Customers enjoy the Premiere V1 Turntable Music System for its exceptional sound quality, powerful subwoofer, and sleek design. However, some customers have expressed concerns about the dust cover, occasional skipping, and the product's price point not matching its perceived value.
This summary was generated by AI based on customer reviews.
The vast majority of our reviews come from verified purchases. Reviews from customers may include My Best Buy members, employees, and Tech Insider Network members (as tagged). Select reviewers may receive discounted products, promotional considerations or entries into drawings for honest, helpful reviews.
Page 1 Showing 1-20 of 37 reviews
Pros mentioned:
Sound quality
Cons mentioned:
Dust cover
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
I REALLY wanted to give this 5 stars
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
First off, this is a product I really wanted to give 5 stars going in. The reality is, I just can't do that. I'll go into the reasons why and why this may not be the best option for some people. Here we go.
To start with, the cheap-o dust cover. It's a piece of plastic that covers the platter and the play arm, but not completely. This means that dust will still collect even with the cover on. It's not a traditional cover that covers the entire top of the unit, playing or off. While playing the V1 is completely exposed to dust. A really bad decision to go this route and I don't even bother using the included plastic cover. I lay a large micro-fiber cloth over the top of the unit when not in use.
This unit isn't really aimed at the true phonograph lover. It's basically a jack of all trades, master or none unit. It will play records, but also can double as a TV soundbar with the optical connection (cable included) and Bluetooth audio player. You can even stream the phonograph audio to a Bluetooth device. The Bluetooth works pretty well and the overall sound, including the mini subwoofer, works better via Bluetooth than it does using the record player. One gripe I have with the phonograph is it seems to play just a tad bit slow. Not sure why, but it is noticeable with albums I have listened to on other phonographs.
Some other negatives on this unit I will list now. Fit and finish is a bit cheap, with the fake woodgrain. Included remote is very limited. No way to tell what level the volume knob is at until you hear a beep at max volume. Volume via Bluetooth doesn't sync with the source (phone, tablet etc.), When cycling through modes, a female voice announces the mode in a loud volume. The entire cartridge has to be replaced since you cannot just replace the stylus. 45 adapter is a cheap piece of plastic, sound without the mini sub is every thin and boxy.
I know this V1 is sold by itself w/o the mini sub, but I can't imagine listening to this w/o the sub. Although the sub lacks output and extension, it still greatly enhances the sound quality. In the end, this is a system that just doesn't hit the mark. It's obviously not aimed at the phonograph enthusiast, but more so at the causal listener. I think most people would benefit more from a stand alone phonograph player you can connect to a A/V receiver in a home system. This V1 might be a viable option for a small room where the V1 is doubling as a sound bar with casual phonograph use.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Ease of use, Subwoofer
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Beautiful Player, Speakers Okay
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I started getting a collection of vinyls nearly two years ago and have an existing player, but was looking for something that I can place in another room at the opposite end of the house to play vinyls without needing to move the player or head over when the vinyl needs to be flipped or swapped.
A Vinyl Player with a built in system was more ideal since it was a smaller space and didn't want to take up too much room. The Victola Premiere V1 is a beautiful Music System, with built in speakers and a subwoofer that attaches wirelessly, you simply need to plug both into power. Included with the player is a cover for the turntable and arm, when not in use, plus a remote and a few accessories.
The player can be used for vinyls, bluetooth or you can attach an optical audio cable to passthrough audio that way. It's a great player with multi-purpose for those with limited space. Setting up the player itself is fairly straight forward and comes with a handy guide to assist you with adjusting the counter weight and anti-skating adjustments. Next to the inputs, on the back of the player itself, there is a switch for the record RPMs which supports 33 (33 1/3) or 45 RPM. The back side of the Sub has a couple inputs plus two knobs to adjust Volume and Crossover.
When lifted the player automatically starts to spin the record, once set up there isn't much you need to toggle outside of the RPMs. Bluetooth is a nice feature, since you can use your record player for streaming any audio you may want while using a phone or tablet.
