Yamaha’s latest turntable streams multi-room audio via WiFi
You can pair a turntable with a multi-room audio setup (Sonos even offers a bundle), but that usually means wiring your record player into that setup at some point. Yamaha thinks it can do better. Its newly launched MusicCast Vinyl 500 turntable uses WiFi to stream records wirelessly to MusicCast speakers in your home. If you don’t insist on that distinctive vinyl sound, the machine will natively stream digital services like Spotify, Pandora and Tidal.
The player also doubles as an audio target for AirPlay, Spotify Connect and Bluetooth devices, and you can steer both online services and multi-room playback through Alexa voice commands.
You can buy the MusicCast Vinyl 500 in September for $700 without speakers — steep, but potentially worth it to hear your LPs around the home. You can cut costs if you don’t mind plugging into a MusicCast receiver, though. The TT-S303 turntable will offer the same basic record-playing features without the wireless technology for a more down-to-Earth $450.
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