Aaudio Imports is bringing the Sleipner Airbearing Turntable by Bergmann Audio of Denmark, a leading specialist in airbearing turntables and tonearms. According to Aaudio, the Sleipner is a reference-level turntable powered by airbearing technology. It includes a linear tracking airbearing tonearm, a digital motor-controlled air supply, and a vacuum clamp to stabilize records. In Danish, “Sleipner” means smooth or gliding, and refers to what is sometimes called the best of all horses, the eight-legged flying stallion ridden by Odin, chief among the mythological Nordic gods. In English, Sleipner stands for a supreme achievement in turntable technology. (Yes, this is exactly what was written in their press release.)

The Sleipner’s plinth, or base, is a six-layer sandwich of different materials for optimal resonance control. The sandwich consists of three boards of powdered granite/epoxy binding material, two layers of aluminum, and one layer of bitumen, all covered in a 12-mm thick coat of hand-painted and polished polyvinyl. The plinth stabilizes the tonearm, and rests on a set of sturdy, adjustable Ceraball feet, which house vibration-controlling ceramic ball-bearings inside aluminum housings. A 20.2-pound aluminum platter rests atop the plinth, and atop a 21-mm record mat made of two layers of polycarbonate and one layer of acrylic. The Sleipner’s air supply both supports and centers the platter and provides a thin, dry film of smoothly flowing air, creating a silent, friction-free movement.

The Sleipner Airbearing Turntable with Airbearing Tonearm lists for $48,100 to $50,200. You can see all the specs here: http://www.aaudioimports.com/

Sleipner (the horse, not the turntable) photo via Wikipedia