Audio-Technica AT-LP140XP-BK Direct-Drive Professional DJ Turntable, Hi-Fi, Fully Manual, 3 Speed, High Torque Motor

I decided to upgrade an older model turntable, that's seen better days. I wanted the best I could get, for under $250. Fortunately, Amazon Warehouse had this Audio Technica AT-LP140XP-SV, open box unit for $249.00. I see them listed new for $399 and up, so I feel like I got a great deal. It arrived in excellent condition, appearing to be played very little, if at all. Someone likely returned it, because they thought it was a semi-automatic turntable. It's a fully manual turntable, with a start/stop button for the platter to rotate. Everything but the box it shipped in was mint condition. This a heavy, sturdy, well made, professional model turntable, with so many nice features. It's quartz lock, direct drive, and came with a pre-installed Audio Technica XP3 cartridge/stylus. I'm very impressed with the build and sound quality. It's a vast improvement over my old turntable. Check all of the other reviews. If you're fine with a fully manual turntable, then you really can't go wrong with this one.

My old Thorens belt drive finally bit the dust after almost 25 years. Needless to say, purchasing a new turntable, and fast, was a top priority for me. This cost me less than the Thorens, but I have to say that, for me, this is the superior turntable. This thing is a beast!! Very solidly constructed, super easy to set up and use, it sounds great! The great reviews are certainly justified. I do have a couple of issues, though, which may very well be down to things I need to do. First of all, I do notice that with some of my LPs, I can detect a thumping kind of sound between tracks. I know that the suggested tracking weight for the cartridge is between two and four grams but the greater the tracking weight, the louder the thumping. It is also very sensitive in a way that my old Thorens was not as LPs that played fine on it have play with one or two skips on the AT. As I am not an audiophile per se, any suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated here! All said, I certainly hope Audio-Technica keeps this model in production indefinitely!!

Here’s the thing: I bought the AT-LP140 for a very specific reason. I wanted an affordable record player to play my limited collection of mono microgroove LP’s and 78’s. My primary turntable rig is pretty “high end”; Sota Saphire with DC drive, Audio Origami tonearm and Benz Micro Wood cartridge. But mono records (like the Beach Boys Pet Sounds) sounded pretty lifeless on my rig. I had expected more engaging sound than this after reading articles from my favorite audio and music reviewers (RIP Art Dudley). It seemed that I needed a true mono cartridge to get the most out of mono recordings, but my tonearm doesn’t allow for easy cartridge swaps. So I resurrected an old REK-O-Kut-turntable and bought a couple of Audio Technica mono carts - one for 78’s and one for microgroove mono’s (AT Mono3/LP & AT Mono3/SP). The Rek-O-Kut proved to be a PITA to keep running at a constant speed, and I was about to give up on the whole project when I found this turntable on line. I’m glad I did! The first thing I did was ditch the felt DJ ‘slip mat’ and get a Herbie’s Way Excellent mat "5.56mm / 285mm Center Hole: Standard Hole", and it is a perfect fit! Not only does the diameter fit within the raised edge of the platter, but it's thickness is perfect for the VTA adjustment range when using the Audio Technica cartridges. I also bought a couple of Jelco headshells with adjustable azimuth and aligned everything as close as possible to Lofgren specs (which this arm can’t perfectly match). I recognize that this is not a fair comparison. My Sota rig is like fifteen times more expensive than the AT rig: using a Denon DL103 with ‘The Cap’ on the AT for stereo, stereo LP’s sounded like crap - dull and over simplified. Keep in mind that the Denon is a horrible match for the AT tonearm: it’s too heavy and low in compliance. BUT, mono microgrooves with the AT Mono sound BETTER on the AT rig than the Sota with the Benz. And, it turns out that 78’s can sound pretty good, if you’re willing to lower your expectations a bit. I am super pleased with this turntable. I’m thinking I might just try an AT-33PTG to see how good this thing is with stereo LP’s!

I have owned many turntables over the years, and have never spent more than 1000k for a turntable. I am replacing a Technics SL1200MK2 which saw quite a bit of use before I bought it used. I bought a new European version of the SL1200MK2 years ago and liked it but ultimately sold it. My first choice for a new deck was the 1200MK7 or 1210GR but I didn't want to spend that much, so enter the AT-LP140XP. The AT-LP140XP arrived today and I had it set up in less than 20 minutes. I expect that someone new to turntables would take longer but it really is an easy set up. The deck feels solid, not as solid as the SL1200MK2, but it's definitely got some heft. I replaced the cart with the Ortofon MM Blue, and the felt mat for a cork one. The power cords and RCA cables also feel sturdy. The only build feature that falls short is the cheesy feeling tone arm lift. The deck looks sharp! I bought it in black. The LED cue light and strobe are blue give it a sleek look against the black. First I listened to Pink Floyd DSOTM, then onto Bowie Station to Station. I'm not going to go into the a lot of details around nuances until I have more hours on it, but I can say that it sounds clear and clean, compared to my SL1200s and other classic Technics and Pioneer turntables. Just for fun I put the stock cartridge back on it and played some 70s 12 inch singles. At first listen the stock cartridge sounds like it might be good for rock or disco. It sounds able. I have several carts so I went right for an upgrade. I'll post an update after more time with the turntable... Update 2 days later: The turntable is going back. I just can't deal with the tone arm lift. It devalues the whole turntable. It's clunky and flimsy. It's a shame they didn't pay more attention to it because this is a decent turntable that feels solid in every other way. The other thing that is sort of distracting is the blue cue light. It seems more decorative than anything. I couldn't imagine using it to cue in low light. I would recommend this as a solid turntable for a DJ that is not planning on using the tone arm lift, or for someone that has never had a better turntable. If you can swing it, buy a Technics, even a used one. The AT-LP140XP is not a replacement for an SL1200MK line turntable. My next turntable will be a new SL1200MK...

