Not long ago the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) released its 2023 Mid-Year Revenue Report and stated total physical media revenues had increased 5%. More specifically, revenues from vinyl records increased 1% to $682 million, while accounting for 72% of all physical media sales.

With vinyl once again a viable means to play music along with streaming, turntables are in high demand. Returning to the turntable category is one of the oldest names in home audio: Victrola. This brand has been manufacturing audio products since 1906, and according to Victrola it brought the first in-home record player to the U.S. market.

Fast forward more than a century and Victrola offers a wide selection of turntable products that include its Stream Onyx, Stream Carbon and Hi-Res Carbon turntables.

Bridging the best of yesteryear and modern home audio, these turntables provide the traditional methods of system connectivity that people expect with a turntable, and they add wireless streaming capabilities that include the ability to integrate as a source within a Sonos whole-house audio or home theater system.

Sending me the Stream Carbon and Hi-Res Carbon turntables to try for myself, I set the products up and used them wirelessly, as well as with my Integra receiver, and with my two-channel system that includes a high-performance Cary Audio phono preamplifier.

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Victrola Stream Carbon and Hi-Res Carbon turntables Features and Setup

The features and setup of both the Stream Carbon and Hi-Res Carbon turntables are similar.

Going over those features, both turntables are belt driven and utilize the company’s carbon-fiber tonearms. Both turntables also come with Ortofon 2M Red moving-magnet phono cartridges, and MDF (medium-density fiberboard) plinths.

Other features the Stream Carbon and Hi-Res Carbon turntables offer include two-speed motor operation—33 1/3 and 45 RPM, and the use of Victrola’s companion app that aids with the setup of the Stream Carbon, including the selection of the turntable’s streaming to Sonos speaker capabilities.

Additionally, both products provide standard analog RCA connections to allow integrators to incorporate the products in more conventional audio systems.

Where the Stream Carbon separates from the Hi-Res Carbon beyond the Sonos streaming capabilities is it provides a front-panel dial that controls volume up/down and playback groups.

A couple of features worth mentioning the Hi-Res Carbon offers include Bluetooth aptX Adaptive HD Audio wireless streaming options, and a built-in phono preamp that can be disengaged for those with existing outboard phono preamplifiers or integrated amps or AV receivers with built-in phono preamplifiers.

Starting in Q4 2023 via an over-the-air (OTA) firmware update Victrola Stream users with a Roon subscription will be also able to connect to their Roon Core and stream vinyl to their entire Roon system.

CE Pro Features

• The Stream Carbon is a two-speed, belt-driven turntable that includes an Ortofon 2M Red phono cartridge
• The Stream Carbon provides options for analog RCA connections and wireless streaming to Sonos systems
• The Stream Carbon also features a carbon-fiber tonearm, along with a MDF plinth, and a Victrola Silicone slipmat
• MSRP for the Stream Carbon turntable is $799.99
• The Hi-Res Carbon Turntable incorporates a front-facing control panel and a built-in phono preamplifier
• The Hi-Res Carbon Turntable offers a choice of Bluetooth aptX Adaptive and HD Audio to support wireless streaming to compatible speakers and headphones
• The Hi-Res Carbon Turntable also includes traditional RCA connections to output analog audio
• The Hi-Res Carbon Turntable also includes a carbon-fiber tonearm that is fitted with an Ortofon 2M Red moving-magnet phono cartridge
• MSRP for the Hi-Res Carbon Turntable is $599.99
• Both turntables are supported by Victrola’s companion app

Setting up the turntables was easy—as easy as any turntable on the market.

I started with the Stream Carbon turntable. Once I had pulled the turntable from its packaging, I downloaded the Victrola app onto my iPhone 13 Pro. Following the setup guide, which is also included in the app, I started by installing the turntable belt onto its pulley system, and then I attached the Ortofon 2M Red phono cartridge and removed its needle protection. Continuing to follow the setup guide, I installed the tonearm’s counterweight, and I set the anti-skate of the tonearm.

With the physical connections set, including plugging the turntable in, I went back into the app and selected a default zone from my Sonos system. Choosing my “music room” zone allowed me to monitor the playback of vinyl so I could flip the record without frantically running around my house once the side of a record is completed.

That was pretty much the entire setup process for the Stream Carbon turntable.  Moving onto the Hi-Res Carbon turntable, it was a similar setup and because I was familiar with the Victrola setup process, I estimate I shaved a few minutes of setup time off my initial turntable setup. The major difference was I connected the Hi-Res Carbon turntable to my Integra DRX-3.4 AV receiver to allow me to try the turntable with its built-in phono preamplifier and the Integra’s built-in phono preamp. For the sake of explaining the built-in phono preamp, to use it, there’s a switch located on the turntable’s rear panel that says “line” or “phono.” Line level allows you to send line-level signals to an external phono preamp. The phono side activates the photo preamp option. Also, on the rear panel there’s a switch that turns on or off the auto stop function. I left that switch in its default mode of “on.” 

