![]() The T1 Phono SB ($399, all prices USD) is a belt-drive turntable that comes with everything you need to start listening to vinyl already installed and adjusted: the plinth and platter, pre-mounted tonearm and cartridge, phono cable-even a built-in phono stage. With so many audio companies in the West now sending their manufacturing to Asia, it’s nice to buy something made in Europe, especially when it sits at a price point that many people can afford it. Perhaps most impressive about Pro-Ject isn’t the size of its catalogue but the fact that this Austrian company still builds all its turntables, including the flagship models, in the Czech Republic. ![]() Over the years, as Pro-Ject Audio Systems has grown from a company of fairly modest size into one that appears to have a hand in just about every aspect of audio, the SoundStage! Network has reviewed many of their products. This means I can discuss the sound quality of the T1 Phono SB only as a whole-but given that it’s sold as a package, or bundle, and that many potential buyers will use it as delivered, straight out of the box, that seems less of a problem. But when Doug then explained that the deck would arrive from Pro-Ject already set up, and that my only task was to connect it to my stereo and plug it in, I consented. So when SoundStage! Network publisher Doug Schneider asked if I wanted to review a Pro-Ject Audio Systems entry-level turntable, the T1 Phono SB, my first instinct was to decline. Maybe I’m lazy, but the only reason I bought a turntable is to listen to music on a medium I love: the vinyl LP. I bought my first and only turntable in 2009, and have never had any interest in taking the time needed to properly install and adjust a different cartridge or switch tonearms, so I could evaluate them properly. Which is why, until now, I haven’t reviewed a turntable. When that procedure is not followed, you’re left describing the sum of the parts without having any idea which part has done what to the sound. This is the most basic precept of scientific experimentation: If you change more than one variable at a time, you don’t know which of those variables has produced a change, if any, in the results. The only way to isolate the contribution to the sound of each of these parts is to swap out those parts one at a time. However, every turntable comprises component parts, many of which can be individually adjusted, and each of which influences the sound. ![]() Most turntables don’t have numerous features requiring individual examination. Reviewing something like Anthem’s STR Preamplifier is even more challenging because it has so many features and functions, all or most of which should be evaluated if the aim is to write a comprehensive review. I also find it easier to hear differences between two pairs of speakers than between, say, two good integrated amplifiers. I find writing about loudspeakers relatively straightforward-the most important thing is to set them up correctly, a task made far simpler when you know your listening room well. I’m not talking about describing a component’s sound, but about describing the process of setting it up and evaluating its features.
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