Is Direct Drive Really Better?

Direct drive or die.

i think it is because turntable designers all have varying degrees of understanding of the entire turntable system, and place varying amounts of emphasis on "perfecting" the various aspects, within a certain price range, and possibly with different technologies and approaches.

It is definitely not a foregone conclusion that just because a company makes turntables, that they are "expert" in the field. And even "experts" have holes in their knowledge base. And even if they do know everything(impossible), they cannot implement perfection, or even close to it at any affordable price range.

So, what you buy is inherently a compromise.
What types of compromising, and how well the compromises work as a whole, will determine the results.
And, since different people have different listening tastes and sensitivities, different forms of compromise may appeal to different listeners.

That's why there are numerous manufacturers, who all provide a different set of engineering compromises, in an attempt to get the best result at the price range intended.

And it's the same with all other components, too.

Is it really possible to design the perfect turntable. I think not. I do not agree with Twl, that designers have a hole in their knowledge base. I think it is the knowledge base that has the hole. This and the absence of perfect materials.

Interestingly, were we all willing to convert the signal into digital information immediately, it might be possible for a computer to "remove" non-rigid materials' impacts on sound such as the new telescopes remove the atmosphere's impact on light hitting the mirror. Or remove the resonances of the table, or the LP being off center. All we would have to give up would be analog sound.

Macrojack: I am staying Belt Driven!!! jejeje, lots of improvement areas elsewhere in my analog setup (arm-power supplies-stands, etc..).

Very interesting thread, a learning experience.

Fernando

I had the pleasure of hearing the new Teres 380 direct drive table (still prototype) last weekend in Dever. I won't say that it answers this question in absolute terms. I will say that Chris Brady has implemented a clearly superior Teres that will probably send many designers back to the drawing board. The 380 completely humiliated a 320 in tempo and gave a very life-like, snappy presentation. Don't pass up a chance to hear one!