Nielsen Music's most recent report shows that, though streaming continues to be the music consumption king of the castle, vinyl sales are on the rise – with some 9.35 million albums flying off US shelves during the first three quarters of the year. And with this resurgence in the format comes more and more manufacturers trying to persuade music lovers to once again make space in the living room for a turntable. New player Defoss has mixed an Italian flair for beautiful design with 3D-printing and vibration-nixing elements to create an eye-catching analog turntable called the Logigram.
In a world of quick on-the-move music hits and digital convenience, Logigram has been developed "to bring back the pleasure of taking a moment for yourself and your music," and is currently raising funds over on Kickstarter to make the jump into production.
The stylish turntable has had some of its plinth stripped away and replaced with an anti-resonant barrier between the tonearm and the 24 V synchronous motor, which translates into the eye-catching black flash across the top of the Logigram. It still tips the scales at a solid 5 kg (11 lb) though, and is isolated from the furniture it stands on by three spiked supports.
Atop the plinth is a 3D-printed tonearm formed as a single piece – from cartridge to counterweight – mounted using low friction bearings and rocking anti-skating and vertical tracking angle (or stylus rake angle) regulation.
The belt-driven Logigram supports playback at 33.3 and 45 rpm speeds and will be made available in three different variations. There are two units (one black, one white) with a 30 mm (1.2 in) MDF plinth and an AT95E cartridge and a premium flavor with a 30 mm ply construction and an Ortofon 2M Red cartridge. All feature RCA line out ports, with separate ground terminal.
Unlike some modern turntables, such as Audio Technica's excellent AT-LP5, the Logigram doesn't feature its own phono preamp, so will need to be connected to an external hi-fi amplifier with one built in. And you won't be able to use it to directly rip your vinyl collection to digital format like you can with Sony's HX500 turntable. But it's a great looking record player with enough modern twists to keep things interesting, and it does come with a dust cover included, which is something of a rarity these days.
The Kickstarter runs until January 11, 2018, and pledges start at €459 (US$550). If all goes to plan, shipping is expected to start in August next year. The pitch video below has more on the project.
Sources: Defoss, Kickstarter