Technics Announces SL-1210GAE Limited Edition Direct Drive Turntable to Commemorate 55th Anniversary

The following is a press release issued by Tecnics.

Wiesbaden, Germany | May 28, 2020 – Technics has been delivering a wide variety of epoch-making audio products, such as speaker systems, amps and audio players to worldwide markets since 1965, the year in which this valued Hi-Fi audio brand debuted. This year, Technics releases the SL-1210GAE Limited Edition direct drive turntable to commemorate the 55th anniversary of the Technics brand. This special model is based on the internationally acclaimed Grand Class SL-1200G hi-fi turntable and features a full black colour scheme, which has already proved popular with other recent Technics products. The SL-1210GAE will be available from June 2020 and limited to only 1,000 units will be sold in the world

Special and exclusive specifications of the SL-1210GAE 55th anniversary model

1. All-black colour scheme

The SL-1210GAE’s 10-mm-thick aluminium top panel sports a meticulously anodized black brushed hairline finish. In addition, the operation buttons and tonearm also employ a high quality black finish that results in a uniform, premium appearance.

2. Special badge inscribed with a serial number

The SL-1210GAE is wholly made in Japan by skilled artisans’ hands, with a significant level of hand-made processes to ensure the highest quality possible. The top panel features a special badge, inscribed with the unique serial number to signify that it is a 55th anniversary model.

3. Insulator

The specially developed zinc insulator features αGEL™, a soft gel-like material with excellent shock absorbing properties which is also used on the highly acclaimed, ‘flagship’ SL-1000R reference turntable. The high-density zinc die-cast housing offers superb vibration damping characteristics and excellent long-term reliability. The new insulator effectively isolates the turntable from external vibrations, ensuring completely undisturbed music reproduction whilst preserving every fine nuance and detail within the musical signal.

αGEL™ is a trademark of Taica Corporation registered in Japan and/or other countries.

4. Strobe light ON-OFF switch

Turning off the strobe light allows the listener to concentrate more effectively on the music, especially in dimmed environment.

Product features of the SL-1210GAE

Coreless Direct Drive Motor

Conventional analogue turntables have problems with degradation in sound quality caused by factors such as minute speed vibration during rotation and rotation irregularity called “cogging.” In the SL-1210GAE, the use of a coreless direct-drive motor (with no iron core) eliminates cogging. Also, the twin-rotor construction reduces the bearing load whilst maintaining high torque, and also reduces minute vibration during rotation. These factors enable reproduction of the warm, high-level detailed sound available from analogue vinyl records.

High-Precision Motor Control Technology

The application of motor control technology developed for Blu-ray devices, and switching the drive mode depending on the operational status of the motor achieves a high starting torque and high speed stability for optimum playback.

Three-layered Turntable Platter

The turntable features a three-layered construction with a rigidly combined brass top-plate, an aluminium die cast core platter and a solid rubber coating covering its entire rear surface to eliminate unwanted resonance, thereby achieving overall superior rigidity and vibration damping. This delivers smooth rotational stability and high inertial mass surpassing the SP-10MK2 (the direct-drive turntable standard used by broadcast stations worldwide), as well as having more than twice the inertial mass of the SL-1200MK5.

High-level Balance Adjustment

When the weight distribution of the turntable is uneven, excess vibration or noise occurs during rotation, which causes degradation in sound quality. To counteract this, the balance of the turntable is adjusted at the factory by using specialised high-precision balance adjustment equipment for each and every item after the turntable is assembled. Turntables that have undergone adjustment are labelled with a sticker reading “BALANCED” to indicate that individual adjustment has been done.

High-Sensitivity Tonearm

The tonearm employs lightweight magnesium which has a high damping effect, with cold drawing improving the characteristics of the material and achieving the high-precision required. In addition, high initial-motion sensitivity is attained by employing the traditional Technics gimbal suspension construction with the horizontal rotation axis and the vertical rotation axis intersecting at a single central point, as well as high-precision bearings using a cut-processed housing.

High-Quality Terminals

The use of brass-milled and gold-plated phono terminals and ground terminals prevents degradation in sound quality while enabling the easy attaching and detaching of cables. Also the use of metal shielding construction inside the case reduces the effects of external noise.

Four-layered Cabinet Construction

A hairline-processed, 10-mm-thick black top panel of immaculate aluminium is added to a three-layered construction of aluminium die-cast, BMC(Bulk Moulding Compound), and heavyweight-class rubber. This four-layered construction combines high rigidity necessary for superb vibration damping with a superior solid build and a luxurious finish and feel..