Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO Turntable - Gloss White, Sumiko Rainier Cartridge

WIRED Magazine's 19 Delightful Gifts for Music Lovers and Audiophiles

"...if you're looking to give the gift of even higher fidelity, the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo is the way to go. This no-frills turntable comes with a carbon fiber tonearm for even better sound quality, and it also can be had in a wide assortment of gorgeous colors. It comes with an Ortofon Red cartridge and with a special new motor that is supposed to increase fidelity via better acoustic damping."

- Parker Hall and Michael Calore, WIRED Magazine, October 20, 2021

"The Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO offers everything you want in a player for the money: excellent sound quality, ease of setup and use, and striking looks."

- Ty Pendlebury, CNET, October 19, 2021

"...what impressed me the most was the easy setup, something that seems more and more necessary for an entry-level deck. Turntables are tweaky, and yes, very inconvenient, but the best entry models distill that set-up process into something manageable, something that won’t frustrate and completely annoy a first-time future audiophile. It’s an interesting dance of packaging and instructions, but Pro-Ject got it right. The EVO took me under ten minutes to set up, and everything felt dialed-in and ready to go almost immediately. Since I’ve installed more than a few of these entry-level ’tables at this point, I didn’t have to refer back to the manual over and over again; nonetheless, Pro-Ject did a fantastic job of making the steps as simple and straight-forward as possible. Kudos to the designers on that one."

"By the time I finished with this review, the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO had disappeared into my system. It sounded terrific, and for a while there I was totally content with a turntable that costs a fifth of my main deck. That’s almost astonishing, but not quite, not really, since I know Pro-Ject makes great-sounding gear at reasonable prices. The EVO is no exception, and I can easily recommend it to anyone looking for an entry-level turntable that’ll perform for years to come. It’s the sort of turntable that a first-time audiophile could build a system around, and not need to upgrade for a long while. To my ears, this is the one to beat."

- Drew Kalbach, The Absolute Sound, June 3, 2021

2022, 2023 Recommended Components - Stereophile

Stereophile Product of the Year Awards 2021 Finalist

"If there's a design parameter more crucial than a hi-fi component's ability to hold our attention and enable us to feel things, I don't know what it is. The Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO does this consistently, emphatically, at an attainable price. Recently I spent several months living with a $24,000 DAC that sounded wonderful but nonetheless failed to do this, reminding me that music always trumps sound. That's a reason why—in our age of high-rez streaming services that offer millions of perfect albums in the cloud—we still buy turntables and records. Highly recommended."

- Alex Halberstadt, Stereophile, February 23, 2021

"Not only was this sub-£500 analogue package a joy for the money, it also provided a reality check. While the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO is entry-to-mid-level, its performance through a system 200x its price revealed it to be punching wa-a-y above its weight. So while long-term readers may have moved beyond such budget esoterica, if asked by one of the 'new generation' then we can recommend this unreservedly."

- Ken Kessler, Hi-Fi News, January 26, 2021

"...the Debut Carton Evo is so fine a turntable for the price that its lack of convenient auto-stop would not be a deal killer for me. Its combination of absolute ease of setup, rock-steady platter speeds, amazing tonearm, and its overall look comprise a package that’s an incredible bargain, and a fine addition to an Access-approved system. Its low price belies the high quality of its engineering and construction. It’s a winner."

- Thom Moon, SoundStage! Access, December 1, 2020

"...I was mightily impressed by the fact that the Pro-Ject kept rewarding me when it seemed that other tables had reached their limits."

"...I feel confident saying the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO offers quite a lot of value for the money."

- Grover Neville, Part-Time Audiophile, October 30, 2020

"Despite its relative beer-budget price, Pro-Ject's Debut Carbon EVO sounds closer to a mid-level turntable than a super-budget one – and that's its genius. A self-assured sound with no nasties, allied to an easy-going yet engaging personality will win it many fans. Factor in the ease of set-up and use, and if you're in the market for great vinyl value, you simply must hear it."

- Jay Garrett, SteroNET™ UK, October 29, 2020

Five Stars – What Hi-fi? Magazine

"For those in the market for a deck costing less than half a grand, the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo is a must listen."

"Where competitors might beef up their sound in an attempt to disguise a lack of real insight, Pro-Ject here welcomes you to explore its vast sonic range, proving its aptitude for making a deck that is both easy to listen to and prepared for deeper, more analytical sessions."

- What Hi-fi? magazine, October 6, 2020

"Honestly, at this price point, there’s not a single thing this turntable should do better than it does. You may have noted that the Evolution is priced at $499, up from $399 for the previous version. There are many reasons for this, but we think the upgrades more than justify the extra cost."

- Mike Conklin, InsideHook, August 17, 2020