Manual
Meet a Maker
AS THE VINYL RENAISSANCE CONTINUESand presses
struggle to keep up with a surprising new demand for LPs,
smaller manufacturers are tapping into a market that
hasn’t existed since at least the early 1990s.
Simon Brown of Design Build Listen decided to
focus on one particular aspect of vinyl playback: the
tonearm. “I saw all these little turntable companies
poppingup,buttheyallhadtobuytheirtonearms
fromJelcoorRegaorPro-Ject.Whichmeanstheywere
effectivelybuyingfromtheircompetition!”
Turntables today are broadly split into mass-market
products from the afore-mentioned brands, which come
ready-to-play,andboutiquesystemswheretheusermust
choose turntable, tonearm and cartridge themselves.
“A tonearm’s job is basically to manage vibration,”
says Brown. As the stylus picks up information in the
record’sgrooveandthecartridgeconvertsittoan
electrical signal, Brown says vibrations can propagate
back and forth along the tonearm and (at least on very
high-end equipment) degrade the sound.
“Others have used carbon fibre in the past, mainly
as a way to save weight. I’m using it to strengthen the
armanddampenresonances,”Brownsays.Indeed,the
most striking thing about his Wand+ tonearm is the
thickness of the main tube. He says it has about four
timesthediameterofatypicaltonearm.
“The basic tonearm design is a
cartridge on one end, a tube and then a
counterweight hanging off the other,”
Brownsays.“Myideawastoconcentrateasmuch
mass as possible into one big lump and only have
small adjustment options.”
TheotherunusualdesignelementintheWand+is
that it sits on a so-called “unipivot”, where it rotates
freelyonaspindle,insteadofusingagimbalwith
separate horizontal and vertical bearings.
“Whether a unipivot design is better or worse is
quite political,” says Brown. “Some people hate it, but
I chose it initially as a way of keepings costs down,
thoughitdidn’tquiteworkoutthatwayintheend...”
The Wand+ comes in different lengths, with the
majorityofsystemslikelytousea9.5-inch(241mm)
model,whichcosts$1499.DBLalsohasanewMaster-
seriesWand(pictured)forpeoplewhopreferturntables
thatcostasmuchasadecentcar.Pricingisn’tsetyet,
butitwillcostabouttwiceasmuchastheWand+.3DPRINTED?
YOUMEAN
LASTER
SINTERED!
Because this is 2016,
naturally there’s a
3D-printed element
in the Wand+. The
mount that holds the
cartridge is made from
laser-sintered titani-
um, which means it’s
built by fusing powder
with a laser rather than
cutting it out from a
largerblockofmetal.
Brown says this allows
him to make a stronger,
lighter but more
complex mount, at a
lower price. For more
details, visit:
designbuildlisten.comMaking Carbon Fibre Count
Why NZ engineer Simon Brown is using next-gen materials to improve last-gen tech
THE WAND+ TONEARM
PRICE: $1499
WEB: http://www.addictedtoaudio.com.auby
Anthony
Fordham
76 POPULAR SCIENCE