Garrard SP-25 (1960s)

Name: Garrard SP-25
Brand: Garrard

The Garrard SP-25 turned up everywhere in the late 1960s - in budget hi-fi packages, in integrated "audio systems," and on plenty of bedroom shelves. It was a low-cost single-player turntable. Nothing about it was revolutionary, but it was solid, honest engineering and it sold in huge numbers. It also started a family: the SP-25 Mk II and Mk III followed over the years, each refining the formula.

The original SP-25 runs at 16, 33⅓, 45, and 78 rpm. A 4-pole induction motor drives an 11.5-inch non-magnetic cast aluminum platter. Wow and flutter is rated at less than 0.13%, with rumble at −41 dB, which is respectable for a budget deck of the period. Tracking force is adjustable in the 2-6 gram range, and the stylus is the SX70C. It's a manual/semi-automatic design, so you get some automation as a turntable/record changer.

Period sources confirm the budget positioning. A 1968 Audio-Collection piece (p.215) shows the SP-25 bundled in a packaged hi-fi system with speakers and an FM tuner at a special price of £110. That was the entry point into "real" hi-fi for many buyers. Stereosound built their "88 Audio System" around the SP-25 Mk II, pairing it with a ceramic cartridge, amplifier, and Rola Celestion speakers in a plinth-style cabinet, as noted in Audio-Collection (1968, p.142). By 1970, a Studio-Sound dealer ad (January 1970, p.3) listed the SP-25 at £11 15s, which was remarkably inexpensive even then.

A later retrospective in Audio-Collection (2002, p.65) gave the SP-25's introduction date as 1965. It called the deck a successful product that was "for a time ubiquitous," often mounted on a wood plinth with an acrylic lid.

Collector commentary, mostly centered on the Mk II, praises the deck as good value, solid, and reliable. Owners note it feels heavy and well-built. The common criticisms are rumble and a design that shows its age. The Mk II is the variant most often found today, with dimensions of 16.25 × 13.25 inches and current eBay prices typically in the $100 - $200 range. Common maintenance issues are idler wheel deterioration and sticky grease in the mechanism, both typical of Garrard decks of this era.

Exact production years for the original SP-25 aren't firmly documented beyond a 1965 introduction, and no original MSRP for the first version is recorded.