Customer Ratings & Reviews

Damaged, does not work properly, scratched across and ruined an album..

My better half has always liked to collect records whenever we saw a second-hand shop as a pet hobby even though we didn’t have a record player. I had gotten a cheap retro looking record player from Target a while ago so she can play these records that have been sitting around being neglected. It never sounded great with the built-in speakers and even when it was connected to another output via the 3.5mm AUX jack. It looked cute enough for the wife and she could play her unused records so it was good enough for the time being. One night we had a musician friend over and they saw the records and asked to play a few. He mentioned how good records sound when played on proper equipment. I haven’t really listened to records since I was young and have since been spoiled the ease of digital music. But I guess it was time to get a decent record player. I showed my wife the Victrola and she like the simple clean looks and was interested and jumped at the chance to get rid (gave to our kid for her playroom) of the Target special. The Victrola came nicely packaged with clear instructions on a large piece of cardboard (nice touch). I appreciated how the belt on the platter had a piece of ribbon on it to aid in placing it over the drive on the platform. The player is very classy looking plater on a wooden base with squishy rubber dampers that keep the unit free from shocks when someone walks by in front of the console table causing excessive vibrations. The speakers are clean looking with magnetic screens which are held in place well enough but slide right off. They also sound infinitely better than the previous player or the shelf CD player unit speakers we have on our bookshelf. Bluetooth connectivity means we can use wireless headphone or portable speakers and have music anywhere within range. That is pretty great. Magnets and Bluetooth. Everything needs magnets and Bluetooth. To my friend’s credit we were doing ourselves a disservice by listening to the records on a cheap player. The music does sound better and it much better fills the room making it much more enjoyable. The only annoyances I have found is the hinges on the acrylic cover are rather cheap feeling plastic to an overall classy looking unit, but it works smoothly, just doesn’t look great. I worry that the cover could get scratched rather easily. Function wise, I don’t like that the turntable shuts itself off at the end of the record and the dial needs to be turned to off then on again to restart it. Aside from those small issues, I love the look and it is a welcome addition to our living room.

The Victrola T1 system is a combo of the M1 speaker system and their premier turntable. The system represents standalone monitors with line level inputs into a plate amp. It’s finished in a nice wood grain that matches making this quite the style statement. But does it have the sonic prowess to live up to its looks? First of all, unboxing the product, everything is securely packaged, and the experience feels quite premium. From a brand that makes its money off of vintage looking products, it’s obvious they understand the experience required for this sort of product. The speakers were easy to remove and the turntable very carefully packaged. Setup was easy enough, with only the belt installation being anything that required using more than 2 neurons. Even that wasn’t difficult. The design of the product is vintage and modern mixed. It harkens back to simple record/speaker setups of the 1970s and early 80’s but with modern minimalistic undertones. Instead of the record player also being the amplifier, it’s a complete separate with modern monitor style speakers. This is a nice blend of modern as it allows the speakers to be paired and positioned apart from the record player. The player itself could also be used with a different stereo, so you could technically split up the components if you wanted. While that may not be aesthetically pleasing, it might be worth doing. The speakers themselves are handsome looking. The magnetic speaker grills are a nice touch, given that it removes the mounting holes of normal grills if you’re one that leaves the grills off. The woodgrain texture is pleasing, and the volume dial on the side feels good to use and the LED light ring on it doesn’t mar the look of the speakers. A press of the center button will swap inputs, which are announced (bluetooth, analog), and a long press will turn the system off. I got pairing mode enabled by swapping to bluetooth, turning off the unit, and then holding the button The speakers are composed of 2” tweeters and 4” woofers. The enclosures are sealed to improve accuracy and one speaker includes a plate amplifier with RCA, 3.5mm phono, and bluetooth inputs. There is a separate subwoofer RCA jack as well. The speakers are powered by a straight AC power cord, so no wall warts or ugly cables. The record player similarly is powered by the same style cable. It includes a switch for playing 33 or 45 rpm records. There’s a 45 adapter if that’s your thing, but standard vinyl is probably what you’ll find on store shelves these days. The dial lights up similarly to the speakers and the record player is well engineered. The needle mechanism is well weighted and includes an adjustment weight that’s easy to balance. The release to float the needle to the record is smooth and gentle. The record won’t spin until you move the needle near the record and it will stop when you reach the inside of a record. Overall it’s simple, elegant, and appears to pick up well. I had to adjust the weight a bit to get the proper amount of balance on the needle, as it would produce some pops and skips when improperly adjusted. The needle would also start to get stuck in a groove, but most of this was my mal-adjustment of the counterbalance weight. The feet absorb vibrations well, and keep the record player’s needle in the groove. It all comes together pretty well at the end. I played a bit of Miles Davis, and this music was smooth and pleasing, as if this set was made to play this sort of jazz. Moving to more modern titles, like Nora Jones, the genre worked well. Bass was accurate if a bit shallow. Highs weren’t harsh, but weren’t overly clear either. Part of this is the nature of vinyl though. Queen probably stressed out of the speakers the most, with a more dynamic punchy sound. Switching over to a wider genre of music via bluetooth (I just have a small record collection), it’s obvious that we’re dealing with small woofers and mediocre sound quality. Victrola is a company that makes quite a bit of cheap retro kits, and while they shot for the stars here, it’s obvious that their speaker engineering is not living up to its price point. For $200 for the M1 monitors alone, they’re a complete disappointment. There are plenty of self powered speakers in the $100 range that blow these out of the water. Victrola doesn’t publish any detailed specs on the amplifier or speakers themselves, but the total power consumption is rated at 60W. Account for losses, at best we’re talking 20W speakers. Due to their sealed design, mids and lows are accurate, but understated. The rigidness of the enclosures helps, but the sound is just so so. I want to emphasize that it’s not bad by any means, but it’s not what I would expect when throwing $350 at a boutique audio problem. You’re better served by dedicated bluetooth speakers in this price range. Victrola reached for the stars on this one and produced a very nice looking, and feeling product. The sounding part might be lacking for the price point. At MSRP, it’s a stretch, but find this on a decent sale, it does an amazing job with jazz and smooth music that doesn’t rely on heavier bass. Bluetooth is a nice touch, and the overall look and controls are on point. If the monitors had been class leading this would have been the perfect setup for a modern stereo that blends retro sound and modern capabilities.

