Beyond Belts: Exploring The Best Direct Drive Turntables

Choosing a vinyl turntable is a difficult task, especially if you are not familiar with their types, functionality, and, as a result, their intended purpose. This article will help you choose the best direct drive turntable, and a user with any budget will find the wonderful option, as I have collected a wide range from budget to premium models. But first, let’s talk a bit about the advantages of direct-drive turntables and what this type of turntable has to do with DJing. At the end of the review, you will find a list of key features to consider in direct-drive record players. I believe that you should spend money on your pleasures wisely.

Our pick

Audio-Technica AT-LP1240-USBXP

Best direct drive turntable

Audio-Technica AT-LP1240-USBXP superbly made, professional quality DJ turntable is designed primarily for use in clubs, touring and mobile DJ applications. Read the full review.

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Direct drive turntables comparison table

What are the advantages and disadvantages of direct-drive turntables over belt-drive turntables?

I will start by saying that any choice is right, as long as it meets your needs and wishes. You can find the best direct drive turntables in any segment, belt driven or direct drive, manual or fully automatic. Melomaniacs and audiophiles will never end this argument. But some things are clearly objective advantages of one type over the other. And for a direct drive, these are:

1. Direct drive turntables have a brushless DC motor (or Servo sometimes). This type of motor ensures the stability of the plate rotation and maintains a stable speed.
2. Since they do not require maintenance and repair (and the belt often stretches and breaks), we can talk about the durability of this type of turntable.
3. This type of drive is valuable for DJs, as acceleration and torque (as well as stipulated stability) are very important in this business.

There are no perfect things or devices. Therefore, there are disadvantages, too. And it concerns the overall sound quality. Yes, dear friends, you have to pay for convenience. In direct-drive turntables, you often hear unwanted noise from such a desirable stable motor. That’s why the lack of totally inappropriate vibrations becomes the reason for many to choose belt drive. But you have no choice if you are a future (or established) DJ. For the rest, I offer a motley bunch of direct-drive turntables.

Best direct-drive turntable reviews

Audio-Technica AT-LP1240-USBXP – best overall

The gold of my rating goes to Audio-Technica AT-LP1240-USBXP. First of all, because it has an optimal price/quality ratio. Secondly, this model fully meets the requirements of DJing and can be a great option even for professional masters. In addition, several other not-so-significant features influenced such a high evaluation. I will talk about them a little bit below.

This fully manual turntable has a construction that will withstand heavy club conditions. The MDF chassis weighs 27.6 pounds, and the design is well thought out. The diecast aluminum plate is finished with light dots, and the tonearm stands out against the black chassis, as do the buttons. There are backlit controls, and the dust cover can be completely removed to avoid getting in the way of your work.

The pitch control with quartz speed lock is soft, smooth, and precise. There are the reverse, electronic brake, quartz lock, push-button start/stop, and speed change controls (of which there are 3). Perhaps the most important element affecting the sound-phono stage is there. And it sounds very cool. But I still recommend an external one. With it, you will hear even more nuances.

The ATN-XP5 cartridge with the AT-HS1 universal ½” headset did an amazing job, but you can improve the sound by getting a better one. Because with analog sound, there is no limit to perfection. I listened to jazz, rock, disco, and techno with the AT-LP1240-USBXP, and I loved how it brought out the important details. The frequencies are balanced, and the soundscape is upbeat and bright. But the anti-skating is a bit weak.

Denon DP-3000NE – premium

Denon DP-3000NE cannot compare with the selection leader in many parameters. It occupies the second place on my chart for objective reasons. Firstly, its price exceeds $2000, which is obviously a premium segment accessible to a few people. Secondly, even though it has the advantages of direct drive, it is useless for DJs because it does not possess the necessary functionality. This expensive turntable can be used only in home conditions, but, my God – what a beauty it is!

The design can withstand even a small earthquake and still will not lose operation stability. The weight of the DP-3000NE is 40.8 pounds! The natural dark ebony finish and the tonearm are incredibly beautiful, and the aluminum platter mounting hole is finished – every detail screams luxury.

The platter is spun by a 16-pole, 12-coil, brushless motor (the AT-LP1240-USBXP has only 3 coils), and no single unit could notice any significant noise in operation. Wow, and Flatter is less than 0.06% JIS (for comparison, the AT is < 0.1%). The S-shaped tonearm with a high adjustment range (9mm) is remarkable because it can hold a cartridge weighing between 4g and 16g without additional weight. Moreover, for true audiophiles, an option is to install an MC cartridge. But there is none in the kit. But here's the trick: the more expensive a parts player is, the fewer parts it has.

Audio-Technica AT-LP120XUSB – budget

My review is intended for a user with any budget. So, for those who only dream of becoming a DJ, I offer a great price for under $500, another representative of Audio-Technica – model AT-LP120XUSB. With this device, you will get everything you need to learn.

