Ever since 2008, Record Store Day has drawn attention to the 1,400 independent record stores operating in the US and thousands more worldwide. This year Crosley Radio is joining in the celebrations by releasing a special budget turntable known as RSD3 – which is absolutely tiny.
The RSD3 mini turntable won't be able to play full-sized vinyl albums, or even 7 inch singles. You'll need to source special 3 inch records. Fortunately, the folks behind Record Store Day (RSD) have a bunch of those available to buy, each contained in an arty sleeve. And Jack White's band The Raconteurs is releasing a 3 inch single for RSD too.
The limited edition all-in-one turntable has been created in partnership with Japan's Toyokasei vinyl manufacturing plant, and will only be available on Saturday April 13 from participating stores for around US$70.
The pint-sized Technics SL-1200 – kind of – can be USB or battery powered, has a built-in speaker, features pitch control and aux out, and comes with a clear dust cover. At the end of its angled tonearm sits a full-sized Audio Technica moving magnet cartridge.
It's by no means the first turntable built to play bubblegum records, you can still find folks selling toy-like Bandai 8-Ban systems on eBay. But the Crosley model looks quite snazzy by comparison.
Source: Crosley Radio