My one gripe would just be the sound itself, the subwoofer is definitely solid and has a good boom, but the actual audio of the player feels lacking when I have it louder. It doesn't sound unclear, but it does leave you feeling the desire for more. I have this in a smaller room where I listen to music while working on projects so I typically keep it low. The elegance of this player and the functionality is great!
If you are looking for a record player that can serve multiple functions, then this is a wonderful option that has a great presence. If you are solely looking for a record player, I'm not sure this would be the product I would suggest, it feels like it needs to tick a few boxes for me to suggest this to someone.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Sound quality
Cons mentioned:
Dust cover
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Nice unit, a bit pricey.
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I received this player to test today. Setting this up was fairly easy, they had it all ready to attach the plate and belt over the motor, and the arm was set and appeared balanced. The footprint size of thus unit is very average, just taller than other units I have. It comes with a dust cover that slides over the pegs on the top, but I would have prefererd this to be tilt back, that way when playing you can cover the record and needle an minimize the sound I hear coming from the needle/record contact, but that is very minimal compared to my other players. Secondarily, I habe to always find a spot to set thus, always on the way. Also dust doesn't stay away when playing, keeping it covered would be nice. This is 2 speed, 33 ⅓ and 45rpm, nice rocker switch to change that. I read the bookelets that came with this before I started set up. Setting up the sub it says it was pre paired, plug in, turn on, and go, but I had to do some button pushing before I got sound, it was not as simple as turn on and go as they said. Annoying, but no issues since initial set up. This comes with options of optical cable TV input or digital input, and rca connection to sub or output, but wireless sub works fine. It does come with rca and optical cable and a 45 adapter, and simple 3 button remote with function button, volume uo and volume down. Thus accepts 3.5mm auxiliary input, did not come with that cable. I have used the Bluetooth to connect my phone, and it worked fair, paired quickly, and the used it record playing function, and the sound us really quite good. I have a Victoria 6 in one unit (cd, cassette, record, radio, blutooth, aux) unit from several years back, and this (as it should) blows the sound away, clarity is very good. Balanced treble and bass with the main speaker and the sub adds that punch and depth you expect from a system in this range of pricing. The volume can easily fill a room. I have it in a large family room and this gets ample loud, but not close to my 5.1 surround system that is also there. I would say it's has no problem making this room fill with sound (16x25 roughly). It's just odd since I'm used to multispeakers, this comes from one spot outward. That being said, clarity is excellent, little distortion when I push the volume to the upper limits. I have tested it with older vinyl from the 70's and 80's, and new vinyl from new releases from this year, and it works well with all of these. Mainly metal and hard rock, but I did some classic rock and classical also and all sounded very good. I do feel the price point is a bit high for this, the build quality is good, material feels good, but I'd be at about 200 under where this is, and the model without the sub 100 under this. I think the price will keep this from traction initially, but this is a very nice sounding all in one system. I would reccomed this system.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Design
Cons mentioned:
Dust cover
Rated 2 out of 5 stars
Higher end all-in-one that misses the note.
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I consider myself a hobbyist when it comes to vinyl. I am in no way an audiophile nor do I hold any barrier for entry on how someone else might want to enjoy records. There are different turntables for almost every kind of listener out there. Yet this particular turntable I found to be subpar in the areas and type of record player it's trying to be.
As a sort of All-in-one type player this turntable leaves a lot to be desired. While the player itself looks amazing. It has sort of a retro-esque look with yet a modern type feel, it goes for more style than function. As you can see in the pictures the glossy finish will show fingerprints easily and the dust cover has an open design that will let in dust an either end of the tonearm. And you probably can't leave a record on the turntable with the dust cover on, lest you risk scratching your vinyl. It's surprisingly lighter than I thought. It feels just as light as a suitcase type record player. This makes it easier to move around but more prone to skips at the slightest of bumps.