I’ve never had a vinyl record turntable before but have a few vinyls from an inheritance, so I’ll admit this was a learning experience for me. We did inherit the player too but it’s very old and broken so never got a chance to actually play any, so I was excited to give this a spin (pun intended!) Upon taking everything out of the box there’s a few things to put together, which for a newbie like myself was a bit daunting but not difficult. I made sure to study the instructions thoroughly, so I did not miss anything. Mainly you put the big metal platter onto the turntable deck and the silicone slip mat on top. There is a belt under the platter that needs to be stretched so that it goes around the motor on the top left of the deck. They provide a piece of ribbon taped to the platter that will help you get the belt attached. Once that is attached then I was confused because the manual says you need to adjust the tonearm “or damage may occur to the unit or records” (scary!) but there was another note that says this is already done for you so I just skipped that step, removed the shipping foam from the weight and tonearm, and connected the monitors via the line out cable included. It would be nice if the manual itself mentioned that everything is setup for first time use. The dust cover is easily attached via removable hinges or can be completely left off if you’re installing in another cabinet. Again, I found a discrepancy in the instructions as they say the hinges come preattached to the back of the unit but mine were found in a small box labeled accessories. At this point I’m impressed with how the system looks and nothing seems out of the ordinary except for that there are only 3 rubber feet on the bottom which due to my inexperience with turntables I’m not sure if there’s a reason to not include 4 but it makes the whole thing a bit wobbly. I don’t think the feet are adjustable and couldn’t find anything in the manual about it, which seems odd because I would think you would want adjustable feet so things could be made level Now, when it comes to playing records I found that the included monitors sounded ok, but are not wow by any means. They can fill a medium sized room but are a little bright and uninspiring. There’s not much bass at all. I actually settled on using the vinyl stream feature and listening on a good pair of Bluetooth headphones. The monitors themselves also support Bluetooth if you needed to use them with a different source. Now here’s where both my inexperience and the poor instructions hurt me. I didn’t realize until SEVERAL DAYS of using this thing that there is a small little lever (called a cueing lever thanks to Googling) to help you gently move the tone arm precisely on and off of the record versus dropping it by hand. I scratched a perfectly brand new record (yup heard that authentic record screech sound and all) because I was unaware of this feature. The instructions said use the “lift lever” which I thought was just the little lever on top of the cartridge for your finger. Pros: Beautiful Espresso Aesthetic All-in-one System Weight and anti-skate tuned out of the box Phono Output Switch Cons: Instructions could be better Is not stable, bit wobbly Monitors are bright Overall – The turntable is great for anyone who wants a good midrange setup: affordable, produces great sound and the overall package just looks great. However, for a more pleasing experience you could just get the turntable instead and pair it with better monitors or a stereo system.

