Technics

Technics is the Japanese hi-fi brand created in 1965 by Matsushita Electric, today Panasonic, and run from Kadoma in Osaka. Its name is tied above all to the SL-1200 direct-drive turntable, developed from 1971 by a team led by Shuichi Obata and released in 1972. Panasonic shelved the name in October 2010 and brought it back at IFA in 2014, first with amplifiers, speakers and micro systems, then with turntables again from 2016.

Range & what it's known for

Since the relaunch the range has been split into classes. Reference Class covers the SE-R1 power amplifier of 2014, the SL-1000R turntable system of 2018, the SP-10R turntable, the SH-TB10 tonearm base and the SU-R1000 integrated amplifier. Grand Class includes the SU-G700 and SU-G700M2 amplifiers and the SL-G700 network and SACD players, while the C700 series has the SU-C700 amplifier and ST-C700 network player. The SL-1200 line returned with the 50th-anniversary SL-1200G, and the SL1500-C serves home listeners. The brand also sells Ottava micro systems and wireless earbuds and headphones. Its electronics favour digital amplification, with the SU-R1000 using GaN FET drivers and LAPC correction for speaker impedance.

Who owns it and where it's made

Technics is a brand of Panasonic and draws on the wider Panasonic group's research and manufacturing base. Engineering is done in Japan.

The lineup in this catalog

The catalog lists Technics turntables, amplifiers and loudspeakers in several product groups, with prices starting near USD 500 for entry turntables and climbing to well over USD 30,000 for Reference Class systems.

Who it's for

Technics serves two kinds of buyer, those after a direct-drive turntable with a long production history and those after compact digital electronics from a large Japanese maker. Buyers can begin with an SL1500-C or an Ottava system, move to the C700 pieces or the Grand Class G700 series, and finish with the SU-R1000 or SL-1000R. DJs and vinyl owners often choose the brand for the SL-1200 alone.