Fluance RT87 Turntable review: two minute review

Nothing highlights the highs and lows of vinyl like a proper turn table such as the Fluance RT87. Maybe you’ve been using the same Audio Technica LP-60 or even Crossley or Victrola that proliferates the storefront of every record store you’ve ever been to. No shame, I’ve had each at some point.

But there’s something about a fully manual turntable from assembling and calibrating (and testing one’s patience) to cleaning a record every time you put a new one on. Convenient is not necessarily a word that I would use for this process. But it is a bit meditative. More importantly, the audio quality you get a step above with that analog warmth that the best turntables are known for, while not adding unnecessary distortion that may make your vinyl also sound a bit unintentionally lo-fi.

Of course, spending the $799.99 / £666.33 / AU$1,231.70 is not enough for that immersive listening experience. You should probably get a pair of the best stereo speakers you can afford. And if those speakers don’t have a built-in phono preamp, you’ll have to get one of those too. This turntable does not come with one.

Fluance RT87 Turntable review: price and release date

• How much does it cost? $799.99 (around £666 / AU$1,230)
• When is it available? Available now (launched in June 2026)
• Where can you get it? Available now in the US; UK and Australia coming soon

Newest among Fluance’s offerings with a mid-June 2026 release, the Fluance RT87 is available in the US and will (at the time of writing) be available in the UK,and Australia very soon. And whether you get it in Natural Walnut, Piano Black, or Piano White, the price goes for an only-cheap-to-audiophile price of $799.99 (around £666 / AU$1,230). And that price stays the same regardless of cartridge, of which you can choose from the Ortofon 2M Blue or Audio Technica AT-VM95ML.

Just be aware that the Fluance RT87 does not have a built-in phono preamp, so you’ll need to invest in one. Fluance does sell the PA10 Phono Preamp for $99.99 / £82.99 / AU$154 and can be bundled (though without a discount) on its site.

Fluance RT87 Turntable review: features

• Very light on features and extra perks — the connoisseurs' choice
• No phono preamp or 45 RPM adapter
• Does come with a bubble level

If the Fluance RT87 is more for the audio purist and I think that’s who the brand is targeting, then it makes sense that this turntable is pretty light on convenience-focused features. There is no built-in phono preamp — something you can find on much cheaper decks like the Audio-Technica AT-LP70XBT. And, of course, you won’t find Bluetooth connectivity or any other unique types of connectivity.

I don’t say this as a bad thing, either. After all, the Fluance RT87 is meant for someone ready to enter more serious vinyl listening and all those extra accoutrements take away from what’s important and that’s its performance and everything involved in making sure that it performs properly.

While I’ll cover most of those choices for performance in the next couple sections, it’s worth noting that the Fluance RT87 comes with the option of either the Ortofon 2M Blue or Audio Technica AT-VM95ML cartridge, either of which cost over $150 as just as part ($166.99 and $179.00, respectively). The configuration reviewed here is the Ortofon 2M Blue.

While there are plenty of opinions out there on both cartridges and how they affect the sound and I won’t parse out that whole conversation — people’s opinions of cartridges are as varied as they are on any other piece of audio equipment — other than to say that either cartridge marks an entry point into serious audio quality from more budget cartridges… just like the Fluance RT87 itself.

It’s also worth mentioning that this turntable can play 78, 45, and 33 RPM, via a selector on the lower left corner of the turntable so no need to adjust the belt like some turntables. Unfortunately, it doesn’t come with a 45 RPM adapter. Additionally, it has an Auto-Stop toggle on the back.

Features score: 3 / 5

Fluance RT87 Turntable review: sound quality

• Has a sweet, slightly warm sound
• Soundstage is immersive
• No discernable inner groove distortion

I learned a lot about my records using the Fluance RT87 as my conduit. I learned that I didn’t like the way Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours is mixed. I learned that there’s way too much happening in Kamasi Washington’s Truth. Just to name a few.

You hear something that was there this whole time, but you noticed it on this last listen. And that’s not something that typically happens with entry-level gear. In short, I really enjoyed listening to the Fluance RT87. And while the turn table is a step or two up from entry-level gear (maybe beginner audiophile gear or first serious turntable level), the rest of the chain was more on the budget side — Fluance’s affordable PA10 phono amp and the company’s Ai41 speakers. Solid gear, but not transcendent.

One of the good things about using the Ai41 speakers is its Bluetooth connectivity. I could compare a record to a digital stream of the same music via HiFi through Deezer, which I did in a few cases. Rumours, for instance, got a play through vinyl as well as Kacey Musgrave’s Golden Hour. And the vinyl sounded just a little bit better. Maybe it’s the even-order harmonics. Maybe it’s using physical media over digital zeros and ones. To me, everything through the Fluance RT87 had this little bit of bloom to it. It just sounded a little bit sweeter.

Since I had done my best to properly set up my bookshelf speakers when I did my serious listening, I found the soundstage to be expansive and enveloping during listening sessions. I mentioned Kamasi Washington’s Truth, from his album Harmony of Difference before. When playing that song (really the whole record), not only could I hear his band to the outer reaches of where the speakers were projecting, but I could hear precise placement of various horn parts placed across the sound stage. In the same vein, Radiohead’s Pyramid Song sounded phenomenal on this setup.

As far as frequency response goes, I was pretty pleased. With the obvious caveat that the speakers are going to be the biggest bottleneck in a sound system (a bit of an oversimplification), I found the mid-range to be rich and full. Kacey Musgrave’s voice and guitar on Slow Burn, the opening track from Golden Hour, has weight to it. And the high-end has plenty of detail, while retaining some of the warmth of analog as it’s a tiny bit rolled off in a pleasing kind of way.