Writing this for thr 25 pojnts. Bought as gift, wont know whag they think til christmas

Victrola has brought forth a package that takes you back in time with crystal clear sound and a music experience like none other. Upon getting the package home and opening the box you are greeted with a great rod it that screams quality from the materials and look of it. The two speakers and the turntable are just gorgeous to look at. Once you set them up in the room of your choice they are a showcase just by themselves. Setup was very simple and intuitive. I pulled everything out and had it up and connected in five minutes. Then came the hard choice what vinyl should we play first? Pulled out Queen and placed int table and let it go. The sound made me feel like I was right there with them singing in Such clarity I would expect from very high end speakers. They music quality was perfection and that’s being modest. I tried over twenty vinyls and every single one played smooth and produced exceptional audio quality that even my friends and family were impressed. It’s a beautiful musical producing machine that take you back in time. Being able to play my vinyls in such a modern time with a very modern player is an amazing feat. Highly recommend this package!

I’m super impressed with how easy this system was to set up and it sounds great! My dad left me a pretty phenomenal record collection and he’d be proud to see and hear it being played on this turntable. My husband got me a cute retro looking turntable several years ago but it was time to upgrade and I’m super glad that I did! I know that there are some pretty impressive setups out there for audiophiles, however I can only speak as some who loves the scratchy sound of an old record and this absolutely lets me enjoy every bit of it. Victrola is such a great brand and I can really see this system lasting a long time. I love how classic it looks and how easy it is to set up and start playing! My favorite function is that we can Bluetooth the sound to an outdoor speaker so while we’re outside enjoying the summer (and a cocktail or two) we can let our kids run wild and my husband and I can enjoy our music without blaring the system in the house or even letting any bugs inside! If you’re looking for style and ease then this is exactly what you are looking for!

Unpacking the system was interesting, a very good job had been done to isolate components and parts in an order that matched how you would need them in assembly. I basically pulled out a layer and then the next, assembled what I had, and went to the next layer down in an additive way. Very simple, very easy - 15 minutes and I was spinning an LP. Initially, the speakers had an issue with power up and I contacted support. They had a replacement set on the way in short order. When they arrived, it was plug and play. The sound quality was very good for the size and profile of the speakers, the pre-amp in the phonograph was awesome and let me run the speakers at a reasonable level with very full sound. Bluetooth connectivity was easy and sound quality as transmitted was very nice on my ear buds and over the ear sets. I also experienced good range from transmitter being able to wander the house and not drop signal. The controls took a bit of an adjustment for me as they were a generation better than what I had been using, the first time I heard the speaker announce the mode I was in was a bit of a surprise - rather than a color change, the speaker actually tells you when you switch modes from analog to blue tooth etc. The size of the system was just right for the space I had and the speaker cable reach was more than I needed but may come in handy. It lloks nice and sounds even better. All in all, a very pleasant experience.

We haven't had a record player for quite a while, years ago the kids ruined the needle on our old one and I haven't found a replacement for it. When I got the chance to get this one, I was pretty impressed by the complete package. It has a nice set of speakers that can also connect to Bluetooth devices and automatically synced to my soundbar. The speakers sound pretty good and the record player itself is very easy to operate. I had picked up a new record (all of our old ones are packed away) and it worked perfectly. It was nice to hear the old sounds from a record player. The anti-skate mechanism makes it simple to pick up the arm and position it over the desired track on the record. Then, just drop the little handle and it lowers onto the record where you chose. Assembly was pretty straightforward, just follow the pictures and instructions on the large board that covers everything when you open the box. After taking all the soft covers off of everything, and emptying the accessory boxes, all the parts are well labeled and plug in quickly. In a few minutes, the system is up and running. For a complete system, this seems to fit the bill pretty well. It has a good sound, can connect to other devices and looks nice sitting on the table.

While helping my Mom downsize, we came across some great albums from my youth. The problem was that neither of us had a turntable. I looked around but I didn't want anything elaborate, just something that would help take a trip down memory lane. I found it in Victrola's Premiere T1 Turntable System. It has all that is needed to get up and running without having to get other items to make it work. It came well packaged and every item was easy to find. The first thing out of the box was a full-size get started guide that even grannies can see and understand. Because it is on cardboard, it can stand up which makes it easier to assemble the turntable. Now I played the helpless granny card and let the kids assemble it for me. While they had no trouble, I think I would have struggle a bit though I still could have done it. One thing I will caution though, all items were covered, even the manuals and the kids, not thinking there was anything there, tossed the manuals at first until I insisted on seeing them and they were found nicely ensconced in the same material everything else came in. While there are bluetooth cables included, we went with the manual. Finally, everything was assembled and the vinyl came out. Elvis Presley, Rolling Stones, Dave Clark Five, Bobby Sherman, Chuck Berry, David Cassidy, yes, and many more from my youth. Even after all these years, they still sounded wonderful. There were no problems with skipping and the sound reminded me of listening to these on the recordplayer of my youth which means the speaker are adequate but not great. While it will play both 33 1/3 and 45s, unfortunately, it doesn't play 78s from what I can see. I've got some great 78s, oh well. It's also a shame that it doesn't appear as if you can stack your albums either unless I missed that feature. I'm so happy I got this. It is either a great starter set for those new to vinyl or a wonderful gift for those seniors who still have the albums of their youth to take some trips down memory lane.

