John
The Technics SL-1200’s rebirth as an uber-audiophile concern started back in 2016 with the limited GAE edition and a US$4000 price tag. It was followed a few months later by the less limited and ever-so-slightly less-well-specified SL-1200G edition. Last year, Technics introduced us to the black 1210 equivalent: the SL-1210GAE (€4499) would arrive in Europe factory-fitted with an all-new cartridge developed in collaboration with Japan’s Nagaoka. And just like 2016’s SL-1200GAE, the SL-1210GAE’s multi-thousand dollar street price proved no match for consumer demand — its limited production run evaporated via Technics’ dealer network within weeks. What to do?
Somewhat predictably, Technics has today announced the SL-1210G, a less limited and ever-so-slightly less-well-specified take on the 1210-GAE
“We learned from the huge success of the limited-edition SL-1210GAE, which was launched in June 2020 and almost immediately sold out,” says European Technics Product Manager Frank Balzuweit. “We realised there was high demand for a ‘regular’ black version of this flagship 1200 Series model.”
For anyone keeping score, here are the SL-1210G’s key features:
- Iron-coreless direct-drive motor with double rotor/single stator
- A hybrid encoder for rotational speed detection that uses a ‘Hall Sensor’ for rotor position detection
- A tonearm made from cold-drawn magnesium
- The tonearm bearings use a cut-processed housing
- A three-layer platter where each platter is individually adjusted for balance
- 4-layer high-rigidity cabinet with heavy aluminium top plate and silicone-rubber insulators
The SL-1210G comes without a factory-fitted cartridge and will begin shipping in October 2021 for £3499 / €3999.
If you don’t need all of the SL-1210G’s audiophile-aimed bells and whistles, the SL-1210GR is still available for €1499.
Further information: Technics
