Brinkmann Bardo vs Transrotor Fat Bob Reference

03-15-11: Melbguy1
I received this reply directly from Transrotor in response to a question asking why they decided on the belt, as opposed to direct drive approach:

"We chose the belt drive because we think it is the best way not to bring resonances from the motor to the platter. The negative aspect of the belt drive (the belt slip) is compensated by the magnetic drive, the TMD"

I trust the Transrotor turntables are good sound products based on what was commented from earlier posts. I also think the TMD is a clever idea for belt-drive. But I'm surprised by their response to why they chose belt drive. Isn't direct-drive in itself a form of magnetic drive? Just think of the TMD is driven by coils instead of outboard motor using a belt. And if the DD motor is spinning at 33rpm, half Hz, isn't it innately quieter than one or three motors spinning at, say, 300rpm to 1800rpm, isolated by a belt or not? The only noise issue with DD is the quality of the bearing, which applies to ALL turntables. This is just another case of someone who does not understand the workings of direct drive. Let's face it, building quality DD table is expensive and, more importantly, requires a lot of knowledge in electronics beyond just mechanical engineering. I have no problem with them saying they simply prefer the sound of belt-drive, instead of using the, by now, really tiresome argument against DD. The horse is dead, stop beating on it.

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Well Hiho as they say ignorance is bliss. Enjoy your dd deck..

Melbguy1,

Hi. How are you enjoying the Transrotor?

In the case of vibrations, wow and flutter, and distortion with the Fat B and the Apollon, the motors are outboard and isolated separately from the platter assembly, negating any direct vibrational affects. Plus, each motor assembly is I believe internally damped with some interesting advanced technology to mitigate any noises or vibrations that might emanate from the motor assembly. Having three motors, I can state that I do not hear, feel vibrations, nor have I had any issues, whatsoever. The measured performance of using the TMD combined with the Transrotor motors, based on the classic Pabst technology, is so miniscule, that traditional Wow and Flutter measurements are hard to measure.

In fact, the combination of TMD and outboard motors used caused quite a stir in a German magazine a few years ago due to the extremely low measured distortion; comparably lower than some direct drive models.

The combination of the TMD and the isolated outboard motors add to the overall benefit of creating an extremely quiet and stunning musical presentation.

I am also happy to state that I do not have any problems many people report regarding vibrations, sensitivity, or influences from the external environment, just pure musical bliss.

Enjoy!

Ciao,
Audioquest4life

Hi AQ, the Fat Bob Plus is really excellent, very smooth in operation and as you say it has a stunning musical presentation. Thanks for your further insight into their design. Transrotor have just superior design, engineering & forward thinking. It is really simplistic to simply say direct drive is superior to Transrotor's TMD. That is like saying Lexus is superior to Rolls Royce.
Regards,
MG.

Melbguy1: "It is really simplistic to simply say direct drive is superior to Transrotor's TMD. That is like saying Lexus is superior to Rolls Royce."

I did NOT say direct-drive is superior to anything. I own all three drive systems: belt-drive, idler-drive, and idler-drive. All three are capable of good sound. But when it comes to direct-drive, I hear the same argument against it over and over again, i.e., if the platter is directly attached to the motor then therefore it will have vibration and no way of isolating it. My view is that the motor and platter share the same bearing and it has only one single moving part which is running at such slow speed at 33rpm that vibration isolation is not even needed. I see the mechanical simplicity as a plus and hence my fondness of it. Of course there are other issues that can haunt a DD system such as cogging, servo speed, magnetic shielding, etc... and those are valid objections. Nobody said it's perfect.

The TMD system is very clever and to me more elegant than their FMD or the one used in Clearaudio Statement or EAR Disk Master. I have no doubt it is a quiet table and offers the mentioned good sound and I am happy that you're enjoying it. Hell, I would like to try one myself. Again, my comment was directed at TR's response to the DD motor/platter isolation issue, which is a non-issue to me, and hope people can just move on to addressing other meaningful analog issues. I am certain people will bring up the same argument again and again... just like life.

Audioquest4life: "In fact, the combination of TMD and outboard motors used caused quite a stir in a German magazine a few years ago due to the extremely low measured distortion; comparably lower than some direct drive models."

Do the said direct drive models use the same bearing as the TMD? I rest my case.

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