Проигрыватели виниловых дисков — Clearaudio INNOVATION

Clearaudio in Erlangen builds the Innovation as a belt-drive deck within a family that also includes the Innovation Basic, the Innovation Compact and the heavier Master Innovation. Clearaudio positions it at reference level and builds it around three ideas - tight motor regulation, smooth running and careful choice of materials. Buyers can choose black acrylic or a chassis of laminated wood and aluminium, and the factory offers an upgrade path that converts an Innovation into a Master Innovation.

Key specs that matter

Push buttons select 33 1/3, 45 or 78 rpm. Wow and flutter are specified at below plus or minus 0.05 percent. The drive is a high-torque 24 volt DC motor with a belt, and the deck weighs about 24 kg without tonearm and power supply. With its tonearm base but no arm fitted, it measures approximately 460 mm wide, 485 mm deep and 220 mm high. Power draw peaks at 9.3 W and is 2.5 W both while running and in standby, falling to zero when switched off. The manufacturer's guarantee lasts five years if the card goes back to Erlangen within 14 days of purchase.

Engineering and use context

The platter stack is 85 mm thick, made of 70 mm of high-density technical plastic with good dimensional stability on top of a 15 mm stainless steel flywheel sub-platter, and both parts are dynamically balanced. It rides on an inverted bearing with a ground and polished ceramic shaft in a sintered bronze bush, combined with the CMB Ceramic Magnetic Bearing that Clearaudio developed and patented. Speed is held by the OSC Optical Speed Control, whose sensor reads the rotation and lets the electronics correct the motor. The chassis follows a resonance-optimised geometry and uses a sandwich of laminated wood and aluminium, standing on height-adjustable feet for levelling. A second tonearm can be mounted, so the deck can carry two cartridges ready for use at the same time.

Pairing

The Clearaudio Universal carbon tonearm was created with the Innovation series in mind and is offered in finishes that match these decks. Because the turntable ships without an arm, the owner chooses tonearm and cartridge, and the 78 rpm setting makes it usable with shellac records as well as vinyl, given a suitable stylus. The deck needs a solid, level support large enough for its footprint.

Alternatives

The Clearaudio Master Innovation keeps the same footprint but nearly doubles the flywheel mass and weighs about 60 kg.