Why Rim Drive? 

On the right is a close up of the GEM Drive system.  The third generation drive couopling has been modified and simplified using a single drive wheel.  The system is of extreme rotating precision and the remote motor pod manages any and all vibration from the platter. All of our tables have remote arm pods, isolating them from the bearing and motor. for ULTRA black back grounds.

This ultra precision rim drive is a break through in design driving the platter directly from the drive pulley on the motor shaft through a special drive ring. We use a massive Direct Drive Servo Motors, DC Power supplies and do not rely on line voltage for speed control.

Directly driving the inner rim of the platter on the ONYX and Christine while the GEM is driven on the outside of the platter, there are no idler wheels. No decoupling provides a great deal of technical challenges. The direct coupling to the platter is the most critical component in producing realistic tonality and incredible dynamics.

The rim drive requires massive bearings and extreme tolerance of +/-.00008 on bearing diameters and total platter runout while being driven must be less than .0005 (1/6 of a human hair) 

The belt drive table suffers from belt flex (this cannot be avoided) and creates speed variation, not in rpm but in consistency during the rotation. This is responsible for precise pitch and realistic tone control. Once you hear the difference in speed and attack, plus the beautiful decay, extreme detail without coloration with extreme dynamics. The rim drive will surprise with extreme frequency response extending deep and to the lowest octave.

" That is not excess detail and hyped top end air, but whole layers throughout the frequency range are exposed one upon another. Details: Are more easily revealed and placed far more solidly in their space than with any other table"  I  Read More

 " """"The ONYX Tungsten carbide .5000 diameter platter shaft (WC) is an inorganic chemical compound containing equal parts of tungsten and carbon atoms simply called carbide. Tungsten carbide is approximately three times stiffer than steel, with a Young's modulus of approximately 550 GPa,[1] and is much denser than steel or titanium. It is comparable with corundum (α-Al2O3 or sapphire) in hardness and is polished and finished with abrasives of superior hardness using diamond wheels and compounds.

The GEM uses a COBALT Bearing vs the Carbide. Considering that the cobalt is many times harder than stainless steel this is a truly remarkable bearing not found in any other table design. Cobalt is used for making high performance drill bits for the Aerospace industry.