Now, the bass response is a bit tighter as opposed to big or woolly. It was still very present. Sure, it has a defined space on an older record like Rumours or Talking Heads’ Remain In The Light, but it’s easily placeable and doesn’t overpower the mix in something like FKA Twigs’ EP1.

Lastly, every record I played had a good amount of headroom so that the music came through clearly and without any real distortion (outside of those even order harmonics). And there wasn’t any discernable inner groove distortion either as the stylus would wind its way to the end of each side.

Sound quality: 5 / 5

Fluance RT87 Turntable review: design

• Heavy-duty plinth and platter
• Belt-driven
• Removable cartridge

If you’re just getting into turntables, you might be wondering what puts the Fluance RT87 in a more expensive price bracket compared to a lot of the popular, feature-filled turntables out there, one of which you might be upgrading from.

Obviously the sound quality is a huge part of that, which we’ve already covered, but that sound quality is affected by the build of the Fluance RT87. Of course, it’s worth mentioning that it’s a classy-looking deck with a high-gloss finish, available in Natural Walnut (reviewed here), Piano White, and Piano Black. It is made from MDF, but that’s actually a positive, as it doesn’t create any resonance.

Getting back to that build, the plinth, aka the body or chassis of the turntable, is heavy — the whole thing weighs 21 lb (9.5 kg) — giving the turntable a durable feel. Also, the acrylic platter is hefty in and of itself at 4.1 lb (1.85 kg). Incidental bumping or closing of the dust cover, which is surprisingly easy to scratch, doesn’t skip or affect the sound. And unless your record is warped, it will rotate without any up or down motion.

This is a belt-driven turntable with an adjustable and rigid carbon fiber tonearm (you even get a little hex wrench to adjust it), complete with removable counterweight and tiny anti-skate weight, and replaceable cartridge. I’ve mentioned earlier the two types of cartridges to select from and the fact that the reviewed model here came with the Ortofon 2M Blue. It’s worth noting that this is a moving magnet cartridge with a nude elliptical stylus.

The feet, of which there are three, are adjustable to help level the Fluance RT87. They are basically large, mostly silicon silicon screws.

Control-wise, there’s just the speed selector on the front, left corner of the plinth and the auto-stop toggle on the back. The ports are about as Spartan — just stereo RCA inputs and a ground outlet.

As far as extras go, the turntable comes with a RCA cable, ground cable, hex wrench for adjusting the tone arm, and bubble level, so you can adjust the turntable’s angle accordingly before you end up butchering any records. Brushes and any extras will require an individual purchase.

Design score: 4.5 / 5

Fluance RT87 Turntable review: ease of use and setup

• Putting it together takes ten minutes
• Not plug-and-play
• Fine tuning takes even longer

This should not be your first turntable. There’s ritual to setting up the Fluance RT87, as there is for a lot of turntables once you graduate beyond the three-to-four hundred dollar range. Because of that, it was equal parts frustrating and engaging. So, yes, there is some assembly required.

When first unboxing, I had to remove everything from its plastic wrapping and then spend probably five minutes just getting everything all together. I had to put the platter on the plinth, put the belt around the platter and then on the motor, put the Ortofon cartridge on one end of the tonearm followed by the counterweight on the other end, then on goes the anti-skate weight, and, lastly, I had to add the hinges to the dust cover and then attach it to the plinth.

But wait, we’re not ready to start playing any records. I had to turn the platter a few times with the belt on so that it’s evenly distributed. Since the platter doesn’t have a ridge or indentation for the belt, it has a habit of slipping off (and still does if I’m a bit clumsy removing a record after play) — something you don’t have to deal with on cheaper decks.

I also had to adjust the feet so that the turntable is completely level, making sure records lie flat during play. This takes a bit of time because you have to reach under and turn each foot clockwise to extend (counter-clockwise to shorten) until the bubble level shows its bubble directly in the center. This took me about ten minutes of adjusting initially, though to be fair, I was using a table that wasn’t very level. After moving the Fluance RT87 from the table I first had it set up on to a different, somewhat treated room where I had to put it on the floor, it required much less adjusting.

Adjusting the tonearm’s counterweight took quite a while as I had to be precise in getting it to balance flat instead of flying up and away from the turntable or digging into my records. While it’s par for the course, this probably also took me about ten minutes of adjusting, though that’s partially because I set it up according to the manual and found the tonearm to still not have enough weight from the counterweight.

Similarly, the anti-skate weight here is a bit finicky as well. It’s just a tiny ball on a thread thin enough to thread a needle with a loop on the other end to attach to the tonearm. The tonearm attachment is basically a lever with four notches on it to account for different anti-skate weight needs (for instance, the anti-skate should loop over a different rung when using the Ortofon cartridge versus the Audio-Technica one). Not only did it take some experimentation to find the right setting, but the loop kept slipping off its rung.

If you’re upgrading to your first big-boy or big-girl turntable and considering this one, just be ready to put in some time getting it right before actually using it. Also be aware that some of the required attention to detail during setup is not unique to this turntable, though anti-skate weights aren’t always a tiny ball on a tiny string.

