
RT81 Elite High Fidelity Vinyl Turntable
Record Player with Audio Technica AT95E Cartridge, Belt Drive, Built-in Preamp, Solid Wood Plinth


PURE ANALOG LISTENING EXPERIENCE
Premium components allow this high fidelity belt driven turntable to recreate the performance the way the artist intended

HIGH PERFORMANCE CARTRIDGE
The Audio Technica AT95E featuring a diamond elliptical tipped stylus is designed to track your record grooves with greater precision & accuracy for high definition audio

SUPERIOR RECORD TRACKING
Enjoy perfect playback using the balanced aluminum S-Type tonearm ensuring the stylus is rested deep in your record’s groove, producing every audio detail indistinguishable from the original recording

SOLID WOOD PLINTH
The beautiful piano black finished cabinet is crafted from solid engineered (MDF) wood, incorporates isolation feet, an aluminum platter and a rubber slip mat which results in superior isolation from unwanted vibrations

CAPTIVATING SIGNAL CLARITY
Incorporating a high quality built-in Texas Instruments preamp, ground terminal and gold plated RCA line outputs that ensures warm, true sound
Overview
UNPARALLELED VINYL MUSIC PLAYBACK
Specifications

Cabinet Specifications | ▼ |
---|---|
Cabinet Material | MDF |
Finish | High Gloss Walnut Real Wood Veneer |
Dust Cover | Yes - Tinted |
Turntable Specifications | ▼ |
Drive System | Belt Drive |
Motor | DC Motor |
Motor Isolation | Three Point Rubber Isolation |
Speed | 33 1/3 RPM, 45 RPM (78 RPM - No) |
Speed Variation | +/-1.00% - Speed Adjustment Guide |
Wow and Flutter | 0.2% |
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (Weighted) | 67dB or higher (A-weighted, 20kHz LPF) |
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (Unweighted) | 60dB or higher (unweighted, 20kHz LPF) |
Platter | Aluminum |
Diameter of Platter | 12", 30cm |
Weight of Platter | 1.22 lbs (553 g) |
Height of Platter | 0.62 inches (16 mm) |
Auto-Stop | Yes |
Turntable Mat | Rubber |
Tonearm Specifications | ▼ |
Tonearm Type | Static Balanced, S-Type |
Supported Cartridge Weight | 3.5 to 6.5g |
Counterweight | Yes – 3.53 oz (100 g) - Adjustable |
Anti-skating Adjustment | Yes |
Pivot Bearing | Yes |
Cueing Lever | Yes |
Tonearm Material | Aluminum |
Tonearm Wire | 36 AWG Litz Cable / 7 Strand |
Effective Tonearm Mass | 28.2 grams |
Overhang | 19.2mm |
Effective Tonearm Length | 224mm |
Headshell Mount | H-4 Bayonet Mount |
Tonearm Height | 17mm |
Cartridge Specifications | ▼ |
Cartridge Type | Dual Moving Magnet (MM) |
Cartridge Model | Audio Technica: AT95E |
Replacement Stylus | ATN95E |
Stylus | 0.4 × 0.7mil Bonded Elliptical (Diamond) |
Cantilever | Aluminum |
Mount | Half inch |
Frequency Response | 20-20,000Hz |
Channel Separation | 20dB at 1kHz |
Channel Balance | 2.0dB or less at 1kHz |
Load Impedance/Capacitance | 47k Ohms/100pF |
Output Voltage | 2.5mV +/–3dB |
Cartridge Weight | 5.7g (+/- 0.5g) |
Headshell Weight | 10.7g |
Cartridge Height | 0.67 inches (17 mm) |
Recommended Tracking Force | 2.0g +/–0.5g |
Vertical Tracking Angle | 20 degrees |
Rubber Belt Specifications | ▼ |
Rubber Belt Design | Continuous loop (joint-less) |
Width | 4.5mm |
Length | 534.07mm |
Thickness | 0.6mm |
Output Specifications | ▼ |
Connector | RCA (Gold-plated) |
Preamp | Yes, PHONO/LINE Switchable |
Phono Output | 2.5mV +/–3dB |
Phono Bypass | Yes, all electronics bypassed when using external preamp |
Line Output | 140mV (–17dBV) |
Ground Terminal | Yes |
Power Specification | ▼ |
Input | 100V - 240V AC (50/60Hz) |
Output | 12V / 500mA |
Consumption | 1.5W |
General Specifications | ▼ |
Dimensions | 5.5 x 16.5 x 13.75 inches / 14.0 x 41.9 x 34.9 cm (HxWxD) |
Certifications | FCC Certified, RoHS, CUL/UL |
Unit Weight | 14.1 lb (6.4 kg) |
Operating Temperature | 20°C |
Wireless Playback | No (Requires Bluetooth or WiFi transmitter connected via RCA connection to transmit audio wirelessly) |
Fluance Speaker Size Comparison Chart | |
UPC | 061783264362 |
What's Included |
Press

