Turntables (decks)

It all started with the SP10

The SP-10 was the world's first turntable to use a direct-drive system, invented by Shuichi Obata an engineer at Matsushita (now Panasonic) in Osaka Japan. The SP-10 eliminated belts and instead employed a motor to directly drive a platter on which the vinyl record rests.

With the direct-drive system, the motor rotated at the same speed as the record; therefore, there was no speed reducing mechanism, such as a belt or idler. As a result, mechanical vibrations originating from the speed reduction mechanism were nonexistent.

The turntable platter weighed 2.8 kg and had inertial mass of 330 kg-cm2. Every platter produced was meticulously adjusted for optimal dynamic balance. Since the spin speed was electronically changed when the dial was operated, there was no switching mechanism to cause rotational fluctuation. The rotation speeds of 33-1/3 and 45 rpm were individually fine-adjustable. The SP-10 was adopted for use by the BBC and also evaluated highly around the world. It became a de-facto reference for Hi-Fi record players.

In 1969 Matsushita therefore released this new SP-10 direct-drive turntable onto the market as the first in their influential Technics series, following it up in 1971 with the Technics SL-1100. Due to its strong motor, durability and fidelity, the SP-1100 was adopted by early hip hop artists.

Next came THE most influential turntable of them all, the Technics SL-1200. Developed in 1971 by a team led again by Shuichi Obata at Matsushita & released onto the market in 1972, it was quickly adopted by New York hip-hop DJs such as Grand Wizard Theodore & Afrika Bambaataa. As these early turntablist pioneers experimented with the SL-1200 decks they developed scratching techniques when they discovered that the motor would continue to spin at the correct RPM even if the DJ wiggled the record back and forth on the platter. Since then 'turntablism' spread widely in hip-hop culture and the SL-1200 remained the most widely used turntable in DJ culture for the next several decades.

This Technics direct-drive design therefore established itself as THE standard for deejays, setting out the classic standards for a deejay turntable: A heavy, vibration-resistant & resonance-resistant plinth combined with a heavy precision-milled & rock solid, fast starting & accurate direct-drive platter.

The 'Super OEM' turntables

The next step in the story is the introduction of the 'Super OEM' turntable. OEM stands for 'Original Equipment Manufacture'. OEM products are mass-produced by one company for a low cost and sold to other companies that build upon them by adding their own features to complete a unique final product.

When the Technics patents for it's direct-drive turntable lapsed a Taiwanese company called Hanpin started to build 'OEM' copies of the Technics direct-drive platter which any company could have badged with their own name. The Hanpin DJ-5500 became the basis for many OEM decks from companies such as Audio Technica, Stanton, Reloop and Pioneer who could all have their own decks manufactured using this direct-drive Technics copy standard, but at the point of manufacture they could add-on their own innovative designs to other parts of the overall deck. This was the start of the Clone Wars (so to speak).

Classic turntables

Deejay mixers

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Classic DCO synthesisers

Roland TB-303

The classic acid bassline synth. Much imitated over the years with original units in good condition going for silly money.

Roland MC202

A cheap, controllable, genuine Roland oldie which can be clocked with midi-CV. It has plenty of realtime controllers to mess with & a built-in pattern sequencer, sorta like an SH-101 without the keys.

Moog MiniMoog

The old fabled monosynth. First port of call for thumping solid basslines & much much more.

Roland Juno 106

The famous Juno 106. Something of a legend in dance music production as it offers classic Roland analog oscilagtors with MIDI.

Roland SH-101

Another of the few budget old Roland synths that won't break the bank. Needs a CV-clock to run the sequencer or you can play it live from the keys. Lots of realtime controls with this affordable classic.

Jen SX1000

An often overlooked bargain bucket old classic The Jen SX doesn't have alot of sound variety, but a very nice filter. Check one out.

Deejay controllers

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