Getting back to the built-in phono preamp, later just for comparison purposes, I connected the turntable to my Cary Audio tube-based PH-302 phono preamplifier, which is connected to a Bryston preamplifier and Bryston amplifier.

With all of that said, the initial setup of the turntables shouldn’t take any more than 15 to 20 minutes.

Performance and Final Thoughts

Balancing the best of old-school analog audio and the convenience of modern digital audio that includes streaming services like Apple Music, the Victrola turntables deliver high levels of fun for reasonable money.

Through the turntables’ setup flexibility, modern industrial designs—at first, I didn’t realize one of the turntable parts I was holding was the Stream Carbon’s dust cover—as well as their price friendliness, and sound quality, Victrola delivers a hell of a package with either turntable.

I started my listening with the Stream Carbon wirelessly streaming to a Sonos Ray soundbar. Listening to the classic albums Rumours from Fleetwood Mac, Exile on Main Street from The Rolling Stones, and Aja from Steely Dan I had more fun than I first anticipated having. Listening with the Ray loudspeaker was detailed and engaging and interestingly, this did not occur to me, but while the signal is being digitized, the wireless feed removes any pops and crackles you could hear from even a well-cared for record.

I love a couple of technology features the Stream Carbon provides during vinyl playback: Once a record is placed on the platter and the tonearm is lifted the table will automatically start spinning. A real favorite feature this table delivers is once a record side is done it will automatically shut off. This is extremely convenient if you are busy, or if you aren’t paying attention, and the record is done playing you won’t have to sprint to the turntable to lift the tonearm off the record.

Moving onto the Hi-Res Carbon. I started with the built-in phono preamp set to “phono” meaning I was using the built-in phono preamp’s circuitry to boost my analog signals to the Integra receiver. My first thoughts listening to the Foo Fighters’ Greatest Hits with the built-in phono preamp connected to the Integra receiver I thought the sound stage was wide with my Aerial Acoustics speakers and the image was detailed. Tonally, I thought the record did sound a little bright.

Next up for me was a much better recording—a 180-gram version of Boston’s first record.

The width of the soundstage was as impressive as the Stream Carbon, but through the Integra receiver the sound was a bit on the lean side of the tonal spectrum. The Hi-Res Carbon like the Stream Carbon does deliver high levels of fun and I’d like to emphasize the setup instructions were good, including items like the anti-skate function and counterweight, which enabled the tonearm to work flawlessly during my listening sessions.

Continuing my listening comparisons, I switched the built-in phono input on the Hi-Res Carbon to “line” to allow me to utilize the moving magnet phono input in the Integra receiver. Using Billy Squier’s hugely popular record from the early 1980s, Don’t Say No album, I found some of the table’s upper frequency brightness was gone, and things such as image precision had improved. I also thought however, the Hi-Res Carbon’s built-in phono preamp delivered better dynamics.

Listening to the same Billy Squier album with the Hi-Res Carbon connected to my Cary Audio phono preamp, along with the Bryston components was a much different experience, and not surprisingly, tonal richness increased, weight and dynamics increased, and dimensionality had also increased.

So, what do I think … right off the top, I think the products are well designed, well made and easy to use. I also think the products are competitively priced and offer a balance of features highlighted by traditional turntable functionality with the integration of modern digital audio components.  More specifically, I love the ability of the Stream Carbon to integrate into Sonos systems. This capability allows dealers to setup home theaters and whole-house audio systems that offer digital audio and analog audio without much fuss. The less expensive Hi-Res Carbon doesn’t provide the Sonos integration capabilities, but it does offer built-in Bluetooth and a built-in phono preamplifier to provide a nice level of value without sacrificing sound quality.

I whole-heartedly recommend the Victrola turntables to anyone that is new to vinyl, as well as to anyone that grew up with vinyl that’s looking to easily get back into the format without breaking the bank.

Pros:

• Both turntables are easy to setup
• The turntables are well made and feature modern industrial designs
• The Stream Carbon and Hi-Res Carbon turntables deliver a lot of fun regardless of whether they are streaming wirelessly or connected to audio systems using traditional methods

Cons:

• Victrola has done a great job with these turntables. The only thing I’d like to see is the ability to switch Sonos speakers on the fly so users can listen to vinyl in whatever zone they chose. My experience was that once a zone was selected, I could not then switch to another zone.
• Slight nitpick is the raise/lower tonearm lever may be in a location that is difficult to reach if the turntable is located in a spot that is high (shelf for example)

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