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Shown with optional HRS platform, Brinkmann tonearm and vdH cartridge 

New, State of the Art Magnetic Drive Turntable. Precision, German engineering and design from renowned analog master Helmut Brinkmann!

Brinkmann BARDO motor assembly

Testimonials (on all Brinkmann 'tables)

"For me, it is the absolute dream-turntable."
 - Image Hi-Fi

The BALANCE won the Gold Medal in the turntable category at the Image HiFi Millennium Awards 2000. Don't be misled by the Balance's ease of setup and use. It offers the ultimate in high-resolution playback and must be matched with like-minded components. Match it properly and you will be rewarded with exceptional and exception-less performance from the moment you drop the stylus into the groove until you decide to give it a rest - something, I suspect, you will rarely be inclined to do. The Brinkmann Balance presents music the way you hear it live: as an organic whole, not as disconnected parts. Nevertheless, no information has gone missing and a listener intent on following particular musical parts is surely free to do so. It is all there as every aspect of the music on an LP is available for those inclined to listen analytically or as through a microscope. Still, the Brinkmann discourages detached, analytic listening. It invites the listener to embrace and be moved by the music, not to study or scope it."
 - Jules Coleman at 6moons.com

"The Brinkmann delivers a convincing musical performance every time. Sure the very best recordings will sound great, but the Brinkmann delivers much greater musical performance across my entire record collection... It looks gorgeous. It does its job, and it does it supremely well time and time again... I look forward to a very long and very happy relationship with my Brinkmann."
 - Dave Davies in Hi-Fi +

"Was I listening to one of the most musically satisfying analogue replay mechanisms yet built? On this I'm much clearer. Yes, I most certainly was."
 - Hi-Fi News and Record Review

Overview  

After many years of research and development, Helmut Brinkmann constructed the magnetic direct drive turntable Oasis. Since this project was so well received by music lovers all over the world, the company decided to release a second model that features the same magnetic direct drive system, though visually more inspired by the design of the company's top-of-the-line models.

BARDO magnetic drive assembly

The Brinkmann BARDO features the magnetic motor drive and platter, an acrylic platter mat, the same spindle and bearing as found in the company's Balance and comes with an outboard power supply. The tonearm base of the BARDO can be rotated and secured without play to allow a simple and precise adjustment for all tonearms between 9 and 10.5 inches. Brinkmann will drill the base to accept the tonearm of the customer's choice. The output sockets found on the back of the turntable can be equipped with either RCA or XLR sockets, and it is also possible to install tonearms with DIN connectors or fixed cables. The BARDO can spin at either 33.3 or 45 rpm as there is an LED indicator, with fine adjustment of speed being ± 10 percent.

Background

Some say that perfect music playback is an illusion. Helmut Brinkmann however, leaves nothing to chance as he works on perfecting this illusion, thus making music playback as real as possible. 

Helmut Brinkmann's never ending search for the perfect illusion.

One day, as Helmut Brinkmann was looking through his microscope, he noticed that the three tiny screws which serve to adjust the cantilever on an EMT cartridge are made of steel. He then asked himself whether a magnetizable material so closely surrounded by powerful magnets was really that clever of a design idea. One by one, he replaced these tiny steel screws with ones made of aluminum, brass, nylon, titanium, and many other even more exotic materials. Next, he spent countless weeks performing critical listening tests. As the listening sessions progressed, he became more and more astounded by just how much the sound quality changed as he replaced such a seemingly trivial element. After all, these very tiny screws measure just a mere 1mm in diameter! At the end of his exhaustive research, he concluded that the sound resembled the original most closely when only one of three screws were replaced by a model manufactured of titanium. (By no means is this example a one-off experience: in the end, perfect music playback is a careful optimization process that involves 0.1% inspiration and 99.9% perspiration. As they say, for High Fidelity to truly shine, you need patience, diligence, more patience, a dash of tenacity and of course even more patience - not to mention many tiny screws made of exotic materials). 

Behind Brinkmann (the brand), stands Brinkmann (the man). 

Brinkmann does not build according to cost-optimized manufacturing processes; instead, Brinkmann is handmade. Prior to delivery, Helmut Brinkmann personally scrutinizes each and every component, making sure that every piece works and functions exactly as intended. Only this level of rigorous quality control assures that components bearing our name will meet our - admittedly very high - standards. Don't let the term "handmade" fool you, however; of course we don't really manufacture by hand. Instead, Brinkmann's facilities utilize only the finest high-performance machines and tools available today, which allow for precision manufacturing not possible only a few short years ago. This level of precision is of utmost importance, as it allows us to build their components to the exact tolerances they have identified during painstaking listening sessions and product evaluations. As they then begin to assemble each of the parts by hand (as opposed to mass manufacturing on an assembly line) and turn them into amplifiers, tonearms and turntables, they can eliminate any compromises from the equation. Through this process, they can leave assembly line optimizations to others and instead focus on optimal sound quality and perfect execution.  

The longevity of Brinkmann products is a direct result of their careful and complete attention to every (tiny) detail - after all, it is their belief that once a Brinkmann component is made, it should ideally never return to the factory. Naturally, such level of uncompromised performance can't come cheap - even though in absolute terms, the price charged for Brinkmann products can actually be considered somewhat of a bargain, especially considering their sonic qualities and manufacturing quality. Ultimately, they vouch for this with their name; as we said earlier: behind Brinkmann the brand stands (firmly!) Brinkmann the man. 

Brinkmann BARDO shown with granite base (included)

Mechanical engineering by Brinkmann, includes the art of extracting colorful soundscapes from black vinyl.   

Vinyl record playback is an exceedingly delicate and massively complex undertaking. The undulations in the record's groove are so miniscule that even loud music passages produce less than a millivolt of signal. Most importantly, in addition to producing only tiny amounts of voltage, tracing these grooves produces all sorts of unwanted vibrations. These vibrations add a layer of noise over the already miniscule and fragile signal. As good as the cartridge is at tracing groove undulations (more or less accurately), it unfortunately also tends to convert all sorts of other external influencers such as motor and bearing noise into electrical voltage as well. As records are cut at precisely 33 1/3 revolutions per minute, they therefore must also be played back at exactly the same speed; otherwise pitch will be off. This explains the most important requirements for proper playback: 

- Accurate and consistent speed. 

- Gentle groove tracing. 

- High level of immunity from external and internal vibrations. 

- Ultimate quietness and low friction of platter and tonearm bearings. 

All is easier said than done, however, precisely because the groove's undulations are so miniscule in size. Brinkmann offers a complete lineup of analog playback equipment consisting of four turntables, two tonearms and one phono cartridge. Alternatively, you can of course use components from other manufacturers. Consider, however, that at Brinkmann, each and every component is optimized to work in synergy, hence your mileage with other components may vary.

Put differently, at Brinkmann, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

BARDO external power supply

Specifications

• Wow and flutter: 0.07 percent
  
• Rumble (noise): -64 dB
  
• Dimensions: 16.5" x 12.6" x 4"(WxDxH)
  
• Weight: 32.6 lbs not including the supplied polished granite base (table weight).
                42 lbs (shipping weight)