Sony's PS-LX250H is an entry-level belt-drive turntable that offers fully automatic operation. It's an easy way to get back into the vinyl game, particularly if your current amp doesn't have a phono gain stage. The PS-LX250H has an onboard phono preamp that'll boost the levels, allowing you to hook into any RCA jack on your amp. It can play back records at both 33.3 RPM (revolutions per minute) and 45 RPM, and comes with a plastic, hinged dust cover.
This is a very nice turntable for the low price. Black, fairly nice lines and compact, it has buttons on the front for start, stop, and to change speeds (33/45). There is also a manual up/down button.
The turntable is a belt drive - you engage the belt when you put down the platter. I find the construction so-so - with a lot of plastic under the hood. The fit and finish are mediocre. no more than what you might expect for 100 bucks.
The sound is good - my old records sound the way I remember them. THe unit comes with a built-in preamp, in case your amp/receiver does not have a Phono input. My Marantz receiver does not have one. I tried connecting two ways. First I tried improving sound quality by turning the built-in preamp off, and routing the phono signal through a preamp within my old receiver to teh AUX input on my new one - I got an awful humming sound. THen I gave up and used the built-in preamp, with the connection directly to my AUX input. This worked fine.
I am now in a long trip down memory lane as I have not had a way to listen to my records for the past 7 years!
Strength
Economical -- $100 to $130
Built-in preamp
totally automatic
Belt drive should mean less noisy
Weakness
Cheap construction, not likely to be durable
Plastic is obvious
lots of vinyl/plastic parts inside
Belt seems especially flimsy
Platter is aluminum - not particularly heavy
Overall Rating :
Value Rating :
Written By
Raffa(Unregistered User)
From
Acadia Valley, Alberta, Canada
Date Created
10/14/2002
Summary
Good value fo $100.00. Wouldn't pay a penny more though.....am impressed with sound qaulity. It's almost hard to believe a 100.00 dollar record player could sound so good. No skipping or anything like that. Stylish looks....
note: If anyone knows where I can buy a new needle for it let me know.....
Strength
easy setup and easy to operate.
Weakness
plastic gears that may wear prematuraley as opposed to older-style turntables which have metal gears. Not good if you play as much vinyl as I do. this turntable has no 78 setting which really irks me.....
Visitors rate this review
1.00 out of 5
after 1 votes
Overall Rating :
Value Rating :
Written By
Shawn (Unregistered User)
Date Created
06/14/2002
Summary
Purchased this turntable based on reviews on this site and amazon.com. Setup out of the box was easy, turntable operated properly, seemed to be well built. However, on the first use, it was obvious that the motor did not turn the platter at the correct speed. Rotation was noticeably slow, at least 5% slower than spec. Had to take the unit back, and they gave me a demo unit as a replacement. I will set this one up soon and post a follow up review.
Obviously, at this low price, Sony doesn't do a lot of testing at the factory.
Strength
Price
Hassle free return at The Sony Store
Weakness
Quality control
Visitors rate this review
5.00 out of 5
after 1 votes
Overall Rating :
Value Rating :
Written By
rick(Unregistered User)
From
south san francisco,ca usa
Date Created
01/12/2002
Summary
at 100.00 this turntable has met my expectations.It has a preamp switch so you can hook it up to your aux on your reciever.It plays my old records flawlessly.The turntable has a nice look to it and it seems durable to last for many years.I would recommend this model for someone who doesent want to spend more than 100.00 on a turntable .
Strength
good sound..easy setup..reasonable price..no skipping
Weakness
none yet..its all you need in a basic turntable
Visitors rate this review
5.00 out of 5
after 1 votes
Overall Rating :
Value Rating :
Written By
Mike(Unregistered User)
From
Somerville, MA, USA
Date Created
11/14/2001
Summary
Excellent, simple turntable that works well with any music system because of the built in pre-amp that can be turned on and off at the flick of a switch. Good sound and have had no problems with it thus far. I use it with a small bedroom mini-system but it also works well on my larger living room audio system.
Strength
Easy set up. Good sound. Has a built in pre-amp.
Weakness
None.
Visitors rate this review
4.50 out of 5
after 2 votes