DEFOSS Brings Ritual Back to Music with Partially 3D Printed Turntable

It’s incredibly convenient to listen to music these days. You don’t need physical objects like tapes, records or CDs anymore, just some sort of electronic device, whether it’s a phone, tablet, computer or iPod. All of our music is contained right in the player, which can be smaller than the palm of your hand, eliminating the need for clunky stereos and record turntables. It’s so convenient that we don’t generally stop to consider if anything is being lost.

Many people would say that yes, something definitely is being lost. That’s the reason for the resurgence in interest in vinyl records and record players; lots of people insist that the sound vinyl provides is far superior to any digital copy. There’s even a group of people who believe in the superiority of cassette tapes, although, having grown up in the cassette tape era, I can’t wrap my head around that one. To a group of designers called DEFOSS, however, a lot more than sound is being lost when you remove records and record players from the equation; you also lose the importance of ritual.

“Music has been part of our lives for thousands of years, and today, thanks to technology, we can listen to it in every moment and in every place,” says DEFOSS. “This has transformed what was a ritual into a simple gesture, depriving it of the attention and concentration it deserves.”

To bring that ritual and focus back to the act of listening to music, DEFOSS created a completely analog turntable that they call the LOGIGRAM turntable. The design may look simple, but a lot of work and advanced technology went into its creation, including 3D printing.

“We have developed our product relying on technologies that have led to significant audio improvements,” says DEFOSS. “The subtraction of some mass from the plinth and its replacement with a composite anti-resonant reinforcement material eliminates any disturbance and vibration while reading the groove. The tonearm, designed and built with 3D printing technology, is made up of only three sections, reducing errors due to assembly that could alter fidelity in reproduction.”

The turntable was made completely in Italy, through collaborations with local companies. It’s now collecting funding on Kickstarter, with the goal of raising €42,000 (about $50,000) by January 11th. You can get a LOGIGRAM turntable, available in black or white, for a pledge of €459, or a special wood one for €589.

The LOGIGRAM turntable is an attractive piece that looks to be well-made, a modern update on a classic design. It’s designed to draw the user’s attention to each little gesture required in playing music, making it almost a meditative experience. It’s a plug-and-play turntable with a 33.3 and 45 rpm synchronous motor and belt drive.

DEFOSS was founded by Luca Chieregato and Josefina Troncoso, with the rest of the LOGIGRAM team being made up of Davide Grandi and Simone Chieregato. The organization, whose name stands for Design, Furniture, Objects in Space, collaborates with young professionals all over the world.

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[Images provided by DEFOSS]