As far as audio quality it was very hit or miss, with more misses than hits. The front facing built in speakers and subwoofer want to be a replacement for and/or work as a soundbar for your theater and TV viewing but it's not up to the task. The speaker's ability to isolate ranges is almost nonexistent. Highs and lows are muddled and the subwoofer seems to not fire unless the audio is in the very low range. The subwoofer sounds almost like someone is driving in a car with a nice audio system and powerful subwoofer but you are on the sidewalk only able to hear the very low ends as they drive by. Unless the audio has a constant low driving sound. It's not an enjoyable experience. Tracks like Inhaler by Hooverphonic and other synthy-type music sound pretty good at high volumes. But once you change moods to Norah Jones or mellow music, or almost any other genre, that's when it runs into issues. I experimented with speaker placement to minimal results.
Most vocals were sounding a bit low telling me it was spinning a bit slower than 33rpm. But being a belt driven system the band needs some time to properly break in.
Considering the class or range this turntable is priced at, I was left disappointed. I don't see myself using this replacing my Audio Technica LP120 any time soon. And while you can synch other bluetooth speakers to it, that just defeats the purpose and lessens what this turntable is trying to be, which is a higher end but easy entry type record player.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Ease of use, Sound quality, Subwoofer
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Great for Bluetooth/Aux Meh for Vinyl
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I want to love this, I am a very casual vinyl music listener. And just never wanted to fully jump Into the pool of vinyl record listening. This Victrola player seemed to be a good point to dip my toes Into. Putting everything together was easy enough. I followed the instructions as written and decided I would try the aux and Bluetooth first. It sounded great, good volume good bass response you can adjust the subwoofer to your liking. Next is where I have some issues.
The vinyl setting. I followed the instructions but they did not work to weigh the arm correctly and the sound was terrible towards the outer part of the record and got better towards the middle. After calling my brother who know this much better we were able to get it working and I have to say the sound was meh. Now don’t get me wrong the vinyl streaming setting where I c an listen to records on my headphones is cool. But it kind of defeats the purpose when the sound quality is not great.
I want to like this and when playing music through Bluetooth it sounds great but the main selling point is this is a one stop shop for record playing and it kind of sucks in that department.
As much as I would love to recommend this , I would have to say pass.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Ease of use, Sound quality, Subwoofer
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
Good LP sound system, but bad Bluetooth sound.
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
The Victrola Premiere V1 Turntable is an interesting modern turntable system that includes a built-in speaker and a wireless powered subwoofer. You can even use it as a speaker system and connect to it wirelessly over bluetooth, or wired through optical or RCA cables. Unfortunately, while the Premiere V1 sounds good playing vinyl, it takes a nose dive in sound quality over bluetooth. Almost like getting poor FM reception. Which is a shame, because it’s a whole other animal playing vinyl. Listening to “Good Kid, m.A.A.d. City”, the bass lines on Backseat Freestyle thump with a strong presence. The highs are clean, but the vocals seem slightly repressed and gritty. Michael Jackson’s Thriller album was a similar experience. It’s not audiophile quality, but it sounds good and is a great fit for get-togethers and casual listening. It looks neat, gets loud, and genuinely thumps. I do wish there were an EQ or at least some way to tune the audio, but at least the subwoofer has an adjustable crossover and level control. On that note, I can’t imagine listening to this system without the sub. It really fills out the sound and gives it a party vibe.
