Turntable Offerings |
European Audio Team - EAT Turntables
European Audio Team is a luxury audio brand out of the Czech Republic delivering high performance audio with multiple levels of entry. This flexible brand is for those ready to begin taking the first steps into true high fidelity as well as the luxury ultra fidelity audiophile alike.
EAT turntables begin on the low end with the affordable, neutral-chassis Prelude turntable, which will allow the beginner audiophile the option to graduate in to higher end cartridges as their budget will allow. At the top end of European Audio Team you'll find the luxurious Fortissimo Turntables, which can sit comfortably amongst the highest end electronics chains driving the finest ultra high end loudspeakers. On a personal note, an EAT Fortissimo S outfitted with the EAT Jo No. 8 Moving Coil Cartridge was the turntable being used in what I consider the finest audiophile system over which I have ever enjoyed listening to music. The detail, clarity, and sonic imaging of that experience took my understanding of high fidelity to a level yet to be eclipsed. ROKSAN Turntables
Why have one luxury line when you can have two? Roksan has three models they offer, as well as specialty tone arms, and cartridges. Roksan is an exciting brand out of England, and is the sister company to Monitor Audio. Knowing Monitor Audio offers a line of Ultra Fidelity Loudspeakers priced at over $90,000, it is safe to assume they offer turntables worthy of being the source component for the highest levels of audio performance and craftsmanship.
NAD Turntables
Is it Nad, or N A D? It's pronounced N A D.
NAD is a fantastic electronics brand. Audio enthusiasts have celebrated NAD for over 50 years and once someone goes with NAD, you'll find they are extremely loyal to the brand. There's a reason for that. NAD's commitment to musical sound. NAD's Masters line of preamps, streaming devices, and amplifiers is the flagship line rolling out NAD's innovations which are often adopted by boutique brands a few years after NAD released the technology to their customers. NAD isn't necessarily an innovative turntable brand to this point, but they wanted to offer turntables most folks can afford that deliver on features they found to be key to high end audio performance from a turntable: heavy platter, belt drive for noise isolation, an isolated AC power supply with universal voltage, a sturdy plinth, and a quality cartridge. TEAC Turntables
Pronounced "TEE - ACK." TEAC is the brand we offer for those on a limited budget. It's a great brand and serves the music in your grooves well. TEAC has features our other brand offerings do not, like bluetooth capability, or even USB connectivity available on some of their models. Those aren't really features an audiophile seeks out and so you won't find them on other turntables available through Vassal High End, but they do provide some flexibility with your system, which you may find desirable.
The entry level with TEAC is around $350. Anyone who wants to play vinyl without hurting it needs to put some money into their turntable. Unless you find a great used turntable for a great price, this is the minimum you should be spending. And while other turntable manufacturers offer tables at a similar price, TEAC is the brand whose performance, quality, and value Vassal High End demands from its brand offerings. Vinyl is an investment. The average price of used vinyl is around $15 - $20 per album, with new vinyl easily exceeding $40 and skyrocketing to astronomical prices on limited releases or highly coveted albums. Protect your vinyl with a quality turntable and quality cartridge. Playing vinyl doesn't have to damage the grooves as so many claim. But it can damage the grooves, harming your collection and investment, if you make poor choices on a table and cartridge. Don't skimp on the turntable! |
Vinyl Sounds Better . . .
. . . when you play high quality vinyl on a high quality turntable. Quite frankly, your record's vinyl is heavily dependent on the technology of the turntable on which it is played. A cheap record player with a low quality needle may be capable of creating that "nostalgic" scratchy sound that harkens back to a simpler time, sure, but it isn't capable of actually making vinyl sound better. How's it possible that vinyl can sound better? Good Question! It comes down to the music imprinted on/cut into the groove. Vinyl contains ALL the details the recording equipment could possibly capture, rather than digital samples. In a clean groove you have unadulterated sound. From there, it's a matter of using sensitive and well calibrated equipment necessary to pull the music out of the groove and place it on a clean signal path through amplification and loudspeakers/headphones straight to your ears. As you can imagine, this equipment comes at a cost. And increased costs can bring you closer and closer to the High Fidelity (Fidelity means Faithfulness) we audiophiles celebrate. At Vassal High End we choose manufacturers who produce turntables and cartridges that bring you to various levels of High Fidelity. Not everyone can afford $20,000+ turntables, and we understand that. Some of our clients can. Thus we carry what we consider the minimal entry cost into this world of higher fidelity, as well as turntables that step up from the minimal entry and are capable of upward scaleability. Finally, we carry Luxury Turntables for Audiophiles who want to reach premium levels of Ultra Fidelity. Why shouldn't I just buy my turntable online? It's a fair question. Let's face it, very few people in our society aren't buying stuff online. Here's my best answer to that question: High End Audio is a journey, and it's one that many of us have been forced to walk alone with brick and mortar stereo shops going out of business all over the country. At Vassal High End, it's my hope to build a relationship with you that allows us to share in your journey and provide you with support and great demos. You don't have to do this alone. Developing a relationship with a local dealer is going to help you get the products you need without being oversold on gimmicks so common with online dealers who never have to look you in the eye. We get to know you and your system. |