Turntable is pocket-friendly for big vinyl fans

IT’S not often I get the opportunity to review DJ gear in Tech Talk, so I jumped at the chance of testing out the latest turntable from Lenco.

The Dutch- owned manufacturer of audio and video equipment is celebrating its 75th birthday this year so it launched a couple of new turntables, one of which is the L-3809BK.

It’s a home HiFi turntable which includes the ability to transfer your vinyl treasures to digital files by means of USB recording.

And it will appeal to DJs as it’s a direct drive turntable with vari-speed pitch control. This enables anyone with two of these turntables and a mixer to beat-mix two different records by adjusting the pitch by up to minus eight or plus eight so that the beats of the two records are in synch.

What it also means is that a 90s club kid who is used to hearing their favourite tunes played out at plus six or plus eight can now replicate that at home. If you’ve been listening to DJs playing records at a faster speed all your life, it can be difficult adjusting to the ‘normal’ speed again.

The L- 3809BK, which is styled on the world-famous Technics SL1210, can be connected directly to a mixer or home HiFi with its built-in phono pre-amplifier.

It does not feel as robustly made as a Technics deck, but it costs about half the price so you shouldn’t expect it to.

Standard

However, I can confirm that the direct drive on this turntable is of a really high standard (with the quick start you would expect) and I found the vari-speed control precise and responsive.

There’s a slipmat in the box and a dust cover for when not in use.

It’s not just about old skool DJing appeal though, as the L-3809BK also enables you to digitise your vinyl collection using its USB recording feature.

This is a fantastic affordable turntable for vinyl enthusiasts, DJs and clubbers.

€282 from Lenco.co.uk