Pro-Ject turntables

I started with a Project Xpression, which I believe used to cost less than it does now, and I loved it.

I Just had one of the wood bodied Grado carts on it with the Grado phono pre....of course all of this snow balled into my currently $10kish Garrard 301 rig, but my little brother is still using my first project setup and I have to say I still like it.

Ok, cool. What did you like about it, per se.

Notec; so what then is your advice if all the under-$1000 TTs are crap? And at what level does a turntable newbie start at?

The Orbit TT by U-Turn Audio

It was just easy to listen to. Nothing super hifi about it but it still had good sound stage and with that cartridge combination it delivered warm natural sounding vocals, which for me is pretty important since I don't listen to a ton of instrumental records.

That being said I was not a fan of their pairing with the stock Blue Oyster cartridge, or whatever it was. That cartridge with the carbon fiber arm was a little harsh sounding and lacked body.

Dear Notec,

The Orbit IS an ENTRY LEVEL TT that sells for $179.00

To quote you "Hi Fi entry level TT's are a pure waste of money"

I don't quite understand your reasoning Sir!