Technics SL-1700 Turntable - Silver

When Technics first introduced the direct drive turntable back in 1969, we were sure that our new drive design would revolutionize turntable manufacture. Subsequent history has shown that we were correct. The direct drive system was so much of an improvement over the old way that it just couldn't be ignored, and the rest of the audio world was quick to imitate us. Today the direct drive turntable has become the industry standard, and it's no wonder. Just take a look at the direct drive advantages.
Greater Simplicity
In the Technics integral rotor-platter structure direct drive system, the platter serves as the rotor and the motor housing serves as the stator. Thus, the platter is the only moving part. No pulleys, no bells, and no idlers are needed to drive the platter. Construction is greatly simplified and overall precision is much greater. And with fewer parts to wear out, reliability and service life is vastly improved.
Greater Efficiency
The direct drive motor runs at an ultra-slow speed since it need rotate no faster than the platter. This reduces mechanical wear and stress, causes less evaporation of lubricants, and creates much less vibration. The brushless DC motor has a power consumption 90% lower than conventional motors. This means much less trouble causing heat and lengthened service life of all parts. And the elimination of the AC motor means the elimination of hum and power line frequency variations as a source of speed inaccuracy.
Higher Performance
The real payoff is in performance. The simple construction of the direct drive system enables much more precise construction and easier quality control. This has permitted the reduction or wow and flutter to spectacularly low levels and the total elimination of rumble as a source of Interference. As you can see, it is no exaggeration to say that the Technics direct drive turntable has revolutionised the world of turntables.

SL-1700 Turntable
The SL-1700 offers the famous Technics direct drive system with the added convenience of semi-automatic operation. Once the tonearm is manually positioned over the lead-in grooves. the automatic mechanism will lower the tonearm onto the record when the lever is flicked, and automatically return it to the arm rest at the completion of play. The unit is then automatically shut off. This handy feature frees the user from rushing to the turntable at the end of record play and also saves wear on your stylus. At any time during play, flicking the stop lever will cause the tonearm to automatically lift up and return to the arm rest. To control the DC direct drive motor, the SL-1700 incorporates a B.FG servo with One Chip IC which can perform the functions of up to 321 transistors, diodes and resistors. B.FG stands for Back-Electromotive-Force Frequency Generator and it describes the method whereby the back electromotive force Induced by the rotor in the stator coils is used to monitor the speed of the platter. The waveform obtained from this becomes the reference for the frequency generator. Its output is compared with the standard calibration frequency obtained from the reference oscillator and then, when needed, a correction signal instantly changes the motor drive current to the proper value to turn the platter at precisely the right speed. Wow & flutter for the SL-1700 is an Insignificant 0.025% (WRMS), while rumble is - 73 dB (DIN B).
The SL-1700 also is equipped with Technics newly designed Floating Double Isolator, which prevents acoustic feedback by shielding the turntable and tonearm assembly from external vibrations. This isolator actually insulates the turntable from the outside with two layers of specially designed isolators constructed of metal springs and special vibration absorbing material.
The SL-1700 is equipped with several other defences against acoustic feedback: a heavy zinc alloy tonearm base, a newly designed turntable mat, and a precision made diecast aluminium cabinet. The tonearm is gimbal suspended to achieve 7 mg friction. Effective arm mass has been kept very low (22 g) to accommodate premium high compliance cartridges. Other features of the SL-1700 include a fine-scale direct reading anti-skating control, illuminated stroboscope, independent pitch controls variable by up to 10%, viscous-damped cueing device, and detachable dust cover.

Turntable Section
Type: Direct drive semi-automatic turntable
Motor: Electronically controlled brushless DC motor
Turntable Platter: Aluminium diecast: 330 mm diameter
Turntable Speeds: 33.3 and 45 rpm
Speed Change Method: Electronic change
Variable Pitch Controls: Individual adjustment controls. 10% adjustment range
Wow and Flutter: 0.025% (JIS C5521) WRMS, ±0.035% (DIN 45507) weighted, zero to peak
Rumble: - 50 dB (DIN 45539A); - 73 dB (DIN 45539B)
Tonearm Section
Type: Universal S-shaped tubular arm. static-balanced type, direct-reading tracking force adjustment, with anti-skating force control device, oil-damped cueing device
Effective Length: 230 mm
Overhang: 15 mm
Friction: 7 mg (horizontally and vertically)
Effective Mass: 22 g (6.0 g cartridge weight, 1.75 g stylus pressure)
Tracking Error Angle: Within + 3° (at the point of 145 mm from the centre); + 1° (at the point of 55 mm from the centre)
Offset Angle: 21.5°
Adjustable Tracking Force: 0 - 3 g
Cartridge Range: 5 - 11 g
Headshell Weight: 9.5 g
General
Power supply: AC 120 V, 50/60 Hz
Power consumption: 6 W
Dimensions: 453 (W) x 369 (D) x 125 (H) mm
Weight: 8.8 kg

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