Turntable Lab

I’ve been a TTLab customer for over 15 years online and in-​store and I’ve been to the store maybe a dozen times over the years. Not the place to go for second-​hand vintage vinyl; almost everything is a new reissue. But they of course are right on the pulse of the newest DJ equipment. The store is quite small so there’s barely any clothing items in the store. Staff-​wise, I had a situation that required assistance from the manager, and he was extremely helpful. Some of the staff’s expertise on equipment is questionable, but other than that I go here regularly for accessory-​type things.

This is the connoisseur choice spot for DJs. Never been disappointed. It’s in the cut so only those «in the know» know what’s up. For record store day they are well stocked. For all my Dj equipment needs they are spot on with turntables, headphones, slip mats, cartridges, needles, hard/​thumbdrives, software and hardware. I have zero complaints, you get what you pay for and I want quality. This is quality.

Really cool concept, and space.
«Kiss your bank account goodbye and step into one of the most varied and visually dazzling music shops in the world. If you’re stumped by terms like „noise gate“ and „low-​pass filter“ then Turntable Lab might not be the joint for you, but any honest list of NYC record shops has to give the East Village landmark its due. A trim yet perfectly-​curated selection of indie rock, house, hip-​hop, downtempo, and electro LPs and singles will greet you on the way in. Along the walls rest audiophile goodies like synthesizers, mixers, speakers, slipmats, pre-​amps, headphones, needle cartridges, and, of course, hi-​fi turntables of all vintages and varieties. Supported by a top-​tier clientele of established working DJs and producers, the shop is not cheap – but then again buying quality only hurts once.»

Quite possibly my new favorite store. Great curated vinyl selection (Hip Hop, Techno, House, Funk, Jazz). Small selection of DJ Mix CD’s, Mixers, DJ Controllers, some synths and so on.
Best thing was the nice friendly and non-​pseudy attitude of the staff and other punters. Very nice all around.
–Gary.

Used to like this store, has some cool turntables and probably a great place to get some accessories or a replacement stylus. Vinyl selection is mostly new titles, prices a bit on the high side and you can get elsewhere. Wanted to try a turntable but all behind glass. Staff has always been generally nice but the last time I went in they wanted me to check my bag (went to another record shop) beforehand. Turntable lab I am not a thief and us vinyl collectors tend to shop around. Probably wouldn’t go back after this cranky person gave me the evil eye. Still purchased a few records and left, no real reason to go back. Store is too small anyway, hire security if you are that afraid of theft!

My favorite vinyl store in the city! I like how clean it is and everything is organized. All their vinyls are new and you can listen to them in the store. They also have new stuff coming in often and stuff that I don’t usually find online! They have techno which I don’t usually find in other stores. Price is on par with other new vinyls online.

What’s there to say about the Lab that hasn’t been said? I bought a Pro-​Ject Debut Turntable about 6 months ago and couldn’t be happier.
For those who talk about the inability to hear the turntables, sure it’s annoying but let’s be honest… any hi-​fi enthusiast or DJ will tell you that how it sounds in store isn’t the same as at home. It’s all about the acoustics of your room/​speaker set up and placement. The turntable matters in so much as garbage in, garbage out… but my experience both in my own place and working with friends set ups, acoustics matter a ton to sound quality.
Regarding the shop itself, it’s small but laid out well with records. It has a tiny rock section but what it lacks in quantity it makes up for in quality. They have a lot of hip-​hop and trance records.
The employees are simply awesome humans. They know what they are talking about. On multiple occasions, I’ve gone into the shop and said «Give me something cool» and I’ve always left with a great addition to my collection.
There’s a reason this small shop is making a bigger name for itself. It’s that good.

