Automatic turntables are hardly a new idea, and there are several companies that make them. Bluetooth turntables are also pretty common these days. But an automatic turntable with Bluetooth that can also play the same side of a record as often as you want, without lifting a finger? That’s a rare combo indeed, and one that Victrola showed off at CES 2024 in it VPT-800 Automatic Turntable.
At the show, Victrola said the Automatic Turntable would be available for a very accessible $200, and now it has made good on that promise. You can buy it online at tons of retailers including victrola.com, Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy, and Target, plus lots of bricks and mortar stores.
Just in case you’re not familiar with the benefits of a fully automatic turntable, these devices are perfect for anyone who has experienced anxiety at the idea of dropping the needle to play a record or returning the tone arm to its starting position at the end of a side — an automatic turntable does it all for you.
And with the VPT-800’s repeat mode, you can perform that same process again and again, until either the record, the needle, or your own sanity gives out.
Wondering why you’d ever want to play the same five or six tracks endlessly? Victrola has some suggested uses for this feature. Warning: You’ll never think about household chores the same way again.
It must be said that Victrola has done a nice job with the design of the Automatic Turntable. All of the controls are flush-mounted to the deck, and the front power button has an illuminated ring, which looks very cool. This is not your dad’s automatic turntable.
You get a standard set of stereo RCA output jacks in the back, and there’s also a switchable preamp, giving you lots of flexibility in terms of connecting the turntable to amps, receivers, or powered speakers.
The one-piece tone arm has an Audio-Technica AT-3600L moving magnet cartridge attached to a fixed headshell, and the Bluetooth capability lets you stream your records wirelessly to almost any speakers or headphones.
