What is Turntable Pitch Control and How Does it Work?

The second is the variable pitch control. These are usually sliders but sometimes come as knobs or even screw-based adjustments. Rather than changing the speed in fixed steps, these give continuous control over the pitch, marked as a percentage change.

They tend to offer pitch variation around +/- 10%, sometimes as much as 16% or even 50% on modern decks.

What is the purpose of a turntable’s pitch control?

The main purpose of pitch control is to adjust the rotation speed of the turntable platter. Playback speed and pitch are naturally interlinked. Playing something at faster speed results in a higher sounding pitch, while spinning slower will sound lower.

As a result, pitch and speed are controlled by the same mechanism. This phenomenon is utilized with the different speeds of records (33,45, 78), but it also gives us some extra uses when variable controls are involved.

Calibration

For example, a key use is calibrating the platter speed when playing records to ensure they’re played at the intended speed.

A turntable’s rotating speed might become too fast or too slow if the motors become uncalibrated, if the temperature changes, or just from general wear. This can be corrected by using speed control.

Tempo/Beat Matching for DJs

One of the main uses of variable pitch controls is for DJs. These let mixers adjust the speed of two records to run at the same BPM. This lets them create seamless mixes of songs at different tempos. For example, if you try mixing a song at 100 BPM (beats per minute) into a song at 110 BPM, you just alter the speed until the tempo is the same for both.

Music Production Sampling

Music producers who sample vinyl and use them in their beats also have a use for pitch control. This gives more creative freedom when sampling and lets producers record sounds with a different pitch and texture to their original pressing.

How do you set the pitch on a turntable?

Setting the pitch can be easy, provided your deck has pitch control or knob. If not, then it’s a little harder, but is still often possible.

A.   If it has a pitch control – (with built-in strobe)

Simply use the controls to change the pitch, it should be marked fairly straightforward on the slider, how far you need to move it to make a certain amount of % change.

If you want to calibrate it, then you’ll need either a strobe light indicator, or a calibration record, and some kind of tuner (or a smartphone). This helps to remove trial and error and is essential for accuracy.

Generally, decks with speed sliders include a strobe light with markings (bumps or lines) that gives an accurate indication if you are playing records at the correct speed.

1. Play a record at 33 ⅓ rpm, and put the pitch control to the center (+/-0%).
2. Watch the platter’s edge, looking carefully at the indication mark under the strobe light.
3. The big dots in the center should appear to be perfectly still with the strobe light if the turntable is spinning correctly.
4. If the big dots are moving in the direction of the platter (clockwise), it means the motor is moving too fast.
5. If the big dots are moving in the opposite direction of the platter (counter-clockwise), then the motor is too slow.

Often there are smaller dots that indicate correct rotation accuracy for +/- 6 and 3.3 %.

You can watch this in action here:

If the deck doesn’t spin accurately when the slider is in a neutral position, you may need to fix some of the parts. If you want to fix it, check out this tutorial:

B. If there is no obvious pitch control (or strobe)

Not all record players feature standard speed control, which can be a little frustrating if it’s not playing at the right speed.

One method for testing involves buying a test record (these can be a little expensive and hard to come by). These contain a single note, which you test with a guitar tuner to make sure it’s creating the right pitch.

1. Start playing the test record.
2. Use a tuner (either a physical guitar tuner or a tuning app) and check the pitches match.
3. If not, it will be clear whether it is fast/slow.
4. Adjust the pitch (explained below)

Additionally, you can also find mobile phone applications that determine RPM speeds, which can also be handy if none of the other options work well for you. (Android / iOs).

Adjusting the speed without a dedicated control

You may be out of luck, as not all decks feature these, although if you do some digging, you will be able to find out whether your particular model has a hidden speed adjustment.

These are usually a screw (sometimes marked with “speed”) hidden somewhere near the motor of the unit. These might be below the platter, at the back of the turntable or record player, or somewhere on the bottom.

Note: On older decks, sometimes you need to take them apart to find them, which I’m aware sounds like a bit of a pain and may take some poking around.

It’s just a matter of adjusting the screw and re-testing the rotation accuracy.

Quartz lock

Some older (more expensive) turntables with direct-drive motors, like my Yamaha GT-750, come with what’s called Quartz lock.

This mechanism ensures that a constant speed is maintained automatically without the need for adjustment.

These turntables have an inbuilt quartz crystal oscillator that generates a reference frequency to which the motor speed is maintained perfectly.

Best turntables with pitch controls

If you decide you want a deck with playback speed control, here are some of my top recommendations. These all let you fine-tune the RPM, so you can spin a vinyl record however you please!

• Crosley C200A-BK

• Gemini TT-4000

• Pioneer DJ PLX-500

• Audio-Technica AT-LP120XUSB-BK (with Bluetooth)

• Technics SL-1200 / SL-1210 MK7 (Any from MK2-MK7)

For more of these decks, check out my roundup of the best direct-drive turntables.