Thankfully, setup is a breeze as they’ve already calibrated and paired everything from the factory. All you have to do is mount the platter, set the belt, remove the cartridge cover, and you’re pretty much good to go. Playing vinyl is a simple matter of setting the needle on the LP yourself, no motorized arm or play/stop button. The turntable starts and stops automatically depending on where the arm is positioned. There isn’t much in the way of controls, just a dial for volume with a button in the center to turn it on/off and change input modes. The remote is the same deal with just 3 buttons: on/off/mode, volume up, volume down. There isn’t a display to tell you what mode you’re in, but a voice announces what you’re currently in when you cycle through them. Overall, I really like the Premiere V1 as a turntable for casual listening and get-togethers. I like how it thumps, but don’t expect audiophile quality. And while the optical and line-in inputs might sound alright, the bluetooth streaming was a big miss.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Subwoofer
Cons mentioned:
Dust cover
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
Bringing classics to modern day
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
This is a strange mix of a classic turntable trying to be a modern day all-in-one type entertainment device. With built in stereo speakers, a wireless subwoofer and the ability to input with optical, aux or Bluetooth. All it needs now is the ability to work directly with some assistants and it would fit right in with some of the other multipurpose devices. It already has a voice for menu selection. But, how does the saying go, something like jack of all trades, but master of none?
This turntable system is neat if you don’t have any other sound system to use for audio. But, I feel it falls short in meeting expectations. If you don’t have the subwoofer up and tuned to your liking, audio from the built in speakers sounds really weak and hollow. They also start to give out at max volume. But, depending on your house, if you have the subwoofer up to high, expect nothing but skipping from the record. The slightest step past this turntable on our old wooden floors and you are jumping all around the track. But, their “anti-vibration” system does seem to keep the internal speakers from causing the skips.
The features of this system have Vinyl, for playing the records through the system, Vinyl Stream which is supposed to allow you to play the record to a different wireless speaker, Bluetooth which allows you to use the speakers of this system from something like your phone, and “TV” optical or auxiliary port input. The only thing I could never get to work is the Vinyl Stream, no matter what brand speaker I tried to use. The troubleshooting they provide is simply power off/on and try again. Trying to use this as a TV soundbar is the only reason I can imagine they made this minimalistic dust cover that really isn’t much of a cover. More like a strange piece of plastic that you now have to sit somewhere else when in use. Another really strange design choice is the battery cover of the simplistic remote that is nearly impossible to open when there aren’t batteries already inside.
There is some assembly required, but not as much as the directions show because some parts are already set and it has stickers in place to explain this. I guess all the other directions are in case they weren’t set?
Overall, I feel like this system has good intentions to be more than just a record player in the modern world of technology. But, it just doesn’t quite fit in. If the vinyl stream feature worked, it might be a little better as I could use my actual sound bar away from the source to prevent any bass skip, but I gave up after 4 different brands.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Subwoofer
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
True Romance of 2-ch vinyl Returns in 2022
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Throwback to simpler times,… before the convenience of having thousands of MP3s on our phones, and randomly shuffling thru the hits, and fragmented time multi-tasking with just half or less emphasis on each, there was a time where it felt much easier to focus on the music, find hidden favorite deep cuts that didn’t make the radio, open the liner notes and follow along the lyrics in the song by song order the artist intended. Vinyl has a certain romanticism with warm tones, to sit back and relax and let the music carry us away, dare I say near spiritually.
It’s been a very long time since I felt that I’d transitioned from a dedicated 2-channel audio system to multi-channel surround sound. I’ve owned a lot of very high-end gear over the previous few decades, and fortunately held onto most of my vinyl albums. The only ones that have survived unscathed where those bought into my (relative ;-) maturity, those of my youth (The Monkeys, Kiss Alive II, Ted Nugent, Journey, Saturday Night Fever <don’t laugh, everyone owned this one>) are scratched to hell, so I didn’t expect any turntable to play them cleanly (and I was right). Fortunately several have survived nicely.
Back in the 70s and 80s there was so much snake oil in the audiophile marketplace, with dealers trying to push a $1500 turntable and add a $2,000 cartridge plus stylus. I’m very glad to see the market adjust itself in favor or rational practicality. I’m not saying the crazy expensive stuff from boutique manufacturers isn’t better,… it is, but it doesn’t necessarily have to be 5x - 10x as expensive as a dedicated system.
Fast-forward to 2022 and Victola has brought the mostly long-forgotten love of vinyl LP records to the 21st century. I’m proud to see modern day features added that makes this a complete system, and far more versatile than a simple sound bar to connect to your TV and bluetooth steam audio to it.
