Turntable Reviewer January 2010
Akai AP-M7
Perhaps one of the finest turntables of it's type is this AKAI AP-M7.
Produced in extremely small quantities in the 1980's due to
CD tech being all the rage. The design features advanced technology direct
drive, tangential tracking arm built into the advanced
iso-optic view cover.
Extremely compact, hardly bigger than an LP. The design rivals the finest
instruments ever designed to
transcribe a vinyl recording. Through the turntable transport viewer the precise
operation can be viewed real time.
It's cool toy though. You can set it on repeat, move the arm back and forth via
two buttons on the front panel.
Without scratching your record of course! It has auto stop and auto return of
the tangential arm.
Ultra awesome AP-M7 display at the front. After switching it on there's a
wonderful light show as the micro boots into operation performing
self checks and calibrations, very impressive... You start it by simply
pressing the start button. With the same button you can interrupt LP play.
Another button lets you move the arm up and down. The arm is precision
servo controlled.
You can just see the micro controlled red light on the arm so you can
check the position of the stylus.
It is equipped with the OEM Akai PC-7 cartridge. There is nothing to tweak
or adjust on this turntable
the servos are self calibrating. Anyway, anti skating seems irrelevant with a
linear tracking arm of this caliber.
Sound wise the AKAI AP-M7 is better then I had ever expected, perhaps
better then my Thorens and Pioneer.
Overall one impressive display of advanced 80's engineering that was
underappreciated at the time.
If you happen to run across one of these rare AKAI AP-M7 you better snag it for
your collection,
the word is getting around about this forgotten gem....
Current Value: $200-$400
T/R
Turntable Reviewer
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