to cds on my really nice system, I was skeptical that I would hear a major difference. I was wrong. The sound is hard to quantify. Its richer, fuller, more musical. Value for the money? I cant answer that. Does a $500 TT sound that much better than a $300 TT? I dont know. I had my budget, so I decided to buy the best TT, according to reviews, in my price range. Value vs. other brands? I had narrowed my choices to Fluance RT85 and Pro-ject DC EVO. Does Fluance sound better than Pro-ject? Probably not. I just felt the value was greater with the Fluance because of the acrylic platter and the generally agreed upon great sound of the ortofon blue cartridge. Plus, the anti-skate set up with the Pro-ject turned me off. So, long story short, you cant go wrong with the Fluance RT85 in this price range.

I am a conductor, no not one of those big-name maestros who occupy podiums in front of the finest musical ensembles I am a conductor of music, one who more than 50 years has had the privilege and expereince waving arms or baton in front of singers, orchestras, showbands, rock bands, jazz groups, soloists, childrens choirs, heck even trained hogs! I KNOW what live music sounds like. And I confess, I have been obsessed with audio stuff since I could say Heathkit and Dynaco. So what in the name of melody, harmony and rhythm does any of that have to do with this review of the Fluance RT85 turntable? This marvelous machine also knows music. Once you follow the set-up instructions , which are easy to follow IF you follow them, The RT85 sits elegantly and unobtrusively making music; music as it is intended. Sure you purist audioholics out there can spend hours hooking up the poor thing up to an endless chain of analytical devices testing wow, flutter, rumble, anti-skating, (Hailing form Minnesota, I have nothing against skating) and other four-syllable calibrations. But if you truly want to savor your music, be it Bach, Beatles, Coldplay or Coltrane, trust this music man. When that vinyl sphere centers on the RT85s eye-catching and perfectly-balanced acrylic platter, and the nude diamond of the high-quality Ortofon Blue cartridge finds its groove, get ready to hear and feel MUSIC! The superb craftmanship and outward beauty of the turntable combined with its dead-silent operation and dead-on speed accuracy make the RT85 the perfect choice and a true value for anyone who just wants to enjoy music. In Summation, WOW! ( there is no flutter), Thank You Fluance!

Purchased this fluence RT85 from Amazon, it was a used unit I assumed returned and refurbished, or demo or something it did not specify, but the auto stop function was intermentioned at best maybe 2 out of 10 times it would stop, the cartridge was very dusty and dirty, it had differently been used, I cleaned it up it seemed OK and sounded fine, the dust cover had a couple light scuffs on it but I was expecting something like that buying a used unit, functionality wise though the auto stop feature not working reliably was unacceptable for $500. I gusee it was not checked out correctly, Fluence makes a great product and a good value, just buy a new one not a used one.

Replacing a Rega Planar 1 that Ive had since around 2011 or 12. The Rega has been good, but has some annoying quirks that prompted me to look for a potential upgrade: weak motor, table spins backwards half the time on start up. Cue lever doesnt work anymore, same with he ant-skate, etc. This blows the Rega away in every regard excepting for the tonearm. However, with the lesser cartridge that came stock on the Rega, the Regas superior tonearm wasnt used to its best advantage and so may be considered irrelevant? The superior cartridge on the Fluance results in audible improvements across the spectrum: wider soundstage, increased depth, significantly more detail, etc. I was sceptical that Id hear much of an improvement, if any, but was I ever wrong! The acrylic platter (no more static from the mat), ability to adjust counter weight and anti-skate (Rega has only one default counter weight setting), adjustable feet for balancing, and a beautiful look makes for an amazing buy. I couldnt be more happy with the Fluance. Hopefully my review will be helpful to others that may be on the fence between this and the Rega Planar 1. Youll get a lot of value with the Fluance and clearly better sound as well.

