Grand Prix Audio Monaco Turntable

My memory is that the one thing Fremer didn't like was that he felt the GPA imparted a slight bright coloration that he attributed to the direct drive which he lauded in all other respects.

It's interesting to note that despite the clear measurable technological superiority of the Monaco table (speed stability and resonance control), certain people, including one industry expert, try and attribute coloration to its design.

The coloration heard is that of the combined associated equipment choices made that suit a personal taste and put in an environment optimzed to that personal flavor. Even the standard reference vinyl used will obviously sound different because they were never heard with such speed stabilty until played through the Monaco.

Recently I had the opportuntity to listen to the top VPI with Koetsu Urushi on the Verity Lohengrin II's driven by top Accuphase (A-45, C-2810) top MIT cables retailing at $250.000+! This table was easily beaten by the Accuphase DP800/DC801 combo. It would not have made me a vinyl convert. If I didn't have the Monaco, I would have used this experience as a reason NOT to get into vinyl.

But I realize too that if you like sugar in your tea, or music, its difficult to change. Here's my analogy. Kinda like stopping smoking, until you do it you don't really know how good food and fine wine really tastes!

Keep on spinning!

Mtkhl567,

I don't know how you can be so certain that there is no possibility of any coloration in the Monaco design. If anything is "clear," it is that "measurable technological superiority" is a starting point, not an ending point, for observation. There are many levels of speed stability and resonance control that transcend the measurable. The Monaco is one of many admirable attempts.

It's interesting to note that despite the clear measurable technological superiority of the Monaco table (speed stability and resonance control), certain people, including one industry expert, try and attribute coloration to its design.

The coloration heard is that of the combined associated equipment choices made that suit a personal taste and put in an environment optimzed to that personal flavor. Even the standard reference vinyl used will obviously sound different because they were never heard with such speed stabilty until played through the Monaco.

Recently I had the opportuntity to listen to the top VPI with Koetsu Urushi on the Verity Lohengrin II's driven by top Accuphase (A-45, C-2810) top MIT cables retailing at $250.000+! This table was easily beaten by the Accuphase DP800/DC801 combo. It would not have made me a vinyl convert. If I didn't have the Monaco, I would have used this experience as a reason NOT to get into vinyl.

But I realize too that if you like sugar in your tea, or music, its difficult to change. Here's my analogy. Kinda like stopping smoking, until you do it you don't really know how good food and fine wine really tastes!

Keep on spinning!

Pieppiper, there is only ONE absolute measure of speed stability (ie the correct speed, the exact time it takes to go from a to b), and that is only correctly measured at the platter, and that is errors per million measurements. No rocket science degree required here. No other turntable measures speed accuracy at the platter level, so any claim to a speed accuracy figure is nul-and-void because its unverifiable. Now, when the GPA Monaco claims a maximum of 2 speed errors per 1 million measurements it means appr. 20 mintes of vinyl playback can be played without errors as Roy Gregory explained. It would be interesting to measure all other top tables out there with the same technology, I'll bet ya, they'd all fare miserably against the Monaco due to their older, lower performing technologies. And how does this best of speed stabilities express itself? Well in the most accurate and truest playback through the entire - yes entire - audio bandwidth as it was recorded and transferred to the vinyl disc. That is not coloration due to the Monaco. Coloration comes from all the other attached equipment, and resonances that impacts measurable speed stability. IMO therefore the Monaco is the MOST admirable attempt to date and audibly so.

I agree with you that this measurable technological superiority is indeed a starting point, for Grand Prix Audio turntable design and hopefully all tt designers, imagine the improvements on this table GPA have in store! The rest of the comptetition better start waking up to a new champ, you know what they say about betting on old horses... shake up old paradigms!