Features
+ includes everything you need
+ stereo speakers
+ wireless subwoofer
+ anti-vibration turntable
+ movable magnetic cartridge
+ usable as a TV Soundbar (via optical cable)
+ remote control (invented after our retro systems)
+ bluetooth vinyl streaming to any BT compatible device
Pros
+ Compact
+ Retro nostalgia
+ much simpler setup than ded sys
+ includes everything you need, turntable,
+ introduce new listeners to the beauty of vinyl
Cons
-audio quality could be better
-limited upgradeability
-thin mid-bass, mids, and highs
-optical only TV input (no HDMI)
Conclusion
I find this product super interesting. I went to give my daughter my old record player a year ago, so I did. To my chagrin she’d not kept track of the Onkyo receiver I bought her for her graduation, with speakers left back at her moms house.
She expected it to be a standalone system. Considering the fact that many millennials have not been properly exposed to the love and romanticism of vinyl before, this is an excellent starter to the hobby, which may lead some to a deeper love of music and into higher-end audio.
Recommend: Buy
I would recommend this to a friend
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Decent, but have mixed feelings
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
It’s been about 15 years since my previous turntable broke, so I was extremely excited to get this setup. It was packed very well, but almost made me second guess what I was doing.
I really like how compact this unit is. My previous setup took up an entire corner of the room. This can be placed anywhere. It’s super light weight and does the job. I was able to set this up downstairs and impress the wife. After, I made the call to keep it in my office (upstairs) next to my cigar box. I can sense there’ll be quite a bit of opportunities to throw a record on, sit back and have a stogie.
My wife and I loved listening to our old record player. After testing this out, I’d say this is good for those that are experienced audiophiles, but not seasoned. Catch my drift? Don’t make this your entry purchase and don’t make this your top tier I’m going to run to the store and buy.
Back to the review. Honestly, I’m a bit disappointed with the sound quality at this price. It’s not super impressive and I’ve had worse, but still. It should perform a lot crisper for $500. I’ll put it through another test after cleaning some records, but I keep my collection in pristine condition. For those that want more than just vinyl, you have it! It’s an all-in-one turntable so it has extra features like: blue tooth, remote controlled and a sub… but still. For $500 it should be near flawless.
I know the needle needs to go for a little before I pass final judgement and I don’t have the luxury of listening to vinyl all day. I wish, but I just don’t. I’d say after a few uses I’ll really see if the 33 rpm is true. At times the vocals seemed funky compared to the instruments. I’m chalking that up to user error, but time will tell. To those that don’t want to Google what 33 rpm or 45 rpm mean, just think record size. Large vs. small.
The instructions were fine, but can be tweaked a little for those that are first time vinyl users.
Btw – The first song I played was Carry on Wayward Son by Kansas. Felt it was a great one and worthy of the new turntable. At times the volume randomly increased, so again I’ll give this a few more tries before passing final judgment. I will state that Queen sounded stellar on it.
Overall:
It’s a toss-up. I’m right at the 50/50 of recommending this or not. For now, I’d say no. But maybe it’ll change the more I get use to this. There are certainly cheaper options out there that might perform better. I suggest explore and really see what you want out of a turntable. Read the reviews, check the pricing and go from there.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
Great Sound System, Turntable Needs Improvements
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I have not owned a record player in years, but always loved the sound of vinyl. I recently acquired some classic rock records and purchased a new record to test this unit.
Since Victrola already paired the wireless subwoofer, the setup was straight forward. However, I failed to notice Victrola also already balanced the arm, so I had to readjust the weight using the included instructions.
I liked how many ways you can use this unit. You can use the speakers as a sound system for your television wirelessly or by various cords (included rca/optical cable), you can stream music from your phone, you can connect the unit to Bluetooth headphones, or connect a pair of headphones directly to the unit.
