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well tempered lab
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Design Principles
In 1977, The Bruel and Kjær Company of Denmark
published a land-mark paper concerning the
mechanical stability of high fidelity turntables:
The Audible Effects of Mechanical Resonances
in Turntables. Using the then new technology
of Fast Fourier Transform analysis, Bruel
and Kjær analyzed a high end turntable to
determine the importance of a turntable’s
mechanical stability. The conclusion of the
B&K research was that a high fidelity
tone-arm should have a low effective mass
and be mechanically damped to a Q of 0.5
to eliminate the side-band distortion caused
by mechanical instability. Side-band distortion
is particularly objectionable to human hearing.
As a result of this conclusion, many light
weight tonearms were developed but the issue
of damping was largely or completely ignored.
There is a good reason for ignoring this
requirement, damping is not simple to implement
and requires a new approach to tone-arm design.
During my research when designing Amadeus
I have concentrated on achieving a very high
degree of mechanical stability and have been
required to use novel techniques and materials.
I am pleased to report that my efforts have
resulted in a stable turntable design that
is simple in appearance but has a deep foundation
of experiments and technology. During my
experiments, I have constructed many prototypes,
perhaps as many as fifty.
Controlling The Mechanical Resonances Of
The Tone-Arm
The Amadeus tone-arm does not have a bearing
in the normal sense. Many tone-arm bearings
use high quality ball bearings that have
clearances in the low micron range. However,
that is where all the action takes place.
The Amadeus bearing has zero clearance and
damping for un-rivaled performance. The tone-arm
is constructed with a golf ball partially
immersed in high viscosity silicone fluid.
Golf balls are very precisely made and are
well-suited for this application. The degree
of damping is adjustable. A tone-arm without
damping will cause the cone of a subwoofer
to pump markedly.
Controlling The Resonance Within The Arm
Tube The 10.5 inch arm tube of Amadeus is
filled with a special grade of sand to eliminate
any resonances within the tube. This technique
is very effective and is unique to all Well
Tempered designs.
Rotational Stability Of The Spindle
The Amadeus round spindle rotates in a triangular
hole of Teflon and the corner is oriented
to the motor. This arrangement causes the
spindle to rotate in a zero clearance bearing.
If the spindle is in the normal round hole,
the contact with the bearing surface is made
of one point, a condition which can cause
rotational instability. With the round spindle
rotating in a triangular hole, contact is
made at two points resulting in zero clearance
and a high degree of stability.
Bearing Noise
The Amadeus bearing uses a Teflon thrust
bearing. The stainless steel spindle has
a precision point and rests into a small
hole in the Teflon thrust bearing to achieve
a very low noise.
Acrylic Platter
The Amadeus platter is acrylic which I have
found to be very suitable for this purpose.
In addition to having desirable mechanical
properties, this material is relatively heavy
resulting in increased moment of inertia
for lower flutter and wow..
Drive Belt
During my research, I have measured hundreds
of belts of various types, using flutter
and wow as the criteria. None have the excellent
characteristics of the Amadeus belt. The
Amadeus is a polyester filament and has a
diameter of 0.004 inches. To use this belt
requires a knot and this may normally cause
a problem. I have overcome this problem with
a motor pulley of a special design to accommodate
the knot. In addition to being a superior
belt, this material is widely available and
easy to replace. I tested the durability
of this belt with a test of fifty days continuous
operation with no effect.
Motor and Motor Drive
Amadeus uses a small dc motor and is driven
by a torque servo of my own design. The motor
is mounted to the plinth and is very effectively
mechanically decoupled by a ring of isolation
material. The combination of belt, motor,
motor drive electronics, and isolation results
in low flutter and wow.
Plinth & Isolation Base
The Amadeus plinth features dual layer MDF
sandwich construction finished in black lacquer.
Also available is a GT version in a distinctive
dual layer black acrylic. Both Amadeus &
Amadeus GT include an isolation base featuring
proprietary feet.
William Firebaugh – Chief Designer
Turntables
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Amadeus MKII
Amadeus Wins The Absolute Sound Golden Ear
Award
The Well Tempered Amadeus has received “The
Absolute Sound, 2009 Golden Ear Award”
as a follow up to the excellent review it
received in The Absolute Sound earlier in
the year.
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| WTL SIMPLEX |
Gira-discos c/braço WTL - SIMPLEX - acabamento
em preto fosco |
1.900,00 € |
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| WTL AMADEUS MKII |
Gira-discos c/braço Well Tempered Lab - AMADEUS |
2.800,00 € |
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Amadeus GTA MKII
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| WTL AMADEUS GTA MKII |
Gira-discos c/braço Well Tempered Lab - AMADEUS
GTA |
4.400,00 € |
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VERSALEX
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| WTL VERSALEX |
Gira-discos c/braço Dynavector LTD |
4.100,00 € |
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Dynavector DV500
The DV 500 turntable is a William Firebaugh
(Well Tempered Lab) designed turntable to
facilitate a high performance and stable
platform for the Dynavector 507 Tonearm.
Features
Dual layer acrylic sandwich construction.
Servo Controlled motor with anti vibration
mounting.
“ Zero tolerance” main bearing.
0.004 inches Polyester thread belt.
Predrilled tonearm mounting plate for DV
507 tonearm.
| Nominal speeds: |
33/45 RPM |
| Wow & Flutter: |
0.03% to 0.04% J.I.S. |
| Rumble: |
50db compared to 100HZ tone recorded at a
level of 1cm/sec. |
| Output: |
RCA L/R Pin |
| Power Supply: |
9V DC 1.3A Centre pin positive |
| Dimensions: |
650 x 600 x 400 18kg (shipping) |
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| WTL DV500AC |
Gira-discos s/braço Dynavector - DV 500AC |
3.400,00 € |
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DPS
Fonte de alimentação para gira-discos Well
Tempered Lab - 2 x 12V
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| WTL DPS |
Fonte de alimentação |
340,00 € |
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LTD
Braço Well Tempered Lab LTD
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| WTL LTD /SYMMETREX - 9" |
Braço Well Tempered Lab LTD - 9" |
1.350,00 € |
| WTL LTD /SYMMETREX - 12" |
Braço Well Tempered Lab LTD - 10,5" |
1.450,00 € |
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several accessories
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| WTL DUST |
Tampa para gira-discos Well Tempered Lab |
350,00 € |
| WTL ARMLIFTER |
Elevador para braços Well Tempered Lab |
150,00 € |
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| WTL AMADEUSBELT |
Correia de nylon unifilar para gira-discos
AMADEUS |
5,00 € |
| WTL DV500BELT |
Correia de nylon unifilar para gira-discos
DV500 |
5,00 € |
| WTL SIMPLEXBELT |
Correia de nylon unifilar para gira-discos
SIMPLEX |
5,00 € |
| WTL VERSALEX |
Correia de nylon unifilar para gira-discos
VERSALEX |
5,00 € |
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| WTL SQUBLFT |
Pé de amortecimento - conjunto copo metálico
+ bola de squash |
40,00 € |
| VAT included in above prices |