Usability and setup score: 3.5 / 5

Fluance RT87 Turntable review: value

• Less features and automation than cheaper turntables
• Better sound quality than those cheaper turntables
• Some entry-to-premium decks may sound as good, but aren’t as sturdy

It’s interesting that the cheaper decks are the more convenient. It’s almost as if the more money you spend, the less features. Exhibit A, for instance, might be the FiiO TT13. This turntable costs a little over a quarter of the price of the Fluance RT87 ($249 / £239 / AU$249 if you need specifics), while adding in Bluetooth connectivity, a built-in phono amp, a fully automatic tonearm, and, frankly, due to its plug-n-play design requires none of the setup or fine tuning of the record player reviewed here. But I would hazard that the Fluance RT87 sounds quite a bit better since it has a bit more heft to its sound.

If you’ve been looking at upping your vinyl game, you might have already looked at the popular Rega Planar PL1, which at $595 / £299 / AU$645, is probably a more direct comparison. But, while the Rega also has a pretty spacious sound, it’s a bit more workmanlike in construction. It’s more utilitarian in looks and is much more light weight in construction. The Fluance RT87’s acrylic platter alone weighs about half of the Rega Planar PL1, making the Fluance more likely to absorb shocks and bumps without fuss.

Value score: 4 / 5

Should I buy the Fluance RT87 Turntable?

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Fluance RT87 Turntable review:: Also consider

How I tested the Fluance RT87 Turntable

• Used regularly for a few weeks
• Played through Fluance P10 Phono Preamp and Fluance Ai41
• Played at various speeds and different size records

I used the Fluance RT87 for a few weeks, listening to as wide a variety of music from Rock to Jazz to Americana that I could. In so doing, I used the different speeds as well as seeing how it did with different size records. I also used the record player in a couple different rooms and with a couple different speakers, the Fluance Ai41 mentioned above and the Klipsch The Nines II.

I’ve tested a lot of tech gear over the years from laptops to keyboards and speakers, and so have been able to use my expertise towards giving an honest and fair opinion, not to mention a critical eye, to any product I test.

• First reviewed: July 2026
• Read TechRadar's reviews guarantee

• Prices are going up across almost all the Apple Music tiers
• There are some bumps in Apple Music prices too
• These are the first price hikes we've seen since October 2022

Apple Music is the latest subscription package to get a bump in price, leaving users with the choice between paying more or losing access to the streaming part of their library. The bundled Apple One package that includes Apple Music now costs more as well.

As reported by Music Business Worldwide (via Engadget), the reason cited by Apple is "rising licensing costs". It's the first price hike for this particular subscription we've seen since October 2022. The new monthly prices are below:

The Apple One price increases are less clear, as they're not as easily available on the Apple website. It appears the Apple One Family plan is now $27.95 per month (up $2) and the Apple One Premier plan is now $39.95 (also up $2), though the Apple One Individual plan has stayed at $19.95. Internationally, similar price rises are likely.

This comes at a time when everything tech-related is getting more expensive, from laptops to streaming services. Exploding AI resource demand has sent the price of memory and storage rocketing, and that continues to have a knock-on effect everywhere.

Loss of control

Apple raises prices for Apple Music and Apple One subscriptions from r/apple

Apple is of course by no means the first company to put up its subscription prices, but it's a reminder of the pitfalls of the digital rental model. As soon as you stop paying, you lose access — so if you need a service, you have no choice but to accept the higher price.

The online reaction has mostly focused on this too: "It's not even about the cost sometimes," writes one Redditor. "It's about loss of control over your finances. Companies can jack up their prices whenever they want." Few commenters seem ready to quit Apple Music, though many are pointing out the billions that Apple has in the bank.

Apple Music doesn't have a free tier like Spotify does, but it beats every other music streaming service in the support it gives you for local files. If you have enough MP3s and ripped CDs, you can use it perfectly well without a subscription.

As we've written about recently, Apple is selling more and more of its software products through recurring payments rather than a flat one-off fee, and one of the reasons is that it's more profitable — and makes it more likely that users will continue to pay up.

• Audio engineer Cameron Oatley is better-known as 'GoldenSound'
• He's teamed up with Status to add a special tuning profile to its Pro X buds
• The result is Pro X GoldenSound; the fruit of impressively extensive labor

Sometimes in this job (as TechRadar's Audio Editor), I just get sent a set of earbuds and a press release. Sometimes, I'm invited to an online briefing so that a marketing rep can explain key terminology before I start my review process.

Rarely am I invited to a lovely pub in London, lulled into a false sense of security with a drink and a comfy chair and then taken through a brief but intense Doctorate in audio engineering.

I jest, of course. But if you've ever come into contact with either Status Audio (see the Status Audio Between 3ANC or Status Audio Pro X for previous examples of greatness) or Cameron Oatley, aka GoldenSound, you'll know that things are about to get decidedly audiophile. And given that this is a collab between the two, it's doubly so.

What you're looking at is the Status Pro X GoldenSound Edition. Yes, it's gold-tone on the top of the case and on the accents of the stems — but that's not all. Inbuilt here (and definitely not available in the non-GoldenSound variant) is a special new piece of software that Oatley thinks is the "most accurate tuning that a TWS product has ever had" and a "faithful recreation of real-world sound".

And this version will be $279 when it hits shelves in August (so $30 more than the current price of the Pro X, at $249) or around £209 / AU$400, give or take.

Status Audio Pro X GoldenSound: are listeners up for a Harmon Curve rewrite?

In terms of hardware, you're looking at everything built into the Status Audio Pro X, so two balanced armatures and a dynamic driver — something Status has been working with for some time and with no dearth of success.

But this time around, Oatley describes his granular approach to tuning thus: "What you measure is the IEM plus the impact of the rig" ie. your inner ear — albeit a metal tube to represent it with a mic at the end, for the purposes of his testing.