International customers, beware. Shipping (to Canada) is a total rip-​off. It’s supposed to be 1 business day, but it took 5. When I called to ask about it, they said the actual delivery takes one day, but Turntable Lab takes a few more days to get around to shipping it. (That’s not 1-​day shipping, guys.) The t-​shirt cost $ 30USD. Shipping it cost $ 29.30USD (for 1 shirt, mind you…1). Five business days later, it arrived, along with a $ 14.56 bill from FedEx. Total cost: $ 73.86 for a $ 30 t-​shirt. I shouldn’t have bothered ordering it in the first place. Won’t make that mistake again.

Small store and very low key located in East village.
Extremely friendly staff who know their shit.
They have much knowledge with turn tables and the technology and could help you out.
They have all types of records ranging from disco, techno, house and hip-​hop.
You don’t need to buy anything to have a good time. The staff is friendly and helpful.

Be aware that some equipment is only on display here. You can’t listen to it, and in the case of the turntables, you can’t touch them.
I was interested in a Pro-​Ject turntable, and I called Turntable Lab and asked if they had it in stock (they said they did). I hoped to come down and see it, check out how it operated, and see how well-​made it was. When I got there, I saw the turntables displayed under plexiglass on shelves, and I asked if I could see the Pro-​Ject. A very nice young woman explained that no, they aren’t allowed to open the case.
To my mind, the advantage of a bricks and mortar store over the internet is that customers can check out the gear before buying it, but you can’t do that here. Yes, you can see it, but even then, the turntables are recessed into the shelf, so you can only see their tops. The pictures online actually tell you more.
I’m still giving Turntable Lab three stars because I liked the shop, the salespeople seemed nice, and one could ostensibly go there and get some questions answered about the equipment. Also, because I am old, maybe I just don’t get it. If you’re interested in trying out the equipment, though, better call first and ask if you can.

Nice small intimate shop. I like to check out record stores in other cities. I actually need a new Orfon Stylus so I checked in to this shop for prices.
It sucks what the web has done to small shops. I am a brick and mortar person. I love the personal experience, but geez the web was much cheaper than going into the store.
The guy in their was soooo nice though. Glasss, but don’t know his name.
People were digging threw «crates». I love to see that.
I love vinal and thse guys seem like enthusiasts.

We’re a middle-​aged couple with a stereo system I purchased as a single woman in 1976. When we moved 2 years ago, we pared our vinyl collection to about an orange crate’s worth, but never reconnected the turntable.
But lately — maybe the summer weather? — I’ve been yearning for some old music. I reconnected the turntable and got nothing resembling music. My boyfriend did some troubleshooting, but still, nothing but noise. It made me sad to think of a «perfectly good» turntable sitting on a landfill somewhere, so we schlepped the entire turntable to Turntable Lab. There, a nice guy completely without attitude changed the stylus for us and showed us how to reconnect the belt drive.
It was worth the cost of the stylus — $ 25 — to hear one LP. I almost cried. Many thanks for sharing your expertise.

Excellent customer service! We ordered something, it didn’t show up, and TTL made it all right. With minimal fuss!
The end.

I usually just buy from their online shop but when I visit the NY store, the staff are always helpful and the music/​gear selection are always on point. I never walk out empty handed.

The best service at a record store in NYC hands down. A nicely edited selection of hip hop, although it seems electronic music is more their thing. Still has some Record Store Day stock left too. Only down side is it’s a tiny store, so can get packed with a handful of customers, but that’s only a minor issue. Dope store.

