After listening to a few songs on the Victrola Wave turntable, I began to wonder why I had let myself become so dependent on music streaming services over the past few years. Immediately, I felt tapped into the joy, whimsy, and intent of listening to music in a way that streaming from my smartphone or computer just doesn’t provide.
Having spent my teenage years burning curated mixed CDs almost weekly to keep up with my tastes, then meticulously curating my iTunes library before smartphones absorbed all of our media, I’m no stranger to putting a little more effort into the simple act of listening to music. The joy that it can bring came sweeping back as soon as I put a favourite album on the Victrola Wave—especially when those beloved songs sounded so good.
The Victrola Wave is a midrange turntable, taking the sweet spot between the company’s budget-friendly, suitcase-style turntables and the higher-end Stream family. Right out of the box, its sleek, simple design was impressive. A far cry from the bulkier old machines that had begun gathering dust in relatives’ homes by the time I was a kid, the Wave is incredibly light and minimalist, able to blend seamlessly into any shelf or space you plant it in.
Any onboard connections are clear and utilitarian. A simple touch-button on the front handles both power and input-swapping functions: press once to turn it on, hold for a brief moment to swap input modes, and hold for longer to power down. There’s no need for a full display, as a simple light around this button informs you of the device’s status. RPM selection and counterweight controls are on the tabletop itself, allowing you to quickly swap between speeds with the flick of a dial while putting a record on.
Better still, setup out of the box was remarkably simple. The needle is preinstalled, and the whole arm is well-protected for the shipping process. Even without any real modern experience operating a turntable, it was easy to set up the Victrola Wave within about ten minutes, somewhat extended because of my own reverent caution. (This time extended to about 15-20 minutes when I then discovered that I needed to slightly adjust the band inside, as the sound was being distorted.)
While the design of this midrange turntable is unassuming and minimalist, the Victrola Wave truly shines in its connectivity options—combining the classic touch of vinyl with modern convenience. For starters, the traditional RCA route is a fully viable option thanks to the built-in phono preamp, so connecting to external speakers the old-fashioned way is as easy as plugging things in and flipping a switch on the back of the unit to the right position.
Of course, it’s 2026, and almost any media device would be remiss if it didn’t play nicely with Bluetooth technology—and it’s here where the Victrola Wave’s wings truly stretch out. It pairs best with the Victrola Soundstage Soundbase, a speaker that’s designed to sit right beneath most turntables of this size. The two devices even look like they were meant to go together, with matching status LEDs. It’s easy to connect them via RCA with an included cable that’s the perfect size, or you can pair them via Bluetooth; I didn’t notice any impact to the sound quality by switching to the wireless connection.
“The Victrola Wave truly shines in its connectivity options—combining the classic touch of vinyl with modern convenience.”
Beyond this obvious pairing, a plethora of other speaker options come into play. Victrola’s own Tempo Bookshelf Speakers make a classy, retro-inspired partner, especially in the walnut finish. More modern high-end Bluetooth speakers like the Beats Pill also work well; if you’re investing in vinyl records, you might as well ensure you’re putting that sound out to the right calibre of speaker to get the most of it.
Notably, the Victrola Wave is also designed to integrate with the Auracast ecosystem of speakers, much like how Victrola’s higher-end Stream turntables work with Sonos. While I personally didn’t have any other compatible devices at hand to test it out, I can certainly see the appeal of working such a turntable into this network (although admittedly, vinyl records need to be turned fairly often, so you may not be able to wander too far from its side for too long even with the ability to stream throughout your home).
Whatever your choice for speakers for the Victrola Wave, I would also recommend having a good pair of audiophile-grade headphones like the Audio-Technica ATH-M20xBT for moments when you don’t want to be broadcasting the music, or just to sit and soak in the sound. I particularly enjoyed listening in this fashion, really surrounding myself with the music once in a while—again, in a way that I just haven’t really done much since most of my listening shifted to digital platforms with monthly subscriptions.
After testing with a variety of albums (new and old, from classical to modern rock/pop to the same 2000s emo-rock I listened to death on my first iPods), I was profoundly impressed with the quality of the Victrola Wave’s output regardless of the speaker projecting it. The best results came with the Soundstage, especially with the bass and low-end range. But even with other devices from other companies, the sound was balanced perfectly, with a level of immediate auditory satisfaction that can be hard to attain with the various EQ settings on modern software.
And perhaps most notably, the Victrola Wave’s sound is clean. I expected the telltale pops and crackles people expect of vinyl, but even on older secondhand records, only the more egregious flaws registered in this way. Friends and family remarked that it subverted their expectations for vinyl. There is still a touch of distortion depending on the album (or even upon the individual copy of an album), despite the cartridge stylus being designed to eliminate it from happening, but I never minded hearing an authentic twinge of that lo-fi sound that so many people are trying to recreate these days.
While vinyl is a musical medium that strongly suggests “extra effort,” I was amazed at how easy and rewarding it was to dip into this space with the Victrola Wave. More seasoned audiophiles or collectors may want to keep moving up the catalogue to higher-end models, but this seems an ideal entry point for fellow newcomers: a compromising price for an uncompromising, luxurious result.
- BLUETOOTH CONNECTIVITY – Stream to any Bluetooth speakers or headphones, with support for hi-res audio on compatible aptX Adaptive and aptX HD devices for enhanced sound quality.
- AURACAST BROADCAST AUDIO – Wirelessly transmit your music to an unlimited number of compatible Auracast speakers or headphones for a shared listening experience.
