Тонармы — Dohmann Audio SUPATRAC BLACKBIRD & NIGHTHAWK

SUPATRAC Blackbird and Nighthawk are two tonearms from the maker SUPATRAC that Dohmann Audio lists as a single entry in its tonearm range. Both were designed by Richard Braine, who came to arm design from the software industry and holds a degree in physics. The name stands for sideways unipivot arm, and the Nighthawk is the costlier of the pair, built by relaxing some limits on effective mass, armboard fit and cost that shaped the Blackbird. A Helix One Mk III turntable was shown at AXPONA 2026 fitted with a Nighthawk.

Key specs that matter

Both arms are made in 9, 9.3, 10.5 and 12-inch lengths, and custom lengths are possible. The Blackbird uses a twin-tube wand of pultruded carbon fibre, reinforced with aluminium near the headshell and filled with damping foam, and runs on a 12.7 mm pillar with a 5 mm pivot bolt. Its effective mass rises with length from 11 g at 9 inches to 13, 15 and 19 g. The Nighthawk has a single-part double-cavity carbon fibre pultrusion, a 25.4 mm pillar, an 8 mm pivot bolt, a wedged carbon fibre sole plate and a threaded knob for fine tracking force setting. Each Nighthawk is 17 mm longer than the matching Blackbird, with effective mass of 13, 15, 18 and 22 g across the four lengths. UK prices run from GBP 4,400 to 5,200 for the Blackbird and GBP 11,900 to 12,900 for the Nighthawk.

Engineering and use context

In this design the pivot point faces rearward from the fixed part, and the moving part hangs from two strings called hoists, placed so that at rest the arm only lightly touches the pointed pivot bolt. Stylus drag pulls the arm straight against that single contact, which the maker says cuts scrubbing and chatter found in other bearing types. The Nighthawk layout also raises vertical torque reaction. Both arms have damped cueing, a string finger lift as well as a rigid one, and an arm rest platform. Blackbird wiring is silk-covered copper litz of 30 strands at 0.04 mm each, and the owner can replace it.

Pairing

The Blackbird targets high-compliance cartridges, and a mass adaptor is included for low-compliance types. Its standard mount fits Rega, Linn, SME, Kuzma, Pro-Ject, Michell, Brinkmann and TW Acustic decks, whereas the Nighthawk does not accept Rega-type mounts and relies on custom mounts for other cases. The arms are handcrafted, and lead times of several months should be planned into any turntable build.

Alternatives

Another arm in the Dohmann Audio tonearm list is the Wilson Benesch GRAVITON Ti in a Dohmann Edition.