Swiss audio gear makers Lenco announced today, that a handful of their most recent turntables and record players, including the $449 belt-driven LBT-345WA and the $329 direct drive L-3810, are now available for Americans to purchase on Amazon and through a new partnership with hi-fi retailer Audio Advice.
According to a Lenco press release,seven new productshave shown up for sale on the Audio Advice website, including four turnables, two complete audio record player systems, and a cool turntable setup and maintenance kit in a suitcase (more on this below).
Chief among the new releases is the flagship LBT-345WA, a stylish-looking belt-driven mid-range turntable that Lenco says is built with upgradability in mind. This is largely due to the inclusion of Ortofon’s excellent 2M Red moving magnet (MM) cartridge that can be easily fitted with Ortofon’s step-up Blue or top-of-the-range Silver stylus, which means that as users grow into theirrecord collecting addictions, the turntable grows with them, providing increasingly improved sound and dynamics.
The LBT-345WA looks to be a sure-footed deck, weighing just over 11 pounds. It features an anti-resonant carbon fibre tonearm and a built-in, switchablephono preamp, which means that out of the box it’s ready to be connected to a set of powered speakers or andintegrated amplifier or receiverwithout a phono input, or the preamp can be switched to its line-out option if you have a component or speakers with a built-in phono stage you’d prefer to use — it’s a win-win.
Additionally, the LBT-345WA is Bluetooth 5.2 enabled, expanding connectivity options to any Bluetooth speakers you have for wire-free playback of your vinyl.
Lenco has not only also seen fit to outfit the LBT-345WA with an included felt slip mat and detachable dust cover, but an added bonus is the inclusion of a chrome-plated weighted record stabilizer that you position on the main spindle post. Stabilizers, which are widely usedturntable accessories, apply slight pressure to the record increasing its contact with the platter to reduce vibrations and help produce a more stable sound, especially on records with a slight warp.
Buy at AmazonBuy at Audio Advice
The Lenco LBT-345WA is available now on Amazon andAudio Advicefor $449.
Lenco is also focusing its recent inclusion to the American market on its only direct drive turntable, the L-3810, which bears a striking resemblance to the indomitable Audio-Technica LP120 or LP140XP, which has been on our list ofthe best turntables you can buyfor some time (that’s not a bad thing).
Geared towards DJs because of direct drive’s stability, consistent rotation speeds, and its ability to include DJ features such as pitch control, the L-3810 does all that and more, for a reasonable $329, which is slightly less expensive than A-T’s comparable decks.
On the ease-of-use scale, the Lenco L-3810 features push-button start and stop and speed controls (45 and 33 1/3), and with direct drive the record gets up to speed almost instantaneously. Pitch control is as easy as moving a slider up or down, the mechanical tone-arm lift ensures no-fussneedle dropping, and its anti-skate feature and simple counterweight keep the needle correctly in the groove.
Driving the sound from the turntable is the decent Audio-Technica 3600 cartridge, and keeping the turntables resonance at bay is an s-shaped aluminum tonearm, aluminum platter with rubber slip mat, and adjustable rubber feet.
The L-3810 also features a built-in switchable phono stage and for diversity on connectivity options, but lacks the Bluetooth connectivity of the L-345WA.
The Lenco L-3810 is available now on Amazon andAudio Advicefor $329.
Lastly, as part of Lenco’s announcement today, the company also unveiled the availability of the cool new TTA-12IN1PRO, a 12-in-1 professional maintenance kit that comes in a secret-service looking aluminum suitcase. The kit comes with everything a vinyl enthusiast could need for setting up a turntable or keeping it running in tip-top shape. It includes: an antistatic record brush, stylus force gauge, a cartridge azimuth and VTA protractor for setting your cartridge’s horizontal and vertical angles, a cartridge alignment protractor, 4 small spirit levels, cartridge/stylus installation tweezers, a 45 RPM adapter, and more.