Classy little record player and speaker combo. Feels really well put together. Looks great and feels like it's made from quality materials. The sound is pretty decent at lower volume levels, but distorts above a little over half way up. The instructions are good, but a little confusing when it comes to setting the tone arm counter weight. The instructions say move the weight back until the arm is balanced, then turn in 1.5 turns. However there is a protective foam block around the weight that says it's preset at the factory. I didn't know which to believe, so I ran through the adjustments the way the manual said to do it, and ended up right back where it came pre adjusted at. For some reason the player only has 3 legs... two in front, and 1 in the back which makes it hard to adjust the switch for 33 or 45 rpms... I had on a record that was an extended play 45 and didn't know it because it's in German, and it looked like a normal 33, but when playing it I realized it was to slow so I switched to 45 and the rear leg being in the center allowed the whole player to tip slightly to the side causing the tone arm to skip across my brand new record... That's a terrible design flaw in my opinion. It could have damaged both the record, and the needle but luckily they both seem ok. I'm not sure why they only use 3 legs but they should have used 4, or put the switch on the front of the player. Overall it's a good looking quality feeling record player that gets the job done but is very basic. If that's what you're looking for then I would recommend it.

Put this system through two days of heavy listening to all genres of music, and have a torn view on the system. The turntable is fantastic. 5/5. Quiet, great playback, decent quality arm. The M1 speakers are below average at best. 2.5-3/5. The Bluetooth on them drops constantly, and the sound is very harsh and way too bright. An example would be listening to Celine Dion. Her voice has range and resonates on a good pair of speakers. On the M1s, her voice sounds more shrill and flat. A side-by-side comparison between the M1 and a similarly sized Kef hooked up to a 45W parasound Zamp 3 and the Kef blows them out of the water. So noticeable that even my wife could tell the difference, and told me she didn’t want the M1s even for a guest room sound system. We hooked the turntable up to our main living room B&W tower system and it sounds beautiful. Just a smooth like butter sound. Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” has a warm, wide soundstage. The Beatles’ “Sgt Pepper” was a cacophony of sound, and the audio was rich and clear. Definitely proves the speakers were holding this system back. As a set, this is a decent value for a start into hifi. I highly recommend upgrading the speakers as soon as you can, because it opens up the sound of this fantastic record player. It’s a night and day difference. The M1’s really need more design time. They do a disservice to their turntable. Hope this helps. Really wish I could review the components separately.

This is a nice upgrade from the small box type turntable I was using! The box is heavy but packaged really well to protect the product. Each piece was wrapped in a protective cloth and then surrounded by cardboard. It would have been helpful if the pieces were labeled. There is a large cardboard sheet with limited instructions and 2 small booklets to assist with set up. This should have been more specific and with more detail IMO. The instruction regarding the arm weight and adjusting the dials were not good at all - conflicting directions. The speakers/monitors are nice and are a good sound and size for the room where I have this setup. There are 2 speeds 45/33 with a switch on the back - IMO this should be in the front or on the top. Also there should be a spot to place the 45 adaptor. The power button on the unit is easy enough to use and understand however it took a minute to figure out the power button on the monitors and figuring out Bluetooth. The cover is made well and easy to attach. I would have liked to have a remote for the volume control. I played a variety of my albums and they all sounded great - even though a few pops were heard I thought the quality of the sound was good. I do not think that this is worth the $399 price point and not sure I would recommend this to friends.

