Okay DT audiophiles, I need a favor. Currently, I have a very old, but still very clean and operable, Audio-Technica AT-PL50 Belt Drive Turntable. I bought it 18 years ago. It is hooked up to an old school stereo receiver from around 1999, and what used to be a 5-speaker, and subwoofer system. Which is now missing two speakers.
The system needs to be thrown out. The speakers are missing, I don't use the receiver for anything, it overheats, and the turntable, while fine, is missing the adapter that lets it be connected directly to amplified speakers. So I want to start fresh.
I have a budget of about $800. What I want is a turntable that looks cool, plays great, that simply can be plugged into two speakers, that gives off great, full sound. But it has been forever since I shopped for anything, and I don't know the ins and outs of things. I am a metal/hard rock/prog guy, and I want a system that is simple that sounds great, that is plug and play.
I love my vinyl collection, but I can't stand how crappy my current turntable sounds with missing speakers, and I can't turn down the subwoofer - its either on or off - and it sounds awful both ways. So, a good turntable, two good speakers, everything with the necessary pre-amps built in, so I can just plug it all in and drop the needle.
Those of you with experience in this, take my $800 and hook me up with some links to what would work for what I am looking for? Would you all mind helping me out?