Sony is no stranger to the world of Bluetooth turntables – its entry-level PS-LX310BT deck has been around seven (!) years and is a firm five-star favourite among our review team.
It also sits proudly at the very top of our best Bluetooth turntables buying guide.
Sony PS-LX3BT vs PS-LX5BT: price
To begin with, the two Sonys aren’t a million miles away from each other in terms of price.
The PS-LX3BT comes in at £299/€350/AU$469, while the step-up PS-LX5BT comes in at £399/€460/AU$599.
It’s quite a small gap, but as you're about to discover, that’s because there are only a handful of things differentiating them.
Sony PS-LX3BT vs PS-LX5BT: build
Place the PS-LX3BT and PS-LX5BT side by side and they look virtually identical. Both boast a very streamlined and minimalist look, complete with straight, crisp edges and circular controls.
There’s a power button on the bottom left of each deck and a row of control buttons down on the right – start, stop and up/down.
Both of the Sony turntables are an automatic design, so once you’ve hit start, the turntable will do the rest, queuing up the tonearm at start of the groove to play until it reaches the end of your record. All without you having to touch the arm at any point. Both turntables actually use the same automatic mechanism that you’ll find in the PS-LX310BT.
The arms on both models are nearly identical, the only difference being the cartridge attached at the end.
Sony hasn’t said who provides the cartridges for each deck, but it has confirmed the PS-LX3BT is fitted with a moving magnet (MM) design with a tracking force of 3.5g, while the PS-LX5BT features an upgraded MM cartridge with a tracking force of 2.0g.
The cartridge is fixed on the PS-LX3BT and removable on the PS-LX5BT (both styluses can be replaced). However, you can only do a like-for-like cartridge replacement on the more expensive record player – unfortunately, it’s not a potential upgrade path.
Sony PS-LX3BT vs PS-LX5BT: features
Given their plug-and-play nature, there really isn’t much to do when it comes to set-up, apart from fitting the belt and platter. After that, you're ready to start spinning.
To the right of the arm of each deck are dials for switching record size (between 7in and 12in) and speed (between 33⅓ or 45 RPM). In the box, you'll find a 45 RPM adapter, should any of your records require it.
Both turntables support the aptX Adaptive codec for high-res streaming to compatible Bluetooth speakers and wireless headphones, and you can have up to eight different devices paired at any one time.
Continuing the plug-and-play theme, both turntables have a built-in phono stage with three-level gain control to make them more flexible when it comes to equipment matching. For instance, it can be plugged directly into a pair of active speakers.
It's switchable too, which means you can opt to use the Sonys' built-in phono stage or bypass it entirely and use the one in your stereo amplifier.
The only difference here is that the PS-LX3BT has a captive audio cable connected to it, whereas you can connect your own interconnects to the PS-LX5BT (or use the ones supplied in the box).
Both record players feature a solid aluminium tonearm with a precision pivot bearing, an aluminium die-cast platter and a rubber slip mat.
The more expensive deck also has a slightly thicker rubber mat and a darker finish (solid black on the LX5BT versus grey on the LX3BT). As we mentioned earlier, there really aren't a huge number of differences between the two players.
Sony PS-LX3BT vs PS-LX5BT: sound
Obviously, we can’t give you our definitive verdict on the sound quality from either deck until we put them through the paces in our dedicated test rooms for a comparison.
However, looking at the specs, you can certainly see why there might be sonic differences between the two. Just the inclusion of an upgraded cartridge on the PS-LX5BT could be enough on its own, but we won’t know until we’ve heard them for ourselves.
If either model can improve on the sound quality of the old PS-LX310BT, though, then Sony might have another desirable deck on its hands, but we'll have to wait and see...
Sony PS-LX3BT vs PS-LX5BT: initial verdict
While it’s hard to come to a verdict because we haven’t heard either of the decks, we think it’s going to be an interesting comparison.
The fact that they’re both so close in price and features only adds to the intrigue. If one is clearly better than the other, then could it make the other model slightly redundant?
On the flip side, if they can both justify their positions and price tags, it would be great to have two new Bluetooth turntables to recommend to people looking to take their first step on the vinyl ladder.
We can’t wait to report back with our findings!
MORE:
Our pick of the best Bluetooth turntables
I'm surprised and confused by Sony's new turntable line-up – here's why
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