I took one look at the Bang & Olufsen Beogram 4004 in 1978 and knew I had to own it. I loved the appearance and I loved the tangential tracking tonearm. But through all the years I owned it I was subtly reminded that it wasn’t an audiophile’s turntable.. So in 2013 I succumbed to the subtle pressure of my fellow audiophiles and I bought a Rega RP40 Anniversary Edition Turntable and an Audio Note phono stage and I had to get used to carefully putting down the tonearm and getting up to lift it when the recording had finished. I guess you could say I was completely spoiled because I so hated having to do that. In 2022 I brought out my old Beogram. 4004 and had it completely restored by Beolover and I’m back to being happy playing vinyl again. And I sold my Rega and Audio Note with zero regrets.
Why hasnt a turntable manufacturer produced a table with automatic tonearm return/shutoff?
I'm listening to my old Technics 1700 turntable, which has the tonearm return/ shutoff mechanism. It's one of the reasons I don't upgrade. The idea that you have to get up to retrieve the cartridge and turn off the machine makes little sense when the technology has been there for years. I know the issue of the mechanism introducing sound into the table, but it seems to me that the mechanism can be isolated and kept off until the record ends. What gives?