Spinning class

We kick off our vinyl special by focusing on five terrific turntables that will turn your head and give your music a healthy workout. This is sure to be a rewarding exercise

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If you are reading this then you are probably just as pleased as we are that the vinyl format is alive and... if not exactly kicking then certainly jiggling its feet and legs around in a lively, healthy-looking way. And that means demand for the good old record player is strong enough for there to be a wide selection of models out there to choose from.

On the subject of choosing, we recommend you spend at least as much time thinking about which turntable to buy as you do pondering your choice of amplifier and speakers - each of which, incidentally, should ideally cost about the same as your deck. No matter how good your partnering kit, if it doesn't receive top-drawer information from your source, there's very little it can do to produce good-quality sound.

The sweet spot for 'affordable' turntables of decent quality starts around the £300 mark and runs to about £1000. The main thing to remember in this price band is that spending more really does give you significant steps up, both in terms of performance and in quality of materials and construction. In particular, the cartridges fitted to the pricier decks are much better - especially in terms of detail and transparency.

So - for your easy reference and delight - we have selected five players of note at various points within that price range, from the surprisingly musical Pro-Ject Primary E at £229 to the eminently capable - and recently released - Rega Planar 3 RS Edition (£999). As you will see on the following pages, all of them have five-star reviews.

Every record player in our selection comes ready-fitted with a compatible cartridge and requires minimal setting up. Of course, you can always upgrade your cartridge at a later date, or switch from a moving-magnet one to a moving-coil model (see our feature on p40). When it comes to other features, you should also consider whether or not you need a built-in phono stage; separate stages are available (see p42).