Major in Every Aspect Except Price
Major in every aspect except its price, the C-Major is a brand new entry level offering from the European Audio Team (EAT) that will satisfy seasoned music lovers who require a high-value-for-money turntable. It's also the perfect solution for music lovers who are just discovering the delights of the vinyl LP as a great-sounding alternative to digital music files.
The C-Major stands out from the pack of other turntables in its price range by offering greater performance and sophistication than 'table that are usually available in the budget sector. It's price point is even lower than the highly affordable and widely-acclaimed C-Sharp, which is EAT's most successful turntable to date. In fact, it is the technology of C-Sharp that enabled the design wizards at EAT to develop the C-Major.
"In a Class By Itself"
"The EAT C-Major is a very serious turntables in its not too crowded price range," raves Germany's LP Magazine. "The drive and chassis are very good and the tonearm is in a class by itself."
"The EAT C-Major turntable is a very beautiful specimen of a subchassis player," notes Germany's i-fidelity.net. "Its compact design assures success, thanks to its attractive finish, carbon fiber and aluminum components, and even an included dust cover."
Similar Design to Higher Priced C-Sharp with Minor Changes
Pun intended, the differences between the C-Sharp and the C-Major are minor. All of these changes were incorporated to reduce costs and features, without compromising the performance.
To achieve the lower price, the C-Note tonearm on the C-Major is 9” in length (instead of 10” on the C-Sharp). Instead of the C-Sharp's electronic speed control, the C-Major uses an easy manual speed control method. Also, compared to the C-Sharp, the main chassis has a more compact footprint, the platter is smaller, and the platter clamp is smaller, too.
Super Flat and Highly Rigid
Carbon fiber and thermoplastic elastomer technology plus EAT's superior design expertise made the super-flat C-Major table possible. The low profile base chassis is made out of highest density MDF. On this base the ultra low-noise motor is mounted as well as damping feet constructed from energy-absorbing TPE (thermoplastic elastomers a high-tech, high energy absorbing damping material). The cone-shaped TPE columns support a sandwich subchassis constructed from layers of carbon fiber and MDF composite for ultimate rigidity.
The stiffness is important for the creation of a super rigid base for the tonearm/cartridge and bearing/platter assemblies for quiet, accurate tracking. Any rumble from the platter/bearing assembly is directed to the energy-absorbing TPE columns. Furthermore, these columns prevent unwanted energy from the motor as well as other surface vibration from entering the subchassis or tonearm and ultimately the phono cartridge.
The bearing is an oversized inverted design with an inert, resonance-free ceramic ball on top. Around the bearing EAT is a heavy mass point, which absorbs any energy around it. The stiff carbon subchassis helps to direct all vibration to this mass point, and these vibrations are transformed into harmless amounts of heat. The platter is constructed from a special alloy of very inert aluminum and it, too, is damped by TPE inserts. The belt is made from special anti-static rubber. It’s glued and then polished for best performance.
New Tonearm Design
The C-Major's tonearm combines all advantages of a unipivot arm with a Cardan design. The traditional Cardan bearing ensures high stability and ease of use with very low friction. Also inside the tonearm is a special silicon-based lubricant to damp the tonearm/cartridge resonances by more then 50 percent.
The arm tube is made out of carbon fiber, which is super stiff and rigid. The headshell is constructed from a special light and rigid aluminum, offering the advantages of carbon with the better inner damping of aluminum – plus the capability of precisely mounting high-end moving coil cartridges.
Optional Ortofon Quintet Blue Cartridge
Shipped complete with fitted dust cover, and offered in a specially-priced package with the Ortofon Quintet Blue MC moving coil phono cartridge, the C-Major will extract the best from your favorite vinyl LP. C-Major represents a blast from the past that just happens to also be the future of music enjoyment, too.
The Ortofon Quintet Blue is a very homogenous phono cartridge with a sound quality tending toward smoother reproduction compared to Quintet Red plus moderate dynamic strength compared to Quintet Bronze. It features a Nude Elliptical diamond mounted on an aluminum cantilever.
The Quintet Blue will bring more space, depth and detail into the sound and is a very good choice for any kind of music, especially rhythmic.
In Hi-fi Choice magazine, Andrew Simpson says of the Quintet Blue, "It offers the most comprehensive and enjoyable performance with all music, showing Ortofon has clearly hit upon another magic formula... It presents all the detail in the track with real dynamism … Its soundstage is expansive left to right… and it also possesses a greater talent for bringing instruments within it to life."
