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Technics SL-1210G Turntable
TECHNICS
Technics SL-1210G
Technics originally designed its
iconic SL-1200 as an audiophile turntable, but it had so many features that were useful to professionals that it became the turntable of choice for radio stations and DJs right around the world. Its success made it the most copied design on the planet. Arguably there are also now more different versions of the SL-1200 than any other turntable in the world. Some, such as the SL-1200 Mk7, ensure the design’s continued success with professionals while others, such as the new Technics SL-1210G, ensure the design’s continued success with audiophiles.
The earliest incarnations of the SL1200 used iron-cored direct-drive motors that exhibited a problem called ‘cogging’ which adversely affected sound quality. The direct-drive motor in the ‘Grand Class’ SL-1210G is a newer core-less type that is completely free of this effect. The resulting smoothness of the platter’s rotation (wow and fl utter of less than 0.025% weighted RMS) is enhanced by a 3.6kg three-layer platter construction that uses brass, aluminium and rubber to eliminate unnecessary resonances and vibration.
The new SL-1200G model also allows you to adjust the pitch of music being played by more than before. The speed of the platter’s rotation can now be adjusted by up to 16 per cent either side of the three available platter speeds —33.33, 45 and 78rpm. This allows you to correct for LPs that were recorded at the wrong speed or easily play along on a musical instrument.
For the fi rst time you are now able to connect the SL-1200G to your phono stage or amplifi er using your preferred cables, thanks to the provision of brassmilled gold-plated RCA outputs and a ground screw. A new cold-drawn magnesium tonearm has a gimbal suspension with the horizontal rotation axis and the vertical rotation axis intersecting at a single central point, along with high-precision bearings, to ensure your phono cartridge’s stylus traces the LP groove perfectly, for maximum music retrieval.
The plinth of the SL-1200G is a four-layer design, with a 10mm-thick top plate made of aluminium, beneath which are aluminium diecast, BMC and silicone-rubber layers, along with vibration-absorbing feet.