Oatley explains that the Harman Curve is often implemented incorrectly by audio engineers, because when it was developed in 2012 (and subsequently published in 2013, quickly becoming a trusted reference), true wireless earbuds hadn't yet been invented.

Because of this, the Harman Curve uses the pinna, or outer ear, as the reference point — ie. part of the "rig". But when developing in-ear products, from a purely sonic perspective (not including the creation of ANC antiphases) you can ignore the outer ear because the product starts within your ear canal. I know! Contrary to what we were taught as kids, the answer to 'My, what big ears you have!' isn't actually 'All the better to hear you with'…

How does all of this stack up against AirPods Pro 3?

I ask Oatley what he's most proud of with this project and he's surprisingly open: "Look, for ANC I think AirPods will always be tough to beat. But a lot of work has been done to make these sound better. These are for the user who wants the best possible sound in a true wireless design. I hope I've achieved that".

He then points me to a graph that's like the Harman Curve, but different. It's what he was able to achieve with the GoldenSound Edition. He's particularly proud of the graceful line between 80Hz and 100Hz, juicy bass frequencies he feels are more accurately relayed in the Pro X GoldenSound Edition. And I have to agree: in this area, these earbuds glitter like gold.

Let's get to the meat of the thing: listening. Both Status and GoldenSound actively encourage me to do this, and even set me up with a Qobuz screen, an LDAC source device and some AirPods Pro 3 for comparison. Oatley adds, "something tuned perfectly on a low codec is still better than something tuned badly on a higher codec", and while we all know you won't get LDAC out of AirPods, it's a very valid point.

Billie Eilish's Bad Guy is expansive and clean, with a snappy, impactful low end. Dire Straits' Money for Nothing is as brooding, snaking and exciting at the outset as you'd ever want it to be. ACDC's Back in Black? A head-nodding and beautifully regimented, cohesive mix.

What's gone are the… I hesitate to call them 'parlor tricks', but that typical V-shaped augmented treble one so often hears in designs of this type feels eased. And know this: the sound is altogether more open as a result.

It's not all glowing praise: during my limited time for an initial listen, you understand, I found Apple AirPods Pro 3's audio just marginally more woolly overall in direct comparison. That said, AirPods Pro 3 do have a slightly more soaring treble from the box. As such, some tracks sound more fun, forthright and zealous using the Apple product. It's the age old debate, isn't it: integrated hi-fi sound or fun, V-shaped in-ear mix?

I know my ear is keenly tuned to treble sounds (I've done the tests) but some listeners will love what's been achieved here. I spy an industry disruptor and no mistake. It's nothing if not interesting — and I'd say the industry standard was due a shake up.

I often find listeners might think they enjoy a certain tuning (typically, wearers might augment bass frequencies straight away) when in fact, if we play with their EQ settings, they actually prefer something quite different.

Here, Oatley hasn't given users the option to tweak his proprietary GoldenSound profile within the EQ settings, although you can select from 'Status Signature', 'Status Audiophile', 'Knowles Preferred' or 'Vocal Enhance' presets, or create your own using an 8-band tab set at neutral from the Status Hub app. Sadly, there's no similar visual for the presets so you really need to trust GoldenSound has done it right here. And given the extensive amount of work that's gone into them, I think your trust is well-placed.

This is not to be considered a full review, you understand. For that, I need more time. But what I can tell you right now is that the process won't be a hardship.

• We Are Rewind's WE-001 tape player gets a limited-edition The Dark Side of the Moon edition with a custom design
• Includes the first tape version of the album's 50th anniversary remastered edition in the box
• Available today for $199 / £159 (about U$310)

Every so often, I'll receive an email about products that a product launch that actually makes me say "Oh damn!" out loud. And seeing the first images of We Are Rewind's new version of its cassette player decked out in Pink Floyd livery was one of those occasions.

The limited-edition 'Pink Floyd X We Are Rewind' version of the WE-001 portable cassette player (which I first got my hands on in its regular edition back at CES 2025) is obviously super-tempting for its beautiful The Dark Side of the Moon imagery on the front (with a Pink Floyd logo on the back), but it also comes with a certificate and a tape version of Dark Side in the box.

The cassette is especially interesting, because it's the first time the 50th anniversary remaster of the album has ever been available on tape — and might well be the only time.

Pink Floyd's Nick Mason joked, "I still have my Nakamichi on the shelf and look forward to testing it with the new The Dark Side of the Moon cassette. Am I correct in assuming that the next major issue will be The Dark Side of the Moon in a large package consisting of the album divided up into 78 RPM discs?"

I already have a WE-001 sitting on my shelf at home, next to my amp, and yet I find myself extremely tempted to pick this new version up anyway.

The WE-001 player is modernized tape player, with a cool aluminum design, and Bluetooth 5.1 support as well as an audio jack for wired headphones. A release from We Are Rewind says there's a "unique headphone amplifier designed with cassette playback in mind" — and it sounds nice, I have to say, though if you're picking up vintage tapes the quality may vary depending more on the tape than what's inside the player.

Even more pleasing is that if you want to get back into mixtape culture (and I do! I've written about wishing streaming services offered more options around this in playlists), there's a line-in — so you can record to tape from another player.

But my desire for this version isn't really about anything the player can do or what it sounds like. I just want that thing on my shelf.

If you feel the same way, it's available to buy now (while it lasts) for $199 / £159 (about U$310). The non-Floyd version of the WE-001 costs $159 / £129 /AU$269.

If prog rock isn't your thing, you might also be drawn in by another We Are Rewind special edition with quite a different look: the jewel-encrusted Duran Duran version.