Pay close attention when setting the counterbalance weight and antiskate adjustments. Follow the manual instructions. On mine the counterbalance weight was locked in place with an allen screw so loosen it with the included wrench to allow it to turn. The manual doesn't mention this. Don't assume that it was set at the factory since mine was set way too heavy out of the box. These adjustments can be critical over time as too much stylus force can cause premature wear on your albums and stylus while setting it too light will cause skipping and tracking problems. If you've had a turntable with counterbalance and antiskate adjustments in the past you may already know this. However the calibration on this one seems different from my older ones since the manual recommends a setting of 1 for the counterbalance which equals 3 grams of force where my older turntables directly equal the number of grams (1 equals 1 gram, 2 equals 2 grams, etc.). If you're really picky you may want to use a stylus force gauge sold separately to measure the actual force applied. Be sure to remove the stylus cover before adjusting as it adds weight to the cartridge. If you just don't care to set this properly maybe you should consider a cheaper turntable without these adjustments. Ok, now that the lecture is over let's get on with my review. This is a decent turntable with adjustable counterweight and antiskate. No pitch control but maybe not needed so much with today's more modern motors. Certainly not DJ quality you probably won't want to be scratching on this but great for listening to and revisiting my old album collection. I have over 150 albums that I mostly bought before cd's were available plus a few new ones. I still have my old Technics direct drive turntable (about 45 years old now) but haven't used it in a long time since most modern receivers don't have a turntable input. I bought a preamp for it but haven't really used it because of all the hassle of connecting it all up. So I thought I would try this out to maybe bring some of my vinyl back to life. It's well packed and much more convenient with built in preamp and bluetooth. You can connect to the included speakers with bluetooth or the good quality cables included. No receiver required. I prefer the cables over bluetooth for max quality. The turntable and speakers look nice. Belt drive, 45 and 33 1/3 speeds, and soft rubber feet (only 3 though) to dampen shock and resist feedback. Good replaceable cartridge, matches the system well. Mine had a bit of hum till I turned on the turntable power and it went away. The speakers were a pleasant surprise as they sound really good to me. They accept rca input and 3.5 mm as well as bluetooth. They even have a subwoofer output if you want more bass but they have good bass already. Easy pairing with my phone for mp3's and they get pretty loud. Overall a nice convenient system for those with an old album collection or new users wanting to try out some vinyl.

Although I’m more than old enough to still have a collection of vinyl from the analog days, I no longer have a system set up with a turntable. With that in mind, I thought this might be an answer. Was it a good solution? Here’s what I found while exploring the strengths and weaknesses of the Victrola T1 system. All 30 lbs. of this turntable and speaker system came well packaged in a large box. The build quality is acceptable and solid but not audiophile look or quality. Some seem to think the walnut finish is cool, but to me, it has the look of shiny Formica from the past which is not my idea of elegance. The assembly was simple but a bit finicky. The first time I pulled the platter’s rubber belt over the capstan, it ended up with a twist. You must be careful to get it right. The next issue was the tonearm counterweight. Although the instructions said it had to be screwed on, it came pre-installed and seemed fixed in place. It took a bit to realize there was a very small set screw that was preventing adjustment and balancing. The included but never mentioned, hex wrench was the clue, and soon the arm was balanced and secured in place. These are minor but annoying issues. After you separately plug in both the turntable and left speaker and connect all the RCA plugs it’s ready to play. The sound was clear. The stereo separation was good. However, it was harsh and overly bright for vinyl. If you know anything about old LPs, they tend to have more than a fair share of snap, crackle, and pop from years of use and can sound a bit muffled without good highs. This was the opposite. The crackling was exaggerated, and the bass was muted. I experimented with the Bluetooth capabilities of both the turntable and speakers and found that the speakers were part of the problem, but even when listening with studio-quality headphones, the sound remained overly bright with wacking not booming bass. It’s almost as if they failed to build this system with the RIAA equalization that’s needed for vinyl. My final assessment is that the turntable is decent, but the speakers are a disappointment. The T1 is offered standalone, so if you have a good stereo system or Bluetooth speakers, just go that way. Also, this needs to be used with some type of equalization hardware or software to balance the sound. I would only recommend it was those qualifications.

I had a turn table with a built in speaker but it stopped working properly (i didnt get it from best buy) . So my mom got me this for mother’s day! And im in love with it! It just arrived yesterday and it was easy to put togerher. And the sales rep who helped was so friendly and informative. I believe his name was Alex! Thank you for your help!

Just what I needed! It fits right in my small apartment. The sound is better that expected.

I’ve order this product 3 DIFFERENT TIMES and ALL 3 came in damaged. The first one, the tonearm holder (the middle part that holds the tonearm) was broken. So I returned that one and got another one. This one was someone else’s returned turntable. I start unpacking it and the motherboard in the main monitor is loose, just hanging inside the monitor. I return THAT ONE TOO. So I purchase another one for the last time and not only is this one ALSO a return (even though Best Buy clarified to me that they “DO NOT GIVE YOU RETURNS”) and lo and behold THIS ONE IS ALSO DAMAGED. Not only is the motherboard also loose, but the volume/power knob came off and doesn’t push in. Absolutely terrible quality and not at all worth $400