Sound
I felt the bass was great thanks to the subwoofer. Both the lows and mids were clean and clear, but I noticed the highs were not. I also noticed that the records would skip easily if you did not tip-toe around the unit while it was playing. I was disappointed that there was not some kind of damper to prevent these types of events.
Connectivity
I had no issues with the subwoofer or connecting the unit to my phone or other Bluetooth devices. However, I had a difficult time connecting a pair of Audio-Technica ATH-DSR7BT headphones. It took a few frustrating attempts, but I was able to get it to pair.
Pros
Easy to set-up
Great sounding subwoofer
Many options for connectivity
Cons
Not good sounding highs
Skips easily
Needle cannot be replaced (replace whole cartridge)
Victrola has placed a lot of thought on how to keep vinyl in style despite the advancement in technology. I think this is a great midlevel unit, but there are better units out there for the money. I would have a hard time recommending the unit as a whole without fixing the issues I had with the turntable. However, I would highly recommend the sound system as the speakers sounded great.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Sound quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Brings back the classic sound of vinyl records
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
The Victrola – Premiere V1 Turntable Music System – Expresso takes me on a trip back in time allowing me to once again hear the artist I grew up with sing songs without the metal music sound of digital frequencies. The Victrola – Premiere V1 Turntable Music System – Expresso gives back to music what the digital technocrats took away from music, the great sound of clarity of singing and playing instruments. The sound is more realistic than digital music and even vibrates the soul better than digital sounding music. Even though the instructions startled me at first, because of the counter weight balancing of the arm, I was happy to read that all adjustments were already done and that the Victrola – Premiere V1 Turntable Music System – Expresso is a plug and play device. Once I plugged it in, it played great.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Ease of use
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
It's okay
|
|
Posted . Owned for 1 week when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I want to say that it is great but it's too soon since I've only had it a few weeks. I had to return the first one due to the record player having issues. The subwoofer is iffy because you need to turn it up almost to full power to hear it. We love the ease of how it works and sounds okay but I was expecting more
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Ease of use, Sound quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Top notch
|
|
Posted . Owned for 1 year when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Top notch sound easy set up love the built-in speaker
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Ease of use
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Beautiful and easy set-up
|
|
Posted . Owned for 3 weeks when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Amazing Christmas present for the family. Easy set-up, basically Plug and play. Enjoy the Bluetooth function to steam off apple music or Spotify, or the homie's Soundcloud page. Excited to purchase my records and enjoy our front living space. It looks amazing on top of our matching cabinet.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Sound quality
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Great sound
|
|
Posted . Owned for 1 month when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I was amazed by the sounds of this record player. I did not think it would be that good. Pleasantly surprised. I didn’t like the fact that you have to basically tune it yourself. I’m a novice when it comes to record players Still haven’t figured that part out. . Would recommend.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Design, Sound quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Nothing Quite Like Vinyl
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
As many people might have, I have some classic vinyl albums (some bootlegs, some dance remixes) just sitting around. As Prince once sang, “Don’t you miss the feeling music gave ya back in the day?” Well with the Victrola Premiere V1 Turntable Music System, you can get that feeling again.
Not to sound like a music snob, but there is something wonderful about music on vinyl. Sometimes the digitized music today, though it sounds incredible, also can seem a bit sterile. The analog sounds coming from a turntable are just different in a great way. From the subtle white noise to gently placing the needle on the record, the music feels more personal.
Overall, the Victrola by itself looks like a work of art. From the fake wood side marking to the same markings on the dust cover, the turntable looks nice sitting on a coffee table or console. Plus, it is not overly huge or bulky like some of the turntable from years ago. With a powerful built-in speaker and pre-paired subwoofer, the Victrola can certainly fill up a room.