• Skullcandy launches Crusher 1080 ANC, new premium over-ears
• They mark the debut of three Bose-made features in a non-Bose product
• Just launched and available right now, for $280 / AU$399.99 (about £210)

It is as I foretold: after we saw Skullcandy teases about new headphones, the brand has unveiled exactly the pair of cans I predicted. Meet the Skullcandy Crusher 1080 ANC; they're the pair that skate legend (and brand ambassador) Tony Hawk is pointing at in the picture above — yes, it really is him.

These are, according to the brand, its "best-sounding product" (although interestingly, not the most expensive because Skullcandy's Aviator 900 cans are a little pricier) and in case you didn't know, a 1080 in skateboarding involves three complete skateboard and body rotations performed either frontside or backside.

As a new member of its Crusher line-up, part of the draw will be the adjustable bass (see the big dial on the ear cup), but there's a lot more to celebrate besides that.

You can buy the Crusher 1080 ANC right now; they cost $279.99 / AU$399.99 (about £210) so they're a little cheaper than the likes of the $449 / £449 / AU$699 Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (Gen 2) which they borrow features from.

They come in black, gray, brown, and pink, as you can see modelled sans Tony Hawk below. I rate them in the following order: brown, pink, gray, black, though I'd love to see a camo or floral redesign as Skullcandy is wont to do.

Colors aren't why you'll buy the Crusher 1080 ANC, though. No, it'll be because they offer three new Sound by Bose features at a non-Bose price...

That which we call a Bose by any other name would smell as sweet

We've seen Skullcandy headphones with Bose features before, but the Crusher 1080 ANC are the first pair of cans not made by the brand which have three specific features. And these three features are a big selling point of the product.

The biggest will be Bose QuietControl ANC, which is a massive draw within Bose's own products (including the QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds 2nd Gen). The company's noise cancellation is best-in-class, and now that proprietary Bose technology is baked into Skullcandy's headphones too. To many, this could be a reason to buy the Crusher all on its own.

Bose's TrueSpatial audio with head-tracking (for surround sound profiles irrespective of source material) and WaveForm audio engine (for snappy digital signal processing) are also stepping foot off the Good Ship Bose for the first time with the 1080. These will be great little extras to refine and finesse what Skullcandy already offers.

And that's before we even mention the Sound by Bose tuning and SpeechClarity voice pickup, to improve the music you listen to and your call quality. The latter is new to Skullcandy, but we've seen the former on some earbuds like my beloved Method 360.

And what about the headphones themselves, beyond the Bose stuff? Skullcandy hasn't confirmed the drivers, but I'd guess they'll be 40mm and joined by woofer units.

The battery life is 60 hours with ANC off and 50 hours with it on, which is pretty impressive; there's a 5-band EQ and other features via the Skullcandy app (not Skull-IQ, which some of the firm's earbuds use). Pictures show a dial on the side of the headphones, amongst other physical controls; I'd wager this is a redesigned bass slider, and given how easy it is to miss this on my Crusher 540 Active, I appreciate the rethink.

Reading between the lines, and having tested the Method 540 earlier this year (a 540 is a one-and-a-half skateboard and body rotation performed either frontside or backside, which I cannot do), I get the impression that Skullcandy is undergoing a push to really level up.

The company doesn't seem to be abandoning the commitment to bass that's defined its products in the past (or its love of athletes as brand ambassadors), but seems to want to bring that into a better-rounded audio package with higher-fidelity music on offer. And if the Skullcandy Crusher 1080 ANC is the culmination of this process, I'm really intrigued to know how they sound.

Everyone's getting back into vinyl these days, whether it's for that hit of nostalgia or because you don't want Spotify feeding you AI slop (vinyl, at the time of writing, does not facilitate AI slop… let us all hope it stays that way). And a new discount from Fluance makes picking up its entry-level turntable even easier.

This is the Fluance RT81, which we called "Easily the best starter turntable you can buy" when we tested it back in 2024. And it's a relatively affordable model even without a discount, designed to offer you the record-playing basics without expensive audiophile features.

But right now, it's 20% off, taking $60 off its already-affordable asking fee to make it just $239.99 (was $299.99) on Amazon.

A warning: turn back now if you're not reading this between 8:25am and 8:25pm ET on Wednesday, June 4 (that's 5:25am - 5:25pm PT, though it's not clear if Fluance will budge the window for Westerners). This discount is available as a Lightning Deal on Amazon, as part of Prime Day deals, so it's only live for a slender 12-hour window.

• Shop more Prime Day deals at Amazon US

Hold the needle a sec: the Fluance RT81 does miss one feature common in entry-level turntables, which you should probably know about before you buy.

The turntable doesn't feature Bluetooth connectivity (which plenty of new spinners do in 2026), so you can't pair it with your JBL speaker to enjoy your tunes, say. Instead, you'll need to connect wired speakers via RCA (those white and red dual cables).

While audiophiles prefer to avoid Bluetooth for record listening, due to the compression inherent in Bluetooth losing some of the detail within the vinyl, it's much more common in entry-level record players. The feature makes it much easier to integrate a player into your home hi-fi set-up if you only own wireless tech.

So it's only worth buying the Fluance RT81 deal if you can fit a wired turntable into your home, or you already have a set of stereo speakers that you want to put to good use.

If that's no issue, you'll find the RT81 a nice, good-looking and convenient starter turntable. It's easy to set-up and use, and it sounds pretty great.

The deal will save you $60 which, admittedly, is about the cost of one record these days, but you've probably inherited a collection of those. Instead, I'd put the money towards one of the best stereo speakers so you can use the Fluance properly.