By design, this turntable almost completely repeats the leader of my rating so that I won’t repeat myself. But the quality of the design is inferior. It uses a lot of plastic and is light, so it doesn’t provide stability. Nevertheless, the 17.6 lbs weight is enough for home training.

The sound level is also inferior to the AT-LP1240-USBXP. The built-in phono stage is quieter and less detailed, but I can’t say the sound is smeared or muddy. Not at all. The frequency balance is very well maintained. Brightness and dynamics are preserved, which is why writing samples on it is so much fun. The AT-VMN95E cartridge is also of lower quality than the review winner, but it is notable for being common and easy to replace. It’s inexpensive, too.

Pioneer DJ PLX-1000

In almost any good direct drive turntable reviews, you can find the Pioneer DJ PLX-1000 model. Its price, design, and functionality are completely similar to the AT-LP1240-USBXP. You can talk about the sound for a long time because the brand knows much about it. But despite the identity, I would recommend the PLX-1000 for home use, not DJing. Let me explain why.

The construction weight is good (32.19 lbs), and with a 3-phase, brushless DC motor, the turntable runs virtually silent and is very stable. All control functions and backlight exist, but you can spin records only at 2 speeds (33 1/3 and 45 RPM). For me, this is already a minus.

The turntable’s real manufacturer is Hanpin, which affected the quality. The claimed functions don’t work as smoothly as the AT-LP1240-USBXP, and the pitch control is almost useless at all. The cartridge’s downforce is 3.5-4 g, and I had to clean dirt off it constantly. Distortions started even before the end of the record. The torque is claimed to be the same as the AT-LP1240-USBXP, but in reality, the startup is very slow. You may not notice all this at home (except for the stylus, of course, but this can be solved by perfectly cleaning your records), but DJing is completely unacceptable.

Reloop RP-2000 MK2

Last on my list is another budget vinyl player with a direct drive. Just in case the AT-LP120XUSB is not suitable for you for some reason, for example, because of the price. After all, the Reloop RP-2000 MK2 is even cheaper and belongs to the category of up to $300.

Surprisingly, the construction of the RP-2000 MK2 is pretty solid. I love it when inexpensive things stay within the bounds of good quality. Sure, there’s a lot of plastic here, but the pitch control is soft, the tonearm doesn’t risk coming off when you touch it, and the overall impression is quite pleasant. The design is identical to the AT-LP120XUSB; I have a parade of identical turntables today. The weight is pretty good, too, 14.9 pounds.

The motor here is 8-pol., 2-phase, brushless, and better for a direct drive than the servo motor on the AT-LP120XUSB. This can only be realized over time, and at the start, both turntables do a good job of spinning, albeit with low torque (lower than the expensive models, which makes sense). But the Reloop RP-2000 MK2 only has 2 slew speeds, unlike its competitor. From the features, we can highlight a good for the budget segment cartridge, Reloop OM Black (manufacturer Ortofon), a pleasant sound, and the ability to learn to mix tracks. However, I noticed the needle has low downforce, so some details are lost. Also, at a pitch of -50, the turntable doesn’t pull.

Key features to consider in direct-drive record players

So, at the end of the review of different models, we can highlight a few key factors to consider when buying a direct drive turntable:

• Chassis. The heavier the chassis, the better. External vibrations can greatly interfere with the stable playback of records. Also, damping is helped by special feet and a heavy platter.
• Motor. A brushless motor provides the fastest acceleration and torque.
• Controls. If you plan on DJing, look for a turntable with special features: Pitch control (adjusts the pitch and pitch of the audio sample), quartz lock, electronic brake, listen-back function, push-button speed change, and start/stop.
• Tonearm. The S-shaped tonearm is the most optimal way to get the sound off the record grooves, and the straight one is the simplest design. Adjustable counterweight and anti-skating are also important because you can customize the turntable completely.
• Cartridge/stylus. It doesn’t matter what cartridge is pre-installed in your turntable; as long as it can be upgraded, that is (the cartridge can be replaced with a higher quality one). Cheap turntables don’t have this option; you’ll have to replace the entire tonearm or even the turntable.
• Preamplifier. A built-in preamplifier will save you a lot of money at the start but always consider getting an external preamplifier to unlock the full potential of your turntable.
• Spin speeds. I like to have 3 of them. I think DJs will also agree with me. Having all speeds and record sizes greatly expands your range of options.
• USB connectivity. If, for classic traditional models, I would shrug off the presence of this function (because I do not support the manner of digitizing analog sound), then in the case of DJing, it is hard to imagine a device without it. Any author wants to be able to record the melodies he created without leaving the cash register.