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I am sure that the new DD with "Fatboy" gimbled arm at 30K is a great deck. Small correction. Pretty sure the HW40 (if that's what you're referring to) with the Fatboy gimbal can be had for $15K, less with a trade in. Still not cheap by any means, but it takes a few of the competitive tables out of the equation. |
Hey all, just to pop in real fast... totally agree about how a uni-pivot can be that is why we put a lot of time into the development of our Gimbal Fatboy. @tonyptony has it correct, the HW-40 is 15K. We learned a lot, have improved on our manufacturing and assembly process and were ale to drastically reduce the price of the deck. The main saver was in the volume of parts. Regardless, if we save money than I believe in passing that on to the end user the best we can. Also @fsonicsmith I agree with you about our former vibration control engineering... I think my dad did the work back in the day but then re-used the same concepts without re-analyzing the approach for different materials/models. Not the case anymore, the feet that are on the HW-40 have been researched, measured, and tested by my in house engineer Mike Bettinger. We have a video up called "the bottle test" where we beat the heck out of the platform while the turntable is playing. https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=335742833641928 At the moment, the HW-40 Direct Drive is the must current and efficient in regards to technology. We also have a full white paper on it to learn more: https://docs.wixstatic.com/ugd/5e0564_6dd7041af16e4823b3279a521f15aba6.pdf We aren't perfect, but we will always try to step up our game :) |
I can tell you that while at AXPONA I was in the Credo Audio / EMM / VPI room where the HW-40 was being used. While in there HW, at an opportune moment, started pounding on the rack the HW-40 was sitting on while it was playing. Not a ripple in the music. I'll be the first to admit I wish my Avenger was that good at isolating from external structure borne vibrations. |
What is with the vpi bashing? I owned a prime scout and now a prime signature. Both tables are incredible value for the price, but more importantly they sound amazing. I was an lp12 user for the last twenty years and when that died my daughter and I went on an almost four year journey. Listening to Brinkman, well tempered, clearaudio and technics tables. The prototype of the vpi prime scout that we listened to which was less than half the price of some others we listened to stood out. We used it for a year and upgraded to the prime signature which gave us some more but the law of diminishing returns always apolies. This is the last table anyone needs. I like the unipivot. I am an engineer by profession and like what it does. No album is perfect from a flat surface or how the grooves are cut. The 2 side weights on the unipivot rock back and forth on some less than perfect records. I always wonder if that was a fixed bearing how much stress and twist that creates for the cantilever thereby straining the suspension and innards of the cartridge. Additionally with a fixed bearing when the cantilever twists how it might cause the stylus to damage the sidewall of the record groove. Finally the tonearm bearing would eventually loosen from the stress. Mat at vpi has some solid engineers behind him that are veterans of the industry like Mike Bettinger. The new prime line are engineering marvels. This is not only my opinion but those of many happy users like myself that are seasoned audiophiles for decades. Look at some of the reviews. It is maddening when people just trash a brand with no research or proof behind it just that they might have had an issue at one time it another. Vpi is second to none in customer care,dont care what industry you are in vpi should be used as the model. In the end its your ears and wallet that should prevail. |
