I have a soft, warm spot reserved in my heart for all things analog, and probably because of that (ha!), Munich always manages a more than a pleasant analog surprise. This year, actually, I knew that something special was waiting for me in the “newcomers section”, down in Hall 1.
Specifically, I’m thinking about a certain — huge — silk-string transmission turntable design from German manufacturer Physical Emotions. The Caeles (“sky”, in Latin) features an air bearing with 0.1μm of precision capable of holding up to 160kg of weight on the vertical axis, pneumatic sub-chassis and quartz driven – high torque PLL motor with declared wow and flutter under 0.01%. The whole stands atop of a massive tripod for a total of 125 kg of white lacquer finish.
Potential buyers (who already divorced or planning to do so) should also consider the air-compressor that comes along, a box the size of a mini-fridge that will probably also put an end to any new or budding relationships. This behemoth will be accompanied by an in-house designed-and-built tonearm in the not so distant future; for now, custom boards can be ordered for all standard tonearms between 9” and 12”. The tonearm base is a very interesting concept as it tries to bridge a decoupled design with a coupled one. Yes, you read correctly. In order to do so, the tonearm is mounted on a 2kg base that is held in place with … Kevlar strings.
Extras include a peripheral stabilizing ring, a battery power supply and custom paint job. Price for the turntable will be north of €48.000, which will include delivery and assembly for Germany (an extra fee will be charged as one-off for the rest of Europe). We actually already discussed the possibility of a review, but the physical size (which should be the correct name instead of Physical Emotions) makes it prohibitive. Guess I will have to wait for the next High End Munich show for a listen.
