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The Denon DP-60M, launched in 1980 and part of the golden age of Japanese audio equipment, was one of the most advanced manual direct-drive turntables of its time. The letter ‘M’ denoted the manual version and placed this model at the top end of the Denon range, at a time when research into rotational stability, the reduction of mechanical tolerances and the precision of electronic control was at its peak.
It was a quartz-controlled turntable equipped with interchangeable tonearms and an AC servomotor operating with bidirectional control, i.e. capable of managing both speed increases and decreases. The rotation detection system utilised a magnetic pick-up that read, with high precision, a total of 1,000 magnetic pulses engraved on the inner circumference of the platter; this design choice ensured a very high sampling frequency of 555.5 Hz, significantly reducing overshoot, wow and flutter. The speed reference was provided by a quartz oscillator, virtually insensitive to temperature variations and ageing, a feature that contributed to extremely high rotational stability. The combined use of the bidirectional servo and the electronic brake allowed for rapid and smooth speed changes, a distinctive feature of Denon models of that period.
The model for sale, selectable from the drop-down menu, is available either with the universal S-shaped tonearm (featuring a classic SME mount for use with other shells) or with the lightweight straight PCL-60 tonearm. The ability to replace the tonearm tube was one of the most sophisticated features of this design: the use of the lightweight straight tonearm, combined with medium-to-high compliance cartridges, reduced low-frequency resonance and kept the system within an optimal range, minimising level fluctuations and intermodulation distortion. In this configuration, the cartridge could fully express its original characteristics. The straight tonearm tube featured an integrated structure between the headshell and the tube, with the connector set back at the base to minimise the effective mass. The S-shaped tonearm, fitted with an SME-type EIA mount, was compatible with the most common headshells of the period, as it is today.
The model offered here comes with a headshell but without a cartridge, a solution that allows the collector to freely choose the type of equipment best suited to their aesthetic or historical project.
The turntable body features the model’s classic proportions, measuring 485 mm in width, 180 mm in height and 410 mm in depth, with a weight of approximately 13 kg, consistent with the solid construction and engineering philosophy of the time. It is therefore a significant item for collectors of Japanese turntables from the most advanced phase of direct drive, featuring solutions that reflect the rigorous and innovative technical approach typical of Denon in the 1980s.
A collector’s item, refurbished and in excellent condition.
