Why According to some Turntable extremists Pitch Control and Direct Drive is Sacrilege?

One thing that tends to be overlooked in this endless debate is that belt drive is more economically viable for the "cottage industry" turntable manufacturer.

A lot of the, in my view, baseless criticism of direct drive goes back to the 70s/80s when there was something of a smear campaign to promote certain British belt drive models against Japanese direct drives.

The truth was that the combined profits of all the cottage industry manufacturers back then wouldn’t account for a fraction of the turntable R&D costs of a company like Technics at the time.

VPI’s recent introduction of a very pricey, and I’m sure very great, DD model confirms that small manufacturers can only entertain this type of technology at prices way above what most people would find affordable.

As for any harshness in the mid range, I’ve never heard this in my own Technics SL1600 Mk2, though I did get a massive improvement in overall sound quality by fitting a KABusa silicone damper to the arm and sitting the deck on Audio Technica AT-605 feet. DD is no different from belt drive in that it can be tweaked in a number of ways.

Ultimately everyone must decide which type of turntable is best for them. There are no rights and wrongs, just opinions.

Use your ears...

I'm still in business  but not taking orders currently. The tables are difficult  to manufacture  and I am looking into ways to simplify a few procedures. Actually  my table has little in common with the Trans Fi. Sorry. Lol ( but he makes great gear so no offense)!

@chakster 

You really should get use to adding to your Japanese DD obsession diatribes with the caveat...."in your opinion"...not everyone does or is required to be that narrow of mind and sight to enjoy their music , played back their way. Some folks don't want to have to build a massive plinth and modifications to motor drives that actually sound terrible without that expense. So they really are in many cases incomplete for some. I own all drives. They all have as I said before, their own strengths and weaknesses,  their own sound which for some, that sound is the preference THEY choose. All the ranting and knocking down of others choices and labeling what they choose as cheap junk and yours as the best choice for all, doesn't make it so. It makes you come off as unable to allow let alone even entertain the fact others choose for their needs and wants and don't really care about what you or anyone else claims as fact.
Its just your opinion,  and that I respect and your entitled to it.
You just need to realize your not in any way entitled to belittle or force your narrow view of things on others as gospel. They are also entitled to have the right to their own opinion and it be respected as such..... till your given the official title of The authority on turntables. ...it's just your opinion.  The nice thing about opinions when respected, people can absorb and learn new things. Thats how an open mind and an open forum works. When it parades opinions as fact with personal jabs it becomes something less functional and less knowledge is willingly shared and those that push their opinions often don't even know the experience they are shutting themselves away from ..... 

Ah it was you Bruce : ) Please to meet you again.
 Firstly, your deck is the most interesting thing since Salvation in modern High End really, IMHO. Of course the tables are different, yours is made of metal both platter and base, Vic´s is slate with aluminium platter, and the tables look different. Both platters/spindles have very tight tolerances and practically weight the same, platter damping techniques are quite different too, though. Different motors yet both very high quality. 
 Yet there is something very special in both designs that takes these decks to a higher performance level, namely the maglev spindle. I know exactly was this means because I´m experienced too. The maglev simply works. That´s why I call your design as an incarnation of Salvation, you see. The Anvil is another implementation to the speed stability subject.  The essence is the spindle ass´y, the heart of the turntable. For me there is no mystery. There are not so many that sophisticated maglev designs in the market, I´m afraid...

Thanks for the kind words. Yes the maglev implementation (when properly executed) is a win win, although it does add a bit to cost. I remember our conversations and enjoyed them. As you discovered  assembling a top notch tt can be frustrating!

Regards