How many more times (and in how many more ways) can I say this? Nothing's most recent batch of colorful, joyful and hang it all refreshingly different listening gear is nothing short of excellent for the money.

And the thing is, those already-excellent asking fees have just been further reduced, in some cases by up to 49% off for Prime Day.

• View the full Amazon Prime Day sale

My pick of the over-ear headphones bunch would be the excellent noise-cancelling CMF Headphone Pro, which have absolutely no business looking this good, or indeed sounding so fabulously fun, for just $65 — a massive 34% off an original launch fee that's barely eight months old.

And if you're after earbuds, it'd be easy to just opt for the cheapest of the cheap, and let me be clear, 49% off the CMF Buds 2a, making them just $19.99 rather than $39 is incredibly low, however you try to slice it. But for me, the Nothing Ear (a) still win out, with a new lowest-seen price of just $53.20 (was $99 at launch, although $79 is their most-recent discounted price) .

And I'm not even done! I also love the firm's second stab at flagship headphones, the Nothing Headphone (a), not to be confused with the inaugural Heaphone (1) which do not feature in this list (yes, I know Nothing's naming strategy can be confusing. That's why you stick with me). No, this newer, far better set of over-ears retains the unusual aesthetic of the original effort but adds much better, fuller, more expansive audio and offers excellent on-ear controls to further enhance it all, plus a battery life that's, well, nothing short of excellent.

Not after headphones or earbuds? It's OK, you can see the best of the new deals, as they drop, in our Amazon Prime Day live blog.

Nothing's insane Prime Day savings – quick links

• CMF by Nothing Headphone Pro: was $99, now just $61.75
• Nothing Headphone (a): was $199, now just $151.05
• CMF by Nothing Buds 2(a): was $39, now just $19.99

Nothing's huge Prime Day sale — the cans and earbuds to snap up

If I had to pick, I'm still going for the delightfully fresh, luxuriously padded teal CMF Headphone Pro, which I regularly reach for (and I test headphones for a living, remember) owing to the easy-breezy on-ear controls and fun, zealous sound when I'm out and about.

That said, there's a little more clarity in the Headphone (a) and I do love the cassette-type look of the ear cups. But if you need a bit of wiggle room in your bag for other essentials, earbuds suddenly start looking very good indeed, no?

That said, the Nothing Ear (3) are the best if you regularly record your voice, thanks to their 'Super Mic'. It's the shiny button directly under the snappy case magnet labelled 'TALK' and it's a lot of fun. It's best to think of it as very much like those little clip-on wireless mics content creators hold very close to their mouths on social media — except now, they might hold an earbuds case to their lips to add voiceovers.

Nothing calls Super Mic a "breakthrough dual-microphone system driven by ambient-filtering technology." Essentially, the dual MEMS beamforming mics built into the case focus on your voice, cutting through surrounding noise (up to 95dB is the claim) for clearer calls and voice notes. And no other product in this little roundup has it. Food for thought, then…

More Amazon Prime Day deals

• Amazon Prime: sign up for a 30-day free trial
• Amazon Devices: Fire TV, Ring & Blink from £21.99
• Apple: AirPods Pro 3 for a record-low price
• Appliances: up to 45% off Ninja, Tefal & Sage
• Essentials: household goods from under £10
• Laptops: from £149.99
• Tablets: Samsung & Lenovo from £125
• TVs: from £129.99

Music lovers listen up, Amazon Prime Day is stacked with offers on some of our favorite audio brands, and I've just spotted a deal on our best budget turntable, making it even more affordable — what more could you ask for?

I started my vinyl record collection in my teens, but my first mistake was not doing my research beforehand, and I purchased one of those Crosley-style players that do nothing but wreck your albums. If I were to speak to my 17-year-old self again, I'd tell him to look into the Sony PS-LX5BT turntable instead.

• Browse the full Amazon Prime Day sale

When we gave the Sony PS-LX5BT a first spin, it was an immediate 4.5 stars from us and we even described it as 'one of the best pound-for-pound Bluetooth turntables around'. Now Amazon has knocked it down to $398 from $499.99, while Amazon in the UK has a similar deal for £307 (was £399).

Selecting the right vinyl player for your needs takes time. At the end of the day, they're an investment piece, so you don't want to regret your choice, but the Sony PS-LX5BT is a solid entry-level option. Our audio editor Becky Scarrott has also pieced together a collection of some of our favorite turntables — which would make great graduation gifts .

Today's best Sony PS-LX310BT deal

My JAM Audio Bluetooth turntable gave out on me a while back, and now I've become that annoying friend that's constantly begging to use other people's vinyl player to spin my favorite LPs. Well, thank goodness for Prime Day is all I can say.

As far as entry-level turntables go, the Sony PS-LX5BT turntable is simple and uncomplicated, yet doesn't compromise sound quality. If anything, its sonic characteristics are quite upfront.

It also doesn't fall flat on the features front. You're going to get plenty of connectivity options including stereo RCA connections for hooking the turntable up to speakers or an amplifier, as well as Bluetooth if you refer to opt for wireless connection. The only small setback is that it doesn't come with an adjustable counterweight, so you get what what you're given, but that's expected for a beginner-friendly record player.

Features aside, there's no denying that it's incredibly sleek in its design, right? And the dust shield is an added bonus, adding an extra layer of protection to your vinyl records as you spin them. I'd buy it on the design front alone.