Out of the box, set up is easy. In fact, it may be easier than the instructions lead you to believe. For example, the printed instructions say that there is a counterweight that you must attach to the swing arm. However, this was already attached. Also, it stated that you had to rotate this counterweight to get just the proper balance. So, I messed with this. Only after I was cleaning up did I notice that the cushion packaging that secured it said that it was set to the perfect position at the factory. I never though to look at the cushion throw away portion for directions. Also, the instructions say to pair the subwoofer when markings on the subwoofer say that it is already pre-paired. So, the instructions could match a bit better with the actual configuration. Even with all of this, set up is relatively fast. You can be playing your records in no time.
Anyone who buys a music system ultimately gets it for the way it sounds, and the Victrola sounds amazing. You will have to dial in the subwoofer a bit with the crossover knob on the back. But once you find your setting, the bass will really kick nicely. The high range sounds great to. I was amazed how well the sound carried throughout my home. Also, if you need more kick to it, you can sync up a different speaker to it through hardwiring or Bluetooth. If your records are old, you may need to clean them though. I have stuff from the 80s that have gathered some dust in that time. Once they are clean though, the music sounds just like I remember.
The turntable is belt driven. I noticed no slippage on the playback. Everything was nice and stable. The turntable also seemed to handle some bumps or stomping nearby without any skips or scratching. You should not have any problems with that. Also the turntable comes with a remote which is a nice extra touch for those who want it.
I have been wanting to get a new turntable for some time just so I could hear my old albums. The Victrola Premiere V1 Turntable Music System could not have been a better. The music comes to life just like I remember. I would recommend this system to anyone wanting to get a turntable.
I would recommend this to a friend
Rated 1 out of 5 stars
Disgusted consumer
|
|
Posted . Owned for 2 weeks when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
The power button on the record player doesn't work. I can't reach anyone at Best Buy, and now it is one day over the return date. Best Buy has some nerve selling this worthless piece of trash!!!!! I want to give it Zero stars, but that isn't an option. And the on-line chat bot doesn't even know what a "record player" is!!!! I've wasted days trying to reach customer service!! Best Buy's customer service is non-existent.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Sound quality, Subwoofer
Cons mentioned:
Dust cover
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
Feature-laden, wallet-draining
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
This item was received at no cost in exchange for a fair and honest review.
The Victrola Premier V1 strives to be too much, ultimately failing to live up to what it could be. Unfortunately, the V1 ends up being an expensive, subpar soundbar that happens to also play records.
Prior to receiving the V1 the only way to listen to my records was a cheap, suitcase-style player. Its main faults were its poor quality internal speakers and a thick needle that would constantly skip on any disc that predates the current vinyl fad. This made it virtually impossible to listen to anything in my collection that was produced prior to 2010. So, when my Victrola arrived I made sure to test a record that had horrible skipping issues on my old player, Make It Big by Wham! Not a single skip. In fact, the needle hasn't skipped at all on any album I've sampled on the the V1.
Compared to the suitcase's internal speakers, the Victrola's are amazing. Although, compared to a decent set of powered bookshelf speakers, the Victrola is certainly lacking. Initially I thought the included subwoofer was silly, but it is necessary, and surprisingly powerful. Without the woofer, sound quality is thin and tinny. Your current sound system probably already has a subwoofer taking up considerable living space. Figuring out where to put a second one is something to consider. There is no equalizer or external phone app to make adjustments to the sound quality. So, while the player is decent as-is, plugging into external speakers (powered or through a receiver) will give a much more enjoyable experience.
*Victrola does offer a model (the T1) that has less of the bells and whistles, though it was not offered up for review.
I mentioned above that the V1 isn't sure what it wants to be. I say this because the player has a handful of features that most people will probably find unnecessary as they'll have other equipment that performs those tasks better. Namely, the multiple input options. There is an Aux input, an optical input and Bluetooth input. Because my entry level soundbars produce better quality sound, I can't think of a reason to use these options.
Luckily, there are also a couple of outputs; RCA terminal, headphones jack and what they call "vinyl stream," which is just Bluetooth. The two wired options sound great, but Vinyl Stream wasn't very impressive.