This is probably one of a few avaialbe turntables in the group of products that could be considered the best sub-$500 turntable. I ALMOST picked a different brand/model....but it didnt have the auto-stop feature (i.e. the Fluance was the only one that stopped the record when it was done playing). The others run kept spinning and spinning. Unless you plan to be around/get up to turn off your turntable when the record is done, THIS IS IMPORTANT!! Its nice that I can throw on a record and do whatever I need to do for the day and not have to worry about being around to turn off the turntable when the record is done playing to prevent premature wearing out of the stylus/needle. This is NOT the ONLY reason to buy this turntable -- its fantastic in every other way and meets/beats everything else in the price range. But being able to run to the store/go outside/take a shower/etc after putting on a record was important to me, so I chose this turntable. You WILL need a phono pre-amp or a Receiver with a built-in one. But if youre looking at this turntable, your Receiver probably already has one (or spend the $$ for a dedicated phono pre-amp -- I got the Schiit Mani...but the Fluance pre-amp is good too as well as a bunch of others). Note - this is a rabbit-hole. Once I got back into vinyl, I suddenly found myself NEEDING all kinds of other things.....Ive spend way more $$ on equipment than actual records. But its fun and a good hobby and reminds me of when I was young and records were popular. Luckily, Im older so I can afford to spend a little $$ on fancy cables/cleaners/etc.

Beautiful and well constructed turntable. Flawless performance from a well constructed player with an outstanding cartridge. You can spend more and get better, but your not going to find better at this price.

I’ve collected vinyl for many decades and have several turntables ranging from vintage Thorens and several Technics to an expensive VPI with Clearaudio Maestro cartridge. I’m a big fan of the Ortofon line and when I saw that the RT85 Reference came with a 2M Blue installed I had to jump at the opportunity. I had purchased speakers from Fluance some years ago and was impressed with their quality and customer service so I expected nothing different with this purchase. I read several of the online reviews that were impressed with the quality of the build, the ease of use, the wonderful Ortofon 2M Blue cartridge and the outstanding sound quality. My unit arrived professionally packed and assembly was a breeze. Kudos for a clearly written user manual. Even though I am not a beginner the clear instructions would be easy for anyone to follow. Once installed I put it to the test with a wide variety of genres and styles of music. I’m still impressed and I’ve been listening every day for a few weeks now. This is a killer combo and I’m still shaking my head in amazement that Fluance has been able to pack so much quality in such an inexpensive unit. The auto stop feature is especially appreciated as my other manual turntables lack anything like that, requiring me to get up and replace the tonearm at the end of each side. While auto stop is not as convenient as semiautomatic, it’s a welcome addition to an otherwise manual turntable. Well done Fluance for putting a quality audio product within reach of almost anyone who is into vinyl. It really shines with my Parks Audio Budgie Tube preamp and has become my favorite turntable!!!! Five solid stars!!!!

The Fluance RT85 is a massive step up from my previous turntable (the AT-LP60), in terms of both sound quality and quality of construction. The combination of the Ortofon Blue cartridge, the acrylic platter, and the overall precision and craftsmanship of the unit is really hard to overstate. This is a beautiful, beautiful turntable with very little coloration to the sound. Once properly grounded, it is dead quiet with no discernible noise or distortion at all. Set-up was easy. If you take your time and follow the instruction manual carefully, you honestly can’t go wrong. I had also watched some tutorials on YouTube in preparation for it’s arrival, so I already had a pretty good sense of how to set it up. Like most higher-end turntables, the RT85 does not have a built in preamp (which prevents any added coloration to the signal), so a separate purchase may be necessary if you don’t already own a stand alone phono preamp. Despite the added cost this is actually a plus, since it gives you complete control over how to shape the signal. The sound of the Fluance RT85 is pristine and accurate. The servo motor speed is constantly monitored and corrected for accuracy, so there’s no need to fine-tune the speed adjustments. The cartridge, which comes pre-aligned, reproduces a full soundstage with a wide, flat frequency response and incredible detail. I have the auto-stop disabled, so I can’t review this feature- but it’s nice to know it’s there, if I should ever need to use it. It would truly be hard to imagine a more elegant turntable, even at two or three times the cost. It simply steps out of the way and lets you appreciate the original quality of your LP’s and 45’s, without adding or subtracting anything from the sound. If you are looking to make the leap into a reasonably affordable, reference quality turntable, the Fluance RT85 is the perfect way to take your appreciation of vinyl into the audiophile realm. Five stars for both sound quality and craftsmanship!

Excellent sound. Great build quality!!!

I did my homework looking for a solid mid-priced quality turntable. The Fluance R85 has some great reviews out there and it lives up to the accolades given in those reviews. I grew up with an expensive high end Technics direct drive turntable that was amazing. I can honestly say that the RT 85 sounds just as good to me as that classic turntable from my youth. The included Ortofon Blue cartridge and stylus is probably a big part of the reason, as is the included heavy weight acrylic platter. You cannot go wrong with this turntable.