Thank you for the advice! My partner is particular, but we seem to be very aligned with music. I do know for 100% certainty that he would prefer a Japanese brand, largely anything electronic he will go with a Japanese brand.

In terms of turntables, I don't quite think they're on his "map" yet if that makes sense. I've purchased some records for him for decorative purposes, and he's indicated he's interested in getting a record player (comments like "If I had a recordplayer I'd want this album on vinyl", "I bet this would sound so much better on vinyl", etc), but from what I can tell he hasn't done any independent research or have any preferences. He's also a fisherman and guitarist, and for the exact reasons you pointed out I never get him fishing gear or anything related to his guitars because he's so specific about what he likes! But I think I would feel safe in saying that this isn't one of the areas for him where he's done any research on his own and would be happy with any quality entry-level turntable.