Unbox and Review the RT81 Turntable with Vinyl Rewind
It’s going to carry you along for a very long time. I give this turntable four-and-a-half pompadours out of five.

RT81 Turntable and Signature Bookshelf Speaker Review
Set up and take the RT81 Vinyl Turntable and Signature Bookshelf Speakers for a spin with Vinyl Eyezz.

Detailed Review of the RT81 Turntable with Craig Farraway
It's a very very nice turntable...I can recommend this turntable, absolutely. It’s an awesome piece of equipment, it sounds amazing. You will not be disappointed, I can almost guarantee you that.

Slash Gear Reviews the Fluance RT81 HiFi Turntable
"Playback from the RT81 was quite good, with even the deeper bass of hip-hop and some electronic music coming through smooth and clear.”
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CNET Reviews the Fluance RT81 HiFi Turntable
"It feels like a $400-$500 turntable. I guess you can tell by now I'm impressed."
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Tech Crunch Reviews the Fluance RT81 HiFi Turntable
"The walnut finish gives the RT81 one of the best looks of any entry-level turntable I’ve seen. It’s sturdier and heavier than some of the cheaper turntables out there from brands like Crosley and Denon."
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Digital Trends Review of the RT81
"Music played on the record player was deep and smooth with excellent clarity. In general, there was low distortion, sparkling treble, and strong bass across the records we listened to, from Broadway to Drake."
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What's the Verdict? TechRadar Reviews the RT81 Turntable
“The Fluance RT81 is the best starter turntable you can buy. Its gorgeous design and convenient features takes the headaches and stress out of setting up a turntable for the first time."
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Best Buy Reviews the RT81 Turntable
“I’ve been impressed with the Fluance RT81. Audio performance is very good, with relatively balanced sound and excellent separation."
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Customer Reviews
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Love the player! Its quiet, and love the antiskip on it
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I just setup my RT 81 and couldn’t be happier. It was fast and easy and worked completely as advertised. It sounds great, looks amazing and for the money can’t be beat.
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This is my first turntable, so I wanted quality at a reasonable price. The RT81 nails it at this price point. I wasn’t ready to dive into high end cartridges and preamps so the RT81 is perfect. The next level turntable is $50 more plus you then need a $100 or more preamp, so the RT81 is a no brainer. I love the sleek design, very classy. The setup was no problem. The packaging is first rate. The sound is great, I couldn’t be happier. I waited 3 months to get this and I’m glad I did.
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Great quality. Solid, great look and feel. Excellent value. I did a lot of research, landed on the RT81. I didn’t want to pay for extras I didn’t need, such as automatic functions. The preamp works well and there is no ground loop issue.
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Five star turntable with a few downs.
1. The labels for the tonearm weight are in grey, makes it very hard to see and set up.
2. The actual tonearm is plastic. A bit disappointing.
On to the positives, which are amazing...
1. Great stylus/needle and cartridge. You don't need to buy an extra stylus to get great sound.
2. Solid plinth/base. The base is outright heavy, it won't be budged or help with nasty vibrations.
3. The detail. From the tonearm's downward and upward automatic motion to the simplicity of the power buttons, this thing has fewer things because fewer things can go wrong with it.
4. The sound and feel. While the sound of what it gives you from clean records is amazing, there is something to be said for the overall feel of records that are pretty good in fidelity. You feel the sounds from even cheap 100 dollar powered speakers in detail.