I first tried headphones and was pleased with the quality, though I felt that dust crackle was very noticeable with this method of listening. Also, the jack to plug in the headphones felt of poor quality. It took more pressure than I felt necessary and kind of went in on an angle, which made me worried Iwas going to break it. Also, the jack is on the back of the machine, making it difficult to access.
Next, I connected a speaker to the RCA output. Of the three outputs, and including the internal speakers, this method produced the best sound. My only gripe about this was that the volume knob controls this output, meaning that the volume must be turned up in some capacity to send a signal to an external speaker or sound system. Unfortunately, the internal speakers aren't switched off when using the RCA port. A workaround for this is to connect the speakers via the headphone jack. I felt this method didn't sound as good, but the difference was negligible.
Lastly, I tried Vinyl Stream with my Galaxy Pro ear buds. This method of listening leaves some things to be desired. You need to stay relatively close to the turntable to keep a solid connection, and even then the audio quality isn't very good and the signal is choppy.
The V1 has two more issues to consider. One is the dust cover. It is not made to fit over the entirety of the turntable (though there is room for a cover to do so) but instead it sits right on the platter and rounds up and over the arm. So, it is impossible to put the cover down while spinning a record. More frustrating is that you now have to figure out where to set this big, oddly shaped cover. The other issue, of which I find more bothersome, is the volume of the machine's "voice." When you turn the player on or switch functions the machine will tell you which function you are on. Loudly. There is no way to turn this feature down or off and it is off-putting.
Pros:
- quality mechanical pieces, such as the tone arm and really all the moving pieces
- included (and needed) subwoofer
- remote - sure, it only controls volume and switches functions, but it's nice to be able to do those things without having to stand up!
- versatility
Cons:
- startlingly loud (and uncontrollable) function indicator voice
- odd dust cover (aren't they supposed to keep dust out WHILE the record is playing?)
- headphone jack on the back (cord drags across record/knocks tone arm)
- input/output jacks feel flimsy
- price - cost outweighs versatility
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Sound quality, Subwoofer
Cons mentioned:
Dust cover
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
Victorla Permiere V! Music System - Espresso
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
A few days ago, I received the Victrola Premier V1 Turntable Music System I requested from Best Buy. It was sent quickly and well packaged for shipment. Upon opening and unpackaging the turntable, subwoofer, dust cover and accessories, I found it difficult to decide where to set the unit up. I decided to use the box it came in as that was the only place I had.
The unit comes with a three-button remote control; one for mode selection - vinyl, streaming vinyl, optical tv, and bluetooth - and two for up/down sound volume. The subwoofer can be plugged into the turntable or connected via pre-paired bluetooth. The sound is fairly good and the subwoofer makes it very acceptable. The turntable can play both 33 rpms or 45s with the included plastic 45 adapter. The bass subwoofer can be adjusted for volume and distortion.
I was able to play music from my smartphone through the Victrola music system via its included bluetooth which was quite easy to pair. Sound can also be played from a television set via an included optical cord.
The plastic dust cover is not hinged and must be manually placed over the turntable when the turntable is not in use - a very unsatisfacory solution in my opinion. I find I don't use the dust cover because of it being seperate and apart from the turntable. Another shortfall is the lack of an on/off switch for the turn table. The turntable, once plugged in, will begin to play once the armature is lifted and placed on the vinyl record. It turns off automatically after a time once playing is ended. There is no off button.
I believe this Victrola Music System would be perfect for student dorm or bedroom/rec room use although the price point seems high given the features and quality of the device.
I would not recommend this to a friend.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Rated 1 out of 5 stars
Do not buy, trust me.
|
|
Posted . Owned for 7 months when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Do not buy this. The player skips constantly and the sound is distorted. I had Victrola send me a second machine because they determined the first one was broken and the problems persist on both machines. Clearly an issue outside of just me as since I’ve purchased, the wholesale price has gone down by 50%. Go elsewhere for a high end record player system.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Brand response from Victrola team
Posted .
Hello AaronSt,
Please reach out to [email protected] for assistance in troubleshooting your defective turntable.