Проигрыватели виниловых дисков — Reed MUSE 3A

The Muse 3A is a turntable designed and made in Lithuania by Reed, a company best known for its tonearms. Its styling follows Bauhaus principles, with the idea that form follows function, and the whole body including the bottom is built from birch plywood, which the maker chooses for stability and low resonance. Buyers can order it in Carnelian Red, White or Black. The starting price at launch was EUR 15,000, and the deck is sold without a tonearm.

Key specs that matter

A single coreless DC motor drives the platter, and the owner decides whether it runs by belt or by friction. Two speeds are offered, 33 1/3 and 45 rpm, and a quartz-based phase-locked loop holds the maximum average speed deviation to plus or minus 0.05 percent. Power arrives as 12 V DC from an external adapter that accepts 100 to 240 V AC mains. With one tonearm mounting the chassis measures 560 x 345 x 150 mm, and with two mountings the length grows to 730 mm while width and height stay the same. Unpacked weight without arms is 15 kg, and the packed shipment comes to about 23 kg.

Engineering and use context

Changing from friction to belt operation, or back, takes minutes - the user swaps the traction rollers and moves a switch to the matching position. The main axis turns on a reverse sliding thrust ball bearing whose ball is stainless steel, while a durable low-noise sliding bearing keeps the spindle stable sideways. The platter sits slightly raised above the body, so it appears to hover over the plywood base. A digital display on the deck reports the platter speed and the state of the operating and protection systems, and it also shows readings from a built-in inclinometer, so the plinth can be brought level without a separate spirit gauge. Because the plywood body is light, the deck weighs far less than aluminium designs of similar footprint.

Pairing

Up to two tonearms can be fitted, either in the centre position or off-centre, with effective lengths anywhere from 9.5 to 12 inches. That range covers both the usual 9 to 10 inch arms and the longer 12 inch designs, so one plinth can carry, for example, a stereo cartridge on one arm and a mono cartridge on the second. Reed builds its own arms for this purpose, but any model inside the stated length window fits the mounting. The last link is a phono preamplifier whose gain and loading suit whichever cartridge, or pair of cartridges, the owner installs.

Alternatives

The Reed Muse 3C is the heavier sibling with two DC motors, friction drive as standard and a 25 kg aluminium chassis.