I have no dog in this fight, but I do happen to be here in Tokyo for the past two weeks. Today and about two days ago, I saw for sale at Yodibashi Camera what was labeled as a Technics SL1200 Mk 7. Yes, mark seven. What’s up with that? Yodibashi also has on display and for sale the new SL1000RS and the SL1200G and variants thereof. Could it be that the Mk6 version is in fact discontinued to make way for the Mk 7? Also, I don’t think the loss of the old version SL1200, be it Mk6 or other, is to be mourned so intensely, as the new SL1200GAE, G, etc, is such a much better turntable.
Technics SL-1200 goes out of production
I have various friends in the Japanese music business, and one of them (CEO of a dance-club in Tokyo) just received a notice from Panasonic KK, to the effect that the venerable SL-1200 is at long last going out of production.
The relevant contents of the correspondence from Panasonic loosely translate as follows:
***
We (Panasonic) launched the SL-1200 series of analog players in 1972, and have continued to sell them to the present. Based on DD (Direct-Drive) technology, the compactness and high performance of the SL-1200 series has won it many long-term adherents.
Despite this, unit sales have diminished year by year, also it has become more difficult to maintain the production system and continue procuring the required components. Simply put, sustaining production has become an ordeal.
With that in mind, we regretfully announce the end-of-life for the following products:
SL-1200 MK6 analog player
SH-EX1200 analog audio mixer
RP-DH1200 / RP-DJ1200 stereo headphones.
***
You can see a webpage of similar content here (but in Japanese)
http://blog-shibuya-club.diskunion.net/Entry/2157/
It's a sad day, but all good things eventually come to an end...
kind regards, jonathan carr
The relevant contents of the correspondence from Panasonic loosely translate as follows:
***
We (Panasonic) launched the SL-1200 series of analog players in 1972, and have continued to sell them to the present. Based on DD (Direct-Drive) technology, the compactness and high performance of the SL-1200 series has won it many long-term adherents.
Despite this, unit sales have diminished year by year, also it has become more difficult to maintain the production system and continue procuring the required components. Simply put, sustaining production has become an ordeal.
With that in mind, we regretfully announce the end-of-life for the following products:
SL-1200 MK6 analog player
SH-EX1200 analog audio mixer
RP-DH1200 / RP-DJ1200 stereo headphones.
***
You can see a webpage of similar content here (but in Japanese)
http://blog-shibuya-club.diskunion.net/Entry/2157/
It's a sad day, but all good things eventually come to an end...
kind regards, jonathan carr
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- 16 posts total
Dear @whatthe : You can contact him here: https://www.audiogon.com/users/jcarr or here if he wants to post in the thread: @jcarr Btw, @lewm , this thread date is 2010 ! Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS, R. |
- 16 posts total