I Want This!

Also consider a used turntable. I bought a vintage JVC Nivico semi-automatic turntable with an Ortofon cartridge that was advertised on Craiglist for $140 and I like it a lot. In fact I like it better than the Project Carbon Debut that is going for about $400. You can also check ebay for used turntables such as Pioneer, Kenwood, Denon, JVC, etc. Just make sure to check the add closely and verify that the seller knows how to ship a turntable.

John,

I'd recommend the Denon DP-300F. I had a very good manual turntable, but, after several years of having to run to lift the tonearm everytime the record finished, I decided that convenience has a great deal of value. The 300F sets the arm down on the leadin groove of the record at the push of a button, and then it lifts the arm automatically at the end. There is an arm-lift mechanism that allows you to pick up or set down the needle anywhere you wish on the record if you want to play the record manually, but there's no way to stop the automatic arm lift at the end of the playback.

I purchased mine online from Needle Doctor in St. Louis Park, MN, back in February of this year, and I've been more than satisfied. Crutchfield also carries them, I believe. They start at $329 with a very basic cartridge, and go up depending on what cartridge you start with. Needle Doctor installs and aligns the cartridge you purchase. I'm not sure about Crutchfield.

Jim Slemenda

Not sure what your budget is, but the VPI Nomad (while not automatic) looks pretty cool. Add a nice pair of headphones (eg., Sennheiser HD600, Grado SR325e, HiFiMan HE-400) and she'll be set! Down the road, she could add a pair of powered Audioengine A5+ or Emotiva airmotive 5s monitors which could probably be driven directly from the Nomad's headphone jack.