Turntable Anatomy: An interactive guide to the key parts of a record player

Hover on the illustration above to explore our interactive guide to all the nooks and crannies of a turntable.

Using the beloved Technics SL-1200 as a benchmark, our illustration identifies the important bits of a record player. The interactive image above allows you to find out more about each of the parts functions; we’ve also included vital calibration information which will help you get the most out of your player whilst protecting your records too. Hover over the image and click the dots to get started.

This guide should be of use to the veteran collector looking for closure on some of the more ambiguous parts, as well as the newbie seeking complete turntable instruction.

It covers some of the less self-explanatory parts such as strobe dots, cartridge, counterweight, anti-skate control as well as the other more obvious bits and pieces. We also take a look at the pros and cons of direct drive and belt driven players.

Obviously depending on your model, some of these features may look slightly different or be missing altogether, but we hope the image above covers most bases.

Illustration by Abigail Carlin