Tokyo International Audio Show 2017 Day 2

A surprise encounter with Lyra cartridge designer Jonathan Carr and Osamu Nagao began day 2. The rest of the day was spent walking through the show and observing from a distance. Between the packed rooms and the language barrier, asking questions was difficult and often led to wrong answers.

When i asked about the drive system of a new Yamaha turntable prototype I was first told it was "direct drive" like the older Yamaha to which it bears a striking similarity. Fortunately that was quickly corrected: it's a belt drive design. The prototype features an arm with a straight pipe and a head shell that does not have an offset angle. Hopefully that will be corrected upon its introduction!

On Monday I visited both optical cartridge manufacturer DS Audio and Excel Sound, manufacturer of Hana cartridges as well as other brands for which it OEMs. At DS I saw the original '70s era direct drive Yamaha turntable that closely resembles the new one.

COMMENTS
volvic's picture

I think it is fantastic to see these old venerable Japanese brands coming out again with great new products, especially turntables. Can't wait to see Yamaha's new table. C'mon Sony you're next.

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