Sony PS-LX5BT Review

Introduction

For six years and more, Sony’s PS-LX310BT was the go-to affordable Bluetooth turntable.

Time catches us with us all, though – and Sony has decided to replace the 310 with not one but two new models. This PS-LX5BT is the more expensive of the two new faces – does it have what it takes to follow a classic?

Design

• Diecast aluminium platter
• Weighs 3.6kg

Even with its diecast aluminium platter and its clear Perspex dust cover fitted, the PS-LX5BT tips the scales at a flyweight 3.6kg. A heavier turntable doesn’t automatically mean a better turntable, of course – but the weight of this Sony doesn’t inspire a whole lot of confidence.

That’s not to suggest the standard of construction or finish is in any way sub-par, though. The 117 x 430 x 366mm (HWD) deck is properly made, and all the physical controls operate with nice positivity. Sony has long been a master of giving an impression of quality no matter how much (or how little) it’s charging for a product, and the 5BT is no exception.

Features

• aptX Adaptive Bluetooth connectivity
• Switchable phono stage
• Pre-fitted, pre-adjusted moving magnet cartridge

Fundamentally, the PS-LX5BT is ‘just’ a record player. It’s a belt-drive design, and can operate at 33.3 or 45rpm. It has an aluminium pipe tonearm, with a pre-fitted and pre-adjusted moving magnet cartridge attached to the business end. It has a rubber slip-mat.

But beyond this, Sony has piled on the features. Most significantly, the PS-LX5BT is a Bluetooth transmitter – it has the analogue-to-digital conversion circuitry required, and its compatibility with the aptX Adaptive codec means any similarly specified Bluetooth receiver (headphones, powered speakers, whatever) can receive a lossy 48kHz stream from the Sony.

The PS-LX5BT is also fitted with a phono stage, which is defeatable – so the output from the stereo RCA connections on the rear of the plinth can be at phono- or line-level. If you’re using the integrated phono stage, you can switch between three gain levels to ensure you’re getting an appropriate level of volume.

And it’s fully automatic in operation, too. There are controls to let the turntable know the size of the record on its platter (12-inch or 7-inch) and to let it know if it should turn the platter at 33.3 or 45rpm. There are three buttons (start, stop and up/down) to get things started or bring them to an end, and there is a button to initiate Bluetooth pairing.

In practice, it all works very well and very reliably. Bluetooth pairing is swift, and once a connection is made it proves stable and robust. The automatic stop/start is equally dependable – and it’s to Sony’s credit that the PS-LX5BT will automatically play 45rpm 12-inch discs. Many automatic turntables can only equate 45rpm with 7-inch disc, but this one is a bit more adaptable.

About the only gripe I have where features are concerned centres around the tracking weight of the unbranded moving magnet cartridge. Sony suggests it’s been factory-set to 2.0g (+/- 0.5g), but my review sample has a weight of a little over 3.1g – which is on the hefty side but not fatally so. The inability to adjust the counterweight does mean you get what you’re given in this respect, though.

Performance

• Energetic, direct and confident sound
• Plenty of detail to go along with the drive
• Not the most even or balanced presentation

There are differences, of course, between the way the PS-LX5BT sounds when wirelessly connected to a system and its sound when it’s hard-wired into the same system. What’s quite impressive, though, is how minor these differences are and how consistent the Sony sounds no matter the method of connection.

Wirelessly connected and playing a heavyweight reissue of Elaenia by Floating Points, the Sony’s fundamental character – energetic, forward and rhythmically sure-footed – is made immediately obvious.

In ultimate terms the PS-LX5BT overstates the lowest frequencies in a recording, but it’s never bloated of draggy at the bottom of the frequency range – there’s plenty of variation to go along with the substance, and the control of attack and decay means tempos are handled confidently and rhythmic expression is naturalistic too.

Further up the frequency range there’s a similar amount of detail, both broad and fine, made available – and the tonal balance is, as with the lower frequencies, quite carefully neutral. The midrange is also very revealing of the PS-LX5BT’s ability to create an open and spacious soundstage, even though it’s probably nudged forward just a little when compared to what’s occurring around it.

There’s plenty of dynamic headroom available too, so when the recording really ramps up the intensity the Sony is able to track those fluctuations and express them coherently. It’s pretty adept where the dynamics of harmonic variation are concerned, too – its ability to paint what sounds very much like a complete picture in dynamic terms is never less than impressive.

At the top of the frequency range, though, the PS-LX5BT changes its tune just a little. There’s still detail revealed and a definite sense of energy at the top end, but treble sounds are a little insubstantial in comparison with the rest of the frequency range and can, in extremis, sound a touch splashy.

Switch to a wired connection, engage the integrated phono stage and set gain to ‘mid’, and the Sony seems to double down on its sonic characteristics, for both good and bad. It remains a quite forceful and upfront listen, but its low-frequency preoccupation becomes a little more pronounced and its relative lack of high-frequency substance becomes a little more apparent.

In the broadest terms, though, the Sony sounds identifiably like its wireless self – which can only be good news. 

Should you buy it?

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