How We Pick

This is the most important page on the site, because it’s the whole basis for trusting anything else on it. We can’t honestly claim a listening lab or hands-on time with every turntable, and the field leads with exactly those claims. So we don’t imitate them. We compete on something checkable instead: a transparent, reproducible method built on published specifications and arithmetic. Here it is in full.

1. What we compile

For every product, we read the manufacturer’s manual, spec sheet and the product listing, and record the figures that actually decide performance:

• Turntables:drive type (belt or direct), operation (automatic or manual), the included cartridge, whether there’s a switchable built-in preamp, supported speeds, and platter material.
• Cartridges: type (MM/MC/MI), stylus shape, output voltage, recommended tracking force, and mount.
• Phono preamps: cartridge support, gain, loading and RIAA equalization.
• Speakers: powered or passive, power, drivers, inputs, and whether a phono stage is built in.

Where a maker does not publish a figure, we print “Not published” rather than filling the gap with a guess. What a brand chooses not to state is information too.

2. The math we do

Some decisions come down to arithmetic, and we do it so you don’t have to: matching a cartridge’s output to the gain a preamp provides, checking that a tracking-force range suits an arm, and comparing the real cost of an all-in-one against a deck plus powered speakers. When a claim is a calculation, we show the inputs.

3. How we rank

Our roundups are organized by use case, not a single numeric score. A score would imply an evaluation we haven’t done; instead we name the best pick for each real situation (the safe automatic, the value step-up, the digitizer) and argue it in plain language, with a “who should skip this” for every product. Buyer-fit and value drive the order — not the commission.

4. Prices

Every price on the site is pulled live from Amazon and carries the date it was checked. If our daily refresh ever stops, the numbers disappear on their own within 48 hours and the buttons fall back to “Check price on Amazon” — we would rather show nothing than a stale figure. We never type a price into the content by hand.

5. What we do NOT do

• We do not run a listening lab or claim hands-on testing of gear we don’t have.
• We do not invent ratings, review counts, testimonials or “in our testing” language.
• We do not accept paid placements or free units in exchange for a recommendation.
• We do not let commission decide a pick — a cheaper, better buy wins.

6. Corrections

If we get something wrong, tell us and we’ll check it against the source and fix it, noting the change if it’s material. That’s covered in our editorial policy, and you can reach us any time via the contact page.