Urban Outfitters has been making something like this for a while now. But the Dansette-style GPO Retro Bermuda record player with legs definitely undercuts it for price.
Of course, it is all down to the sound as well as the looks at the end of the day. If you want an authentic vintage sound you want an authentic 1960s Dansette record player. But these days you are looking at something above the £500 mark for a reasonable example.
Yes, they really have shot up in price of late. Which is perhaps why copies are appearing on the market.
This one definitely has the look of an original too in either the blue or the red. In fact, it looks pretty much exactly like the original Dansette Bermuda record player from the 1960s. So as long as your friends don’t look too closely you might well get away with it if you want a classic 1960s look on a budget. It is a budget affair too, which I will come to in a moment.
But before I do that, let’s talk about the record player and its functionality. Fairly obvious you would think – but you would be thinking wrong.
Yes, of course, it plays your records. That’s pretty much the whole point. On top of spinning your discs, this unit also has a fully automatic return tone arm, a three-speed deck and built-in dynamic full-range stereo speakers. On top of that, there are MP3 and USB playback options, so you can record from LP to USB. That’s not something you would find in an original 1960s record player.
Oh, those legs too. Which offer the option of freestanding if you like. But this is a portable player too as they are removable.
As for the price, £110 for the record player in red and £145 if you want it in blue. Oh yes, there is now one in grey too for £149.