More Prime Day deals in the US

• Amazon Devices: Fire Sticks & Echo from $18
• Amazon Haul: viral gadgets, tech & appliances from $1.99
• Apple: MacBooks, AirPods & AirTags from $29
• Beauty: 50% off toothbrushes & hair tools
• Cheap TVs: smart TVs from $69.99
• Garden: tools, mowers, planters from $24.99
• Headphones: 50% off Beats, Bose & Samsung
• Laptops: Apple, HP & Dell from $199
• Mattresses: Sealy, Serta & more from $186
• Patio: outdoor furniture, rugs & decor from $19.99
• Sports: 50% off fitness gear, treadmills & clothing
• Vacuums: Dyson, Shark & Bissell from $34

More Prime Day deals in the UK

• Amazon Prime: get a 30-day free trial
• Amazon Devices: Fire, Ring & Blink from £13.99
• Amazon Haul: up to 30% off
• Apple: up to 33% off AirPods & Apple Watch
• Appliances: up to 45% off Ninja & Tefal
• Beauty: up to 60% off Philips & Oral-B
• Essentials: household goods from £5
• Fans: from £20
• Fashion: up to 50% off
• Gaming: £90 off PlayStation 5
• Headphones: up to 50% off Beats & Sony
• Laptops: from £149
• Tablets: Samsung & Lenovo from £79.99
• Toys: up to 25% off Lego and Tonies
• TVs: from £129.99
• Vacuums: up to 40% off Shark & Roborock
• Wearables: up to 30% off Garmin & Oura

• Focal teams up with DS Automobiles
• Jointly unveil DS No 7, new electric SUV
• Said SUV has an advanced sound system to turn audiophile heads

You might know the brand from its beloved Focal Bathys headphones, or more recently for its expensive floor-standing speakers, but Focal is also making great strides in another musical arena: automotive.

The company has teamed up with car company DS Automobiles to unveil a brand-new audiophile-adjacent car: the DS No 7.

I'm no automotive journalist, but even I can tell you that this is a partially- or fully-electric SUV which seats four people comfortably and — given the 14 Focal speakers that'll be dotted around them — rather happily too, I'd venture.

The electric model costs £49,190 (about $66,000, AU$100,000, though DS Automobiles doesn't sell in those regions) while the hybrid one goes for £38,290 (roughly $52,000, AU$80,000). Although that may sound pretty pricey, it's actually cheaper than some Focal tower speakers…

The Focal point

Let's get to the meat of the thing: audio. Focal's presence here is to make an in-car audio system sound sublime. To that end, the French audio specialist has kitted out the DS No 7 with 14 speakers, to create a surround-sound system. These include two tweeters mounted on the roof, four woofers and a subwoofer called a Power Flower (yes, really). The 14 are spread across the vehicle, to fill the car with sound.

Keeping the car audio running is a 690W class D amplifier. It also uses a Focal-made DSP to emphasize the spatial benefits of all these speakers, whether you're seated in the front seats or the back ones.

Focal has also contributed some design ideas to the car, to improve audio. The windows are laminated, and materials used in the design absorb sound, to control audio nasties like echo and diffraction.

As an audio journalist, I've always been led to believe that car sound systems are a means to fight a losing battle. No matter how refined your driver set-up is, if it's fighting with the noise of the street and other vehicles (and the fact that the driver isn't seated in the middle 'sweet spot' unlike on a motorbike where the driver's ears are naturally equidistant from speakers), you're going to be having an imperfect time.

So maybe Focal's found a way to fix this. Or perhaps it's a sound system for when you're idling somewhere quiet, watching TikToks on your phone… 

Here at TechRadar, we test dozens of pairs of headphones every year. And while we've been won over by many an ultra-pricey set of cans, we also love a cheap pair of headphones that punches above its price tag. This article is dedicated to showcasing these wallet-friendly wonders. I asked TechRadar's audio specialists which headphones they'd recommend to buyers on a budget, and you'll find their suggestions below.

If it's true wireless in-ears you're after, you'd struggle to do better than the Nothing Ear (a) buds, which Audio Editor Becky Scarrott awarded a perfect five stars, calling them "a resounding home run" for the British startup and praising the noise cancellation, sound quality and battery life in particular. In the current Amazon Prime Day deals, they're unbeatable value at under $55 / £50.

In the over-ear arena, standouts are the CMF Pro and the 1More Sonoflow Pro HQ51, both of which earned 4.5 stars in our tests. The former were put through their paces by Becky, who was impressed with the "superb" sound quality in general, and was pleasantly surprised to discover "the sort of... personal sound profile curation [we're] more used to seeing in headphones much higher up the food chain". The latter were reviewed by our review's team's resident headphone specialist Harry Padoan, who praised the "adept audio, noise-crushing ANC and eye-catching design". Both are even better value than usual right now, too, thanks to those Prime (and rival-Prime) deals.

Read on for more budget-maximizing buys — and hit the 'View details' button for a summary of what we thought of them in our tests, plus links to the full reviews.

Top cheap earbuds and headphones

Do you need headphones for the next semester or term? I get it. And is money, er, relatively tight? Again, I understand — and the good news is, a huge sales event known as Amazon Prime Day is here to help.

See all early Prime Day deals at Amazon

I'm also here to help, as TechRadar's audio editor and full-time headphones tester since 2019. So, even if I do flatter myself, I know what makes a good set of headphones — and which pairs will lend themselves to studying that aren't those flagship sets few people can afford on a student loan.

When I went to college, there was no Bluetooth audio (why thank you but no really, it's true). There were also no music streaming services and the MP3 format was very much in its infancy.