5. The price is pretty competitive. You can buy a 100 dollar suitcase system and end up with next to nothing. Instead, you can use this table to work towards a literal 350 dollar system that sounds amazing.
Nearly Highly Recommended. I just wish they would make the labels in bright white contrast instead of grey. This is an amazing turntable with a really crisp and deep sound coming from a great mechanism. -
I just got back into the vinyl world after many years out. My old TT didn't survive the years of inactivity and had bought a ATLP60 to get me by. Well that was NOT enough! Did my research and found the RT81 had excellent reviews and right in the price range I wanted to spend. BESY money I ever spent. Best TT ever. Amazing looks and sound. I upgraded the stylus to the ATN95EX and it has opened up so much more sound. Not the the one that came with it was a slouch by any means, I just wanted a little more fidelity out of it and I got it. I cannot recommend this TT enough. Stop reading and get this! Now!!
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This turntable is great! I got this as a gift for my friends 30th birthday and he loves it. Shipping was super fast too, once this model was back in stock I ordered and had it in days.
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fast shipping I got exactly what i wanted, work great, thank you.
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Looks great . Easy to set up. Sounds good!
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Amazing quality, great looks, great sound. I love the wood on it, it’s really beautiful. I just wished it was fully upgradable to RT85 specs. (For example the tone arm weight required to put an Ortofon 2M Blue cartridge doesn’t fit the tonearm of an RT81)
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Very nice looking record player. Seems to be put together nicely. Seems sturdy. Plays well. Quick turn around on my order. Less than 5 business days I believe.
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After purchasing an Rt85 for myself, I told my brother who researched and thought it was a great choice. He has an ancient Dual turntable that no longer worked. I surprised him with an RT81 as a gift. We've spoken and he absolutely loves it. Only drawback is he regrets selling so much of his vinyl years ago for CDs. He now is spending money he didn't plan for new replacement albums.
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Great turntable! Easy to hookup and fantastic sound. Highly recommend.
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Impeccable all around! After ample research and deliberation, I decided on this RT81 turntable. From the packaging down to the sleek design, I love it all! The experience that I have playing my vinyl on this turntable is awesome! Great job Fluance!
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Looks beautiful in my setup and sounds great with new and old records alike. I like that I can upgrade the cartridge in the future and bypass the internal amp if needed.
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Resources
Manual
Guides
Video
FAQs
Fluance turntables do not include built in speakers.
To use a Fluance turntable, connect it to a home theater receiver or amplifier for use with passive speakers, or connect it to a set of powered speakers such as the Ai40 Powered Bookshelf Speakers.
If your receiver or speakers do not have a specific PHONO input or integrated preamp, RT80 and RT81 both include an internal preamp for quick and easy setup.
An amplifier is only needed if you’re connecting the turntable to passive speakers such as the Signature Series Bookshelf Surround Speakers.
If you’re looking for an option without a separate amplifier, the Ai40 Powered Bookshelf speakers fit the bill.
With the Ai40, all you need to do is connect the included RCA cables to the speakers, turn on the internal pre-amp and you’re ready to listen to the music the way it was meant to be heard.
If you’re using an amplifier without a phono input, or some powered speakers such as our Ai40 model, you will need to use the preamp by sliding the switch to the “LINE” position.
The tonearm of the RT80 and RT81 model turntables is compatible with cartridges from 3.5 grams to 6.5 grams in weight.
For full instructions on this process, see our video below: