Speakers & Amps for Vinyl
What turns a phono signal into sound. Powered speakers, passive speakers, and the amp question — sorted by what you actually plug into.
A turntable makes no sound on its own. Between the deck and your ears there has to be a phono preamp (to boost and equalize the signal), an amplifier (to drive the speakers), and the speakersthemselves. The only question is how many boxes those three jobs are split across — and the answer decides how much you spend and how much shelf space you use.
The simplest route is powered (active) speakers: the amplifier is built into the speaker cabinet, so a turntable with its own preamp plugs straight in and you’re done. This is what we recommend for most people. The Edifier and Fluance powered pairs are complete systems for the price of a cartridge, and a couple of models — the Kanto YU6 and Klipsch The Fives — even build the phono preamp in too, so an entirely preamp-less deck needs nothing else.
The alternative is passive speakers plus a separate amplifier (and a phono preamp). This is the traditional hi-fi approach and it can sound superb, but it’s more boxes, more cables and more money for a first system. Passive speakers like the Micca MB42X are excellent value, but only if you already have or want an amp — plug them straight into a turntable and nothing happens.
Not sure which camp you’re in? Start with do you need an amp for a turntable? It maps the three jobs onto real gear so you buy exactly what’s missing and nothing you already have.
Everything in Speakers & Amps
Best Speakers for a Turntable
Powered and passive picks for vinyl, with a clear map of what each one needs between it and the deck.
Best Powered Speakers for Turntables
Active speakers with the amp built in — the simplest way to get a turntable making sound, ranked.
Do You Need an Amp for a Turntable?
Passive versus powered speakers, and the three parts every vinyl setup has to include somewhere.
Matching speakers to your deck
Deck has a built-in preamp?Any powered speaker with an RCA line input works — the Edifier R1280T is the value default. Set the turntable’s preamp switch to ON (or “LINE”) and connect the analog output.
Deck has no preamp? Either add a small phono box, or buy powered speakers with a phono stage built in (Kanto YU6, Klipsch The Fives) and skip the extra box entirely.
Want it to grow? Look for a subwoofer output (the Fluance Ai41 and both preamp-equipped models have one), which lets you add low end later without changing speakers.