What I did have was a portable CD player and some Sony headphones. And let me tell you that I owe every exam I passed to these products (plus my local HMV store, which I scurried along to armed with money from a part-time job waiting tables at a Wimpy restaurant).

As a dancer since age two, it turns out I have always needed music and simultaneous movement (or the compulsion to move) to retain information from books. I've since found out I'm not alone — and maybe that's why you're here.

What follows are the four best pairs of headphones I've found for students. I'll explain why briefly, and link to the best deals live now. And don't worry, you've got this.

1. CMF Headphone Pro: artsy over-ears that won't break the bank

Did you know that CMF is simply Nothing's more affordable arm — so these headphones carry a lot of Nothing Headphone (a) magic, just in a more affordable build? And what a lovely original build it is too.

I tested these budget-friendly, very comfortable and surprisingly customizable over-ear headphones and if zealous, bass-hungry sound quality sounds like a bit of you, you'll love these. Add to this the outstanding battery life, the kinds of hearing tests (and personal sonic profile curation) I'm more used to seeing in headphones much higher up the food chain, an 'Energy-slider' that can ramp up the low end even further and a glorious volume wheel on the right ear cup that's something reminiscent of much pricier headgear (the kind made by a company named after a fruit, if you get me) and they're a winning combination.

All of this for a sub-$100 / £80 fee — before we start looking for discounts? OK, the ANC is acceptable rather than amazing and you don't get a hard case, but still, you’ll struggle to find a more original set of affordable headphones that offer this much for this little. Need more? Read my glowing 4.5-star CMF Headphone Pro review.

CMF Headphone Pro

TechRadar's official review scores

Features

4.5

Sound Quality

4.5

Design

4.5

Battery Life

5

Noise Cancellation

4

Value

4.5

Overall

4.5

Group 1 Data

Product	Features ()	Sound Quality ()	Design ()	Battery Life ()	Noise Cancellation ()	Value ()	Overall ()
CMF Headphone Pro	4.5	4.5	4.5	5	4	4.5	4.5

2. OneOdio Focus A6: one of the team's best budget headphones by a mile

For one of the TechRadar team, these are the best affordable cans they've ever tested — and it's not even close, as a quick scan of our 4.5-star review of the OneOdio Focus A6 shows.

You know the flagship Apple cans I vaguely mentioned before — the ones that very few of us can afford? This particular team member prefers the product you're looking at here to those elite over-ears, for sound. What else makes them so good? Well, USB-C audio support, a solid and classy build quality, plus a super-slick companion app you very rarely see at this level and Bluetooth 6.0 for starters.

Again, the ANC is very good rather than stellar, but this is budget-friendly territory and you will struggle to better it at anything like this price point. Highly recommended.

OneOdio Focus A6

TechRadar's official review scores

Features

4

Sound Quality

4.5

Design

4.5

Battery Life

5

Noise Cancellation

4

Value

5

Overall

4.5

Group 1 Data

Product	Features ()	Sound Quality ()	Design ()	Battery Life ()	Noise Cancellation ()	Value ()	Overall ()
1More Sonoflow Pro HQ51	4	4.5	4.5	5	4	5	4.5

3. 1More Sonoflow Pro HQ51: ignore the name — focus on the value

Try to get past the name that sounds like some sort of water filtration system (sorry, maybe just me?) and there's a musically sensitive and expressive set of headphones here that'll reward you time and again for your nominal asking fee.

In fact, we called them the "ultimate in sound-per-pound value" in our 4.5-star in-depth 1More Sonoflow Pro HQ51 review. The aesthetic is much more 'your average set of basic cans' here, but at school, college or university (where the security of your valuables will never be far from your mind), that's no bad thing. And although they might look fairly anonymous, the budget has certainly been spent on the drivers under the hood, because they sound fantastic for the money.

Here, the app isn't especially slick, but it's functional. Also, the battery life is extensive, the ANC is up to scratch and you can even listen via 3.5mm with the bundled cable in the box. If you don't mind their relatively anonymous looks, it's a winner.

1More Sonoflow Pro HQ51

TechRadar's official review scores

Features

4

Sound Quality

4

Design

4

Battery Life

5

Noise Cancellation

4

Value

5

Overall

4.5

Group 1 Data

Product	Features ()	Sound Quality ()	Design ()	Battery Life ()	Noise Cancellation ()	Value ()	Overall ()
1More Sonoflow Pro HQ51	4	4	4	5	4	5	4.5

4. Sony over-ears, but not as you know them

Alongside the flagship Sony WH-1000XM6 and even newer, arguably even fancier Collexion set of cans, there exists a cheaper set of Sony over-ears. And while they're a little older now (having launched in Spring 2023) they still boast effective noise cancellation and many aspects of the Sony sound quality that made their upmarket siblings the industry standard.

The name — Sony WH-CH720 — is instantly forgettable, but the sound quality is not. OK, the build is a little bit plasticky and you're not getting hi-res codecs, but the ANC does a great job at nixing extraneous sounds for this money. And while the sound feels just a tad compressed when pitted against pricier rivals, Sony's Sound Connect companion app helps to tweak things and make them a fantastic option for the money.

Also, given their relative age, I'd look out for extra discounts on Prime Day…

Sony WH_CH720

TechRadar's official review scores

Features

4.5

Sound Quality

4

Design

4

Battery Life

4.5

Noise Cancellation

4

Value

4.5

Overall

4

Group 1 Data

Product	Features ()	Sound Quality ()	Design ()	Battery Life ()	Noise Cancellation ()	Value ()	Overall ()
Sony WH-CH720	4.5	4	4	4.5	4	4.5	4