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I recently inherited a massive amount of vinyl records and have been wanting to enjoy them. As a classically trained musician, and the daughter of a musician and AV engineer/audiophile, I grew up around lots of different music mediums and ways to enjoy it. My father owns a Thorens TD160S with a Hadcock GH228S arm, but as I’m so new to vinyl, I sure as heck wasn’t about to touch his baby that he built. Thankfully, he did a lot of research for me to help find a great turntable to meet my needs. And as he owns a technical website, he already had done a lot of the leg work for me before I had even decided to make a purchase.

Initially I was between the the Pro-Ject T1 EVO Turntable or the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO. Both great turntables and looked to be a fantastic option, but ultimately I was recommended to get the Pro-Ject Debut EVO 2. I chose the Satin Wine Red because I’m a sucker for a sexy red. And I mean, this trailer!

Now I am not technically inclined to audio and video equipment. So I cannot talk about all the specifications in great detail. I’m just a normal person who enjoys music and wants good quality things that will last me.

I want to preface and say there are some other cheaper turntables out there that are great options – like the Audio-technica AT-LP70xBT Turntable. However, because I plan to use this regularly, have a fantastic amplifier to utilize, have high quality pressings of records, and want to not have to buy a new one soon, I decided to shell out a bit more for my first turntable.

The Pro-Ject Debut EVO 2 retails for $699.00, which I think is a fair middle of the road record player. It certainly won’t break the bank compared to some of the other options out there, but isn’t bottom of the barrel. I was initially going to get the Thorens TD 204 but it was $1,200. For my first turntable, I didn’t want to spend that much – you have to have something to look forward later in life. But now, let’s get into the nitty gritty (no pun intended to a later reference in the post).

All of the following which you can check out in great detail on the Pro-Ject website.

Inside the box/packaging

Features

• Pre-adjusted Pick it MM EVO phono cartridge
• Aluminum platter with TPE damping ring
• Low-friction precision tonearm bearings
• Beautiful new satin ‘red wine’ finish
• 8.6″ one-piece carbon fiber tonearm
• Motor suspension with improved damping
• Height-adjustable TPE-damped metal feet
• Electronic speed change
• Belt drive with electronic speed regulation
• 8-coat hand-painted MDF chassis
• Premium semi-symmetrical phono cable
• Gold-plated female RCA jacks & grounding post
• Dust cover included
• Handmade in Europe

The Specs

• Speeds: 33 & 45rpm (electronic speed change)
• Drive principle: belt drive w/ electronic speed control
• Platter: 1.7kg (3.75 lbs) 300mm die-cast aluminum platter with TPE damping & felt mat
• Platter bearing: stainless steel axle in bronze bushing
• Wow & flutter: +/-0.16% (33rpm), +/-0.14% (45rpm)
• Speed drift: +/-0.40% (33rpm), +/-0.50% (45rpm)
• Signal to noise: 68dB
• Tonearm: 8.6″ one-piece carbon tonearm
• Effective arm length/mass: 218.5mm / 10.0g
• Overhang: 18.5mm
• Included accessories: 15V DC 0.8A power supply, dust cover, 7‘‘ singles adapter
• Dimensions (WxHxD): 415 x 113 x 320mm
• Dimensions (standard): 16.34 x 4.45 x 12.60″
• Mass (Weight): 6kg (13.23 lbs) net

The Package

The box with the turntable itself was beautifully packed. Lots of padding and protection and everything was very well separated to keep it safe during shipping. In the box was:

• Counterweight
• Anti Skating Weight
• Drive belt
• Adapter for 7“ singles & allen key
• Connect it E RCA cable
• Power supply
• Cartridge alignment tool

Still not entirely sure what the allen key was for as it wasn’t necessary for set up, but we have it. It may be for cartridge replacement later on, but if you know, feel free to comment!

Out of the box –  gorgeous. All photos in this post are not color corrected at all – just unfiltered .jpgs so you can see the color. The color really does change depending on where you put it – a nice rich red in the sun and a darker more maroon color in the shade. Stunning in my opinion.

I was initially torn between the stain wine red and the gloss black, but I decided I needed some joy and went with the red. But all colors are beautiful.

The Setup

So the setup overall was incredibly easy with a small snag with calibrating the arm. Without the help of my father – someone who is very familiar with turntables and setting them up – I would have struggled a bit. The instructions, in my opinion, assumed you had prior knowledge of how to do this. I’d say about 90% of the instructions were dumb easy to understand, but it was the balancing section (step 17) that was a bit rough.

It didn’t indicate where to put the counter weight, or how much you should be turning it, or how sensitive it all was, or what the arm being level actually meant. If you don’t have somewhere there to help you, like I did, this video should help a lot!

But once that was done, it was smooth sailing. That was the most difficult part. Just remember, when putting the drive belt on, be careful and don’t put your fingers all over it as your natural oils may make it degrade faster ver time.

Just remember, be careful with the cartridge and needle at the end. It is very delicate and replacing one is finicky and expensive! So be careful and pay attention.

But at this point, all you have to do is actually set it up on the surface it will stay on by leveling it. The directions had you level it earlier but I found doing the arm first and then putting it into the cubby I have it in worked better. So you can move around in the steps just a little bit. The leveling of the whole turntable was easy and straight forward.

Then put in the ground and plug it into your amplifier!

Amplifier

I am very fortunate to have a really good amplifier. We have a Denon AVR-5803, which isn’t made any longer. But the Denon AVR-X8500H is the newer replacement for it if you’re looking for similar. But it is not a cheap option if you just want a little set-up.

Pro-Ject does sell a pre-amp that you can use with their turntable as an affordable option – sub $100. If you want something a little bigger, Pro-Ject also does offer a Stereo Box E Compact Amplifier. This could be a strong option for a little bit more money as well. If you want to check out a few other options with more technical information, there’s a few here to check out too.

Final Thoughts

This turntable is absolutely fantastic! It is a stunning color so it looks beautiful on display, was overall quite easy to set up, and is incredibly well made. It does come with a dustcover (not pictured) which is perfect to keep it safe from pets when listening to a record (my cat sees movement and loves to investigate) and to keep dust off of it between using it.

Since this is not a cheap turntable, and a replacement cartridge is about $250, you need to look after it and be careful.

I would recommend cleaning all your vinyl records before putting them on here if you have not cleaned them before, or just purchased them from a second hand shop specifically. Needles are very delicate and too much dust or grime can damage them and wear them out so unless you want to spend $250 often to get new cartridges, be aware.

My father owns a NittyGritty 1.0, a manual vinyl cleaner, which is fantastic for cleaning your records and only takes a few minutes. It took me only a few minutes to figure out how to do it properly. There’s lots of great videos out there and if you have any questions, feel free to send me a message about it. But there are plenty of other ways to clean your records if you aren’t looking to regularly clean or use the player as often.

Audioplayback

Find two quick videos of it set up and playing in my space.

It sounds amazing and is so smooth. It is a little sensitive to movement so if you’re walking close to it or want to dance around, maybe don’t do so right in front of it.

But it looks beautiful and is just a stunning addition to my home.

Overall I am thoroughly happy with my purchase so far and I cannot wait to listen to the hundreds of vinyls that I have!

Do you have a turntable? If so, what kind and what’s your current favorite album?