Is this thing real?

Shell

The ELP Laser Turntable
Imagine playing your records with their original sound, but with all the features of a modern CD player. After $20 Million of development costs, the LT-2XRC Laser Turntable plays LPs, singles and 78s to audiophile quality with remote control and CD features such as track selection, pause fast forward and rewind. With no physical contact with the record, the Laser turntable offers zero record wear, no rumble or background noise of any kind, no cartridge induced resonances or frequency response anomalies, perfect channel separation, zero tracking errors, no inner groove distortion and no skating or jumping. User adjustable laser-reading height allows the laser to read the grooves of old records, at a height where the stylus has caused least wear. By scanning below the surface, scratches are inaudible and even broken records can be played, if you need to transcribe those old 78s! Remarkably despite using laser technology, the Laser Turntable retains the purity of being an analogue device and outputs a MM level Phono signal, with a frequency response of 10 Hz- 25 kHz.

How can it be analog?

Now for sale on ebay US $15,184.65

tryrrthg

it's real. I believe a laser is used to read the grooves in the record, just like a needle would on a regular TT.

Shell

Try, I understand how it reads, but can a laser really give an analog output? Guess this technology is way beyond my understanding.

Danny Tse

This turntable has been around since the early 90s.

steveinaz

It was profiled in Stereophile about 6 months ago (maybe less). I does still have some issues that they are working. Apparently your records have to be immaculately clean or it makes strange noises when it encounters imperfections. But they were impressed when new/very well cleaned LP's were played....


Update: I tried searching it on Stereophile, but no luck..must have been another audio rag. I'll see if I still have it when I get home.

audiobliss

very interesting....I wonder who has that much money to dump on a TT......

madmax

Considering audiophile grade turntables the price is not unreasonable. Cheaper than many. I would have to see and hear it work though. I guess it could be analog. After all, who would want a digital turntable??
madmax

steveinaz

I've often wondered why its taken so long to develop something like this. Doesn't seem like it would be that difficult to have a laser tracking the grooves as opposed to a stylus. No physical contact, no wear.