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Expected availability: 2-4 weeks
Let's get the obvious out of the way: Yes, the Dr. Feickert Firebird belt-drive turntable is massive – and intentionally high-mass. Huge even, by most standards, weighing 68.5 pounds and boasting a 6.25 x 22 x 18.11-inch plinth. It demands space in the same way it commands attention by way of its exacting design, painstaking engineering, immersive performance, and multifaceted functionality. Expressly created to effortlessly accommodate two tonearms up to 12 inches in length, Firebird touts three brushless, three-phase DC motors laid out in an equilateral triangle form and connected to a proprietary controller in a phase-locked loop that produces extremely low jitter. Even if you're unfamiliar with all the ins and outs of ‘tables, you likely realize such architecture is rare – and stands as one of the factors that makes Firebird extremely special.
Indeed, few, if any, other turntables allow installing, adjusting, and changing tonearms with more convenience and smarts than Firebird (which comes with a $250 Feickert Next Generation Universal Protractor). Two cutouts, each in one rear corner of the plinth, invite you to set up the tonearm of your choice and use the easy quick-change sliding system to adjust your it with utmost precision. (A single armboard comes standard; the second requires a Delrin slider and additional armboard.) As for as the plinth itself: A tempered MDF body sandwiched by elegant aluminum plates, all resting on adjustable vibration-resistant feet, and warrantied for two years (chassis and electronics for five years). Rest assured: Firebird arrives built to last.
For further proof, look to its 13.2-pound High Inertia Delrin platter with eight MS58 brass inserts for exacting balance and added mass as well as its inverted stainless-steel bearing, appointed with spiral grooves to pump oil and an oil-release grub screw for enhanced motor/bearing interaction help account for wondrous smoothness, effortless balance, and truly breathtaking stability. The end result: Near-imperceptible rumble and majestic quiet, particularly in that the bearing permits excellent synchronization and that the triangular motor arrangement contributes to supreme stability. In addition, the absence of drafts on the platter bearing eliminates undesirable force and distortion.
When it comes to operation, this bird sings. One-touch speed selection for 33, 45, and 78RPM can be found directly on the plinth while "plus" and "minus" buttons let you further incrementally dial-in the speed. As for the sonics – smooth, lush, focused, poised, etch-free, neutral, and yet powerful and dynamic. Prepare to become addicted to your LPs. Or, as Michael Fremer reported in Stereophile: "The Firebird's sound gave me a sensation of gliding smoothness and a sophistication of leading-edge transients. It avoided rough, hard edges as well as over-smoothed transients, but it definitely leaned toward the latter. Tonally, the Firebird had a pleasing neutrality, and excelled in the midrange, which was particularly rich and full bodied. High- and low-frequency extension were very good," he enthused.
Kuzma Stogi S 12 VTA Tonearm
The Kuzma Stogi S 12 VTA is a 12-inch unipivot bearing design with a unique, rigid, square solid-aluminum headshell and solid brass base that controls all vibration and facilitates stability. Featuring one uninterrupted piece of wire stretching from the head shell to connectors, every part of S 12 VTA arrives machined from solid metal in order to provide superb damping and minimize resonance. The polished pivot point is situated in an oil well, supplying extremely low friction and bearing vibration. The bearing height sits at record level for optimum tracking while the silicone damping controls cartridge resonance and offers stability in azimuth direction. Two counterweights allow easy adjustments of tracking force and azimuth. Fine azimuth adjustment is achieved by rotation of a horizontal screw in the main counterweight, which does not affect other tonearm parameters.
Kuzma 4Point 11 inch Percesion VTA Tonearm
Differs from other tonearms by introducing several new and unique features. The new zero-play bearing is configured on 4 points. The 4POINT tonearm has an effective length of 280mm (11-inch), a very precise VTA adjustment facility and fits our standard mount with a 212mm pivot-to-spindle distance. The heart of this new design is the unique 4-point bearing. Two points (which are similar to a uni-pivot bearing) allow and control vertical movements of the tonearm. The other set of two pointed bearings allow and control horizontal (lateral) movements of the tonearm. All four points of the bearing have minimal friction and zero-play in all planes of movement, thus ensuring that the cartridge platform and the cartridge itself follow the grooves of an LP with extremely low friction and minimal vibrations.
4POINT’s main section is firmly connected to a very rigid and inert VTA tower which provides the option of fine adjustments of the vertical tracking angle either when the tonearm is stationary or while the LP is playing. All this, of course, without any loss of rigidity and with 0.01mm accuracy of adjustment and zero-play!
The main tube is accurately machined out of a solid rod of aluminium as in our Air Line parallel tracking tonearm. Two separate troughs offer independent damping of vertical and horizontal resonances allowing a very high degree of fine adjustment and tuning at all times. If so desired, damping troughs can be easily be detached from the tonearm.
4POINT’s arm balancing solution consists of two counterweights – the main weight allows an accurate overall balance once the cartridge has been installed, while the second, smaller weight provides extremely fine further adjustment for total tracking force accuracy.
Azimuth is adjustable by precise worm drive mechanism allowing very small, repeatable adjustments.
Detachable headshell is another distinctive feature of this superior tonearm. Using a small Allen key, one can completely remove the headshell from the arm tube while the arm wiring including cartridge pins remains uninterrupted in its single run. Our headshell is fixed with a hexagonal locking system which provides the same degree of rigidity as if the headhsell was permanently bonded to the arm tube.
4POINT’s internal wiring is of the highest quality using special alloy silver formulation. A single, uninterrupted set of 4 wires runs from the cartridge pins to the RCA connectors (overall length 1.4m).
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