(Image credit: Pro-Ject)

• Pro-Ject’s first Artist Collection turntable release of 2026 is in
• The Scorpions deck features artwork from the band’s 1982 album, Blackout
• Based on the Pro-Ject T2, priced £629 (around $846 or AU$1,257, where sold)

Pro-Ject’s decks are blowing with the wind of change, aren’t they? Not content with a delightfully thunderstruck AC/DC-themed turntable and a light-up Elvis-themed deck (which I got to see recently at the Paris Audio Show), the Austrian turntable specialist has unveiled the Pro-Ject Scorpions Turntable, featuring the striking artwork from the German band’s 1982 album, Blackout.

And just in case you’re not fully versed on the significance of the band (or the album), since forming in Hanover in 1965, Rudolf Schenker and co. have sold over 100 million albums worldwide. Blackout was the band’s eighth studio album, and in 2017, Rolling Stone ranked it 73rd on their list of the 100 greatest metal albums of all time.

The album cover isn’t – how to put this? – for the faint of heart. It’s based on a self-portrait by Vienna-born artist Gottfried Helnwein and shows Helnwein with a bandaged head, a mouth frozen in mid-scream, and twisted forks pointing in towards his eyes.

The artwork wasn’t created especially for the album either; it dates from around 1981–82. Schenker and fellow band member Klaus Meine reportedly discovered the image in Stern magazine and got Helnwein’s permission to use it. For the cover, Helnwein apparently made only minor adjustments to colors and background to suit the LP format, leaving the central image intact.

Pro-Ject’s Scorpions turntable: hungry to play

Did you ever think, that we could be so close? (Image credit: Pro-Ject)

And the story behind the album’s title track? It’s just as** **rock ‘n’ roll. As Schenker previously said to the Las Vegas Review-Journal: "Blackout was a song that actually came out of a situation when I was partying with the Judas Priest guys, Glenn and K.K., and with Def Leppard. It was a hard party – no question – and I had a blackout, which I didn’t even know existed. I told Herman the story. He said, ‘You know what you had? You had a blackout.’ Then he added, ‘Oh, by the way, that’s a great title for an album.’"

The Pro-Ject Artist Collection celebrates bands, acts, musicians, and artwork that has shaped music and popular culture. The Scorpions Turntable is handmade in Europe, designed and built by Pro-Ject. It’s based on the Pro-Ject T2 turntable and uses a belt-drive design. The CNC-machined plinth has been enlarged here for greater stability, and its non-plastic construction should reduce unwanted vibrations. A heavy glass platter should also minimise resonanc,e and Pro-Ject tells me the turntable’s feet will help isolate the unit from any external vibration.

The deck includes a straight 9-inch aluminium tonearm with integrated headshell and spring-based anti-skating mechanism. It also comes equipped with a pre-adjusted Pick it 25A** **Moving Magnet Ortofon cartridge, ready to rock you like a hurricane straight from the box.

Pricing? Of course. The Pro-Ject Scorpions Turntable is available now by special order in the UK, priced £629. European pricing is €649.00, with details for further regions coming soon – but those figures roughly equate to $846 or AU$1,257, if you can get your hands on one.

China White? No, it only comes with the album artwork printed on the plinth, silly. And thanks again, Pro-Ject. You give me all I need…

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Becky became Audio Editor at TechRadar in 2024, but joined the team in 2022 as Senior Staff Writer, focusing on all things hi-fi. Before this, she spent three years at What Hi-Fi? testing and reviewing everything from wallet-friendly wireless earbuds to huge high-end sound systems. Prior to gaining her MA in Journalism in 2018, Becky freelanced as an arts critic alongside a 22-year career as a professional dancer and aerialist – any love of dance starts with a love of music. Becky has previously contributed to Stuff, FourFourTwo and The Stage. When not writing, she can still be found throwing shapes in a dance studio, these days with varying degrees of success.

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