In the US, vinyl records have outsold CDs for three years running, and yet research suggests that roughly 50% of people buying records don’t even own a turntable. Records as wall art. Records bought from the merch table like a concert programme. Records as vibes. That’s a problem if you’re a turntable manufacturer…but it’s also an opportunity.
Sony and TEAC clearly think the latter. Both have just announced new turntables with built-in Bluetooth, a feature that makes more sense than the purists might like to admit. If your loudspeakers or headphones are already wireless – and for a growing number of listeners under 40, they are – a Bluetooth turntable removes the need for a phono stage, an amplifier and a rack full of boxes just to spin a record. One…