Not a DJ here... more of a guy into some good classic vinyl. Luckily i got into it in early 2000's before the recent wave. Only owned it for a few days, however I can really tell for the build quality its very robust and durable. It doesn't seem to introduce unwanted "noise" at all in my setup. Running a nobsound tube amplifier with a set of Klispch's R-41M's speakers. I was using a little Bear phono preamp however it seems to be having issues now, so im borrowing a friends solid state phono preamp for the time being and this thing is incredible!! I found a review on this from a audiophile guru and he recommended backing the tracking force to 2 to 2.2 from the recommended setting of 3 for dj use and, if your not doing dj work. 2 to 2.4 is where the sweetspot is for me personally. I've seen people recommended different cartridge/stylus for just regular listening and honestly I don't think it needs it. I'm hearing things I've never heard before even from digital copies, and I listen to pretty heavy beats and rock music and even with the track is completely full, everything still gets out crystal clear. From the tiny little bells to the large drums, it all there everything proud true full crisp and tight!!! And perfectly balanced with my setup at least, even without an equalizer beleive it or not. I think this was the right choice for me upgrading from a basic RCA turntable i bought new back in 2002. I was looking at the audio technica LP120XUSB however I couldn't get it in black, and I really didn't need the built in preamp or usb so I settled for this even though more expensive I figured it would be more robust since its DJ commercial quality..... And I'm glad i did!! I really like i can vary the pitch to almost anything I feel like and really like the blue strobe scope and blue cue light. Great turntable for whatever you want to do with it. DJ'ing or relaxing in the recliner.

My primary turntable was in for repairs so I needed something to listen to vinyl. Read many reviews on a wide variety of turntables. Finally settled on the AT140LP as it seemed to fill in all the boxes.My primary table/arm/cartridge costs about 7X of what the 140LP does. Got the table after a short delay,set it up and listened to first lp. It sucked. Wife comes in and says dinner is ready. After some stir fry and cabernet, I go back to listening room trying to understand why it sounds so bad. Boom, brain says when was last time you used the pre-amp phono section? About 8-9 years ago,so I started to wonder if I changed the switching back to MM position. No I did not, and after getting it back to where it needed to be,decent notes started rolling off the tt. I then got to thinking how can I improve the sound quality. Here is what I did. installed new Audio-Technica AT-440mla cartridge. installed "Disk Mat" from 1980's that is extremely heavy and dense rubberized material.(great for DD tables). installed "Straightwire " Flexconnect ll interconnects with separate ground wire. installed new Volex power cord with additional ferrite beads. leveled the turntable and stand mounting top. placed some sorbothane dots on the tonearm,near the headshell junction and near the back bearing cradle. used my DB Systems protractor to align cartridge. Set tracking force to high end of AT's spec. played around with arm height to get sound that worked for me. After all this,the table sounds terrific. Quiet,detailed,and with the 440mla cartridge I'm starting to hear the mid-range that my low output moving coil cartridge and outboard phono pre-amp seem to think we can do without. Ignore reviews by DJ's on Youtube, they primarily think of the 140lp as a dj device. The manufacturer,Hanpin, has learned alot about turntable manufacturing to specs. Whether it is AT,Pioneer,Stanton, or others selling Technics clones,they are only as good as the components and quality control that is required by the name brand. By the way, the packaging and condition of the table as delivered was excellent. Be sure to put this one on your list if you are in the market for a turntable. Happy listening. 3/4/20 Update Still very happy with turntable,however I just learned that the feet/footers do no isolate very well. I have a very heavy rack with sand filled corner tubes and by accident happened to touch one tube while record was playing at medium-high volume and noticed feedback. I am ordering some isolators to put under the turntable feet and see how that goes. For the money hard to beat this table.

Looks and spins and sounds excellent. Nice and not too expensive way to return to the LP universe. The quality of printing LPs though in the USA is more crappy than I expected. So you may have great turntable and the rest of the hifi set but you can get new BUT deformed LP. That is what happens often unfortunately.

I buy that for gift to one of my friend but bad experience it’s not power on call many times to manufacture but no help also spend $275.00 to carry on flight to India