The authoritative destination for music enthusiasts with a more discerning taste in audio fidelity, a passion for vinyl, DJs, and artists. Turntable Lab appears to only employ DJs and people with a clear passion for music and vast knowledge surrounding gear necessary for listening, recording, and performing.
I’ve been to Turntable Lab about half a dozen times for different reasons, sometimes for record shopping and other times to buy gear. I’ll describe the relevant experiences below.
– BUYING A DJ CONTROLLER AT TURNTABLE LAB –
Turntable Lab has the most comprehensive selection of DJ controllers that are worth owning. I came in to purchase my first controller as a gift to myself for my birthday. I was considering the Traktor S2 vs. the Traktor S4, as I had read many favorable reviews that specifically pointed out Traktor’s strength in authoring both the DJ software and the design & manufacturing of the controller hardware itself.
The guys and Turntable Lab evaluated my experience level (decent knowledge of music, but wannabe DJ) and pushed me towards the less expensive, 2-​channel Traktor S2 and explained that it would be more worthwhile to *outgrow* the S2 rather than pay $ 200+ more for power that I would not be taking advantage of for a long while.
I asked many questions about their respective setups and own experiences playing sets which, combined with all the other advice, allowed me to make a strongly informed decision about my purchase. They even honored an online-​only deal where there was a gift pack included with purchase of the S2 despite that I picked it up in East Village.
A+
– BUYING VINYL AT TURNTABLE LAB –
Turntable Lab’s vinyl selection is not massive, but most importantly it is *current* and well organized. You can test out vinyl before you buy. The best part though (imo) is that you can chat with the guys that work there about an upcoming release on Eglo, Ninja Tune, Ghostly, Brainfeeder, Warp, DFA, etc and they will more often than not know what the hell you’re talking about and be genuinely interested.
– BUYING A TURNTABLE AT TURNTABLE LAB –
Looking to replace my ultra-​budget consumer Audio Technica turntable, I did my research online and thought that the Rega RP1 ($ 500 new) was a solid choice. When faced with the option of buying the Rega *new* vs. a used Pro-​Ject Xpression 1 (used $ 500 /​new $ 900), David at Turntable Lab helped me arrive at the decision to buy the new Rega. Not because TL sold it, but because of the following reasons:
* HiFi /​Audiophile gear is only as good as its weakest link. Making sure the rest of my system is in tip top shape is more important than getting a turntable that is 1 or 2 orders of magnitude better.
* New York apartments have awful acoustics, so the more expensive Pro-​Ject probably wouldn’t shine in a significant way.
* No knowledge of history /​use /​abuse of used Pro-​Ject deck.
* Potential poor shipping issues of used deck.
* No warranty /​less seller accountability.
I felt bad for talking his ear off for 20-​some-​odd minutes, but the advice was well worth it.
—
I would highly recommend Turntable Lab to anyone. It’s a great business run by good people.

If you are a DJ, this is the greatest store on earth. If you are not a DJ, this is still a pretty great store.

I got my first 1200mk5 from here years ago when it was around $ 500 brand new. They don’t have the hugest selection, but despite being a small company, they stay pretty current on the latest gear and have a pretty mean selection of vinyl.
Every now and then I peep their blog to check out their deals and giveaways which are pretty consistent, plus they bring in a very impressive line-​up for their interviews (though, I’m still dying to know what razor skrillex uses to keep that one side of his head so nice and smooth, next Q&A perhaps.). Shopping at TTL for as long as I have, I’ve had a couple of less than perfect experiences, but their customer service has always been on point and quick to make things right. I recently copped a few shirts right before they put out a 10% off promo code. They sent me the difference without me even asking. Never have paid for shipping and it gets here quick.
If you’re trying to buy a home studio or the latest piece of hardware with new color LEDs that does the same thing as all your other midi controllers gathering dust does, this isn’t the place for you. But, if you want to cop a few tunes or make an upgrade here and there, this isn’t a bad place to start.

Great little shop, and the staff is informed on their wares and ready to help. I like to try and give an independent shop the business, and these folks are attitude-​free. Keep it up, T.L.

Turntable Lab doesn’t open till 1pm. Thats a cool friggin time to open. I wish I could open a store later like that. Its so worth the wait. My friend and I popped in here on Tuesday when I went to pick up my new turntable. We were the first ones in the store while everyone else was piling up outside waiting to get in. I felt special like VIP or something. I learned a lot from David. He was very knowledgable and patient with teaching me about the different kind of needles. Of course I had to buy the best Shure M-44−7H needle there was in the store! I also bought two 45 records. Vivian Girls and VV Brown for $ 1 — SCORE!
I will definitely be coming back here more often now that I know about it!