VPI's new "Vanquish" Ultra High-End turntable is a STUNNER!

roxy, from a practical standpoint turntables are all about listening to records. There are much less expensive turntables that are going to do the job better than this thing. If you want to buy a statement turntable I think the Clearaudio Statement is way cooler with its pendulum system. I also think it is just as silly (really do not like the arm.) If it is artwork you are after then buy art. It will probably be worth a lot more in the end. 
I have a tendency to think these things are all about ego. You see the same sort of behavior with cars. 

That is going a little to far sturgus. Audiophiles just can't afford to feed their young. 
Fleschler that is because the SME and Tri Planar are superior arms in large part because they do not use unipivots.

As was mentioned previously, pushing the envelope is what makes the stuff we can afford better. That there are people out there that can afford it makes advancing the art practical. In reality, if you put the same tone arm and cartridge on a lesser table of high caliber you would probably not be able to tell the difference. IMHO the AF one is elegant the Zero is not. I think it is more complicated than it needs to be. Mr Nichikawa is over reaching. But the press bought it as usual. Michael Fremer in his usual manner spewed praise in the silliest of ways. "This turntable stomped all over every other turntable I have ever heard. It wasn't even close -beginning with blacker backgrounds than I have ever heard from a turntable."  The back ground noise on the absolute best pressing is far in excess of even the cheapest modern turntable. It would be like trying to hear a pocket radio standing next to a running bulldozer. The only reasons it is better than his current table are it is much cooler and it cost twice as much. Only 40 of them will be made and 10 are already sold so edgewear you better hurry up and get in line:) Rich people buy stuff that gives the rest of us jobs and in the end better stuff. The time people wast being jealous is the time they could spend making themselves rich and in more ways than financially.

Oh, thanks for the correction lewm, right gimbal. Got it.
Not envy at all lewm. A practical analysis of the product at hand. The only positive thing I have to say about it is that at least it has a gimbal bearing on the tonearm. I would get a Kuzma 4 point 14 long before I would buy that (actually not a fair comparison because I have a 4 point 14). How about a 12 inch Tri Planar or a Reed 5t or a 12 inch Origin Live Enterprise or an SME V 12. There are so many arms that at just a glance I would go for over that. A SAT arm on a SOTA Cosmos would out perform that and save $60K. As I have said before I could care less what a piece of equipment looks like as long as it is built well and my own choice in turntables reflects that. The only turntable on the market I have the hankering for is the Techdas AF 1 because it is a clever, extraordinarily well built extremely cool, state of the art mechanical device. Will it sound better than my SME 30/12? Probably not, at least noticeable by me. But I am jealous of those that have one. At this moment I have other fish to fry.
What I REALLY want is a Mclaren 720S Spider.

edgewear, you never get your monies worth when you spend 2-3 times as much for an inferior product. However the person who buys one of these would not know the difference. In reality they will sell very few of them because the vast majority of real audiophiles are not that dumb.
I just discovered if I place a neodymium magnet 1.004 meters from the spindle on a line through the horizontal bearing of the tonearm the image just snaps into focus:)

VPI is the result of one man's desire to become more involved in his hobby without enough knowledge to make wise engineering decisions, coming up with an array of glitzy sub standard turntables and tonearms. It is what happens when you have more money than you know what to do with I guess. Perhaps the new gymballed tone arm is a sign that this will change under his son's direction? This turntable is a sign that it will not. Putting the Techdas AF 1 through 5 in the same room with this stuff is an insult. It's only fault is that is is not enough better than an SME 30/12 to justify the added expense. But if money were no problem I would certainly go for one just because it is a beautifully made engineering tour de force. 

And these are the guys who tried to tell people that anti skating was unnecessary starting the whole myth that anti skating made things sound worse. Thanx Phoenix for your input on this. Between no anti skating and floppy uni pivot arms VPI permanently damaged it's reputation with me at least. There are many great turntable manufactures out there that have pristine reputations and offer well thought out high performance tables that do not feel the need to waste money dressing up their tables like a tarte. 

And it doesn't even have a self leveling pendulum :(

Gee, gymballed tonearm bearings.....