Denon DP 2000 – motor-only direct-drive turntable

‘A Denon – that says it all.’ This phrase was often used to sum up the reputation the Japanese brand had built in the world of high-fidelity audio. Denon was, in fact, one of the most respected names in the design of professional and domestic turntables, thanks to advanced technical solutions that had contributed significantly to the development of direct-drive technology during the golden age of Japanese hi-fi. It was a direct-drive turntable with quartz control that was well known and highly regarded at the time of its release and remains highly valid to this day, a fact that confirmed its technical importance and historical value within the analogue audio landscape.

99.998% rotational speed accuracy; phase controlled by a quartz oscillator: the rotational speed was highly stabilised by a timer based on a quartz crystal oscillation, which proved extremely stable against changes in temperature or time. Using the phase-locked loop method, the speed was hardly affected by load or fluctuations in the supply voltage, a solution that at the time represented one of the strengths of Denon’s electronic control systems.

Magnetic recording for speed detection: Denon had established its original motor control system using the magnetic recording method for speed and phase detection. 1,000 pulses recorded with high precision enabled a high detection frequency, allowing the phase delay of the servo system to be cancelled out and significantly reducing wow and flutter within it. Consequently, the deviation in rotational speed was extremely small, less than ±0.002%, and the rotational speed did not change due to variations in load or supply voltage. Furthermore, as the sampling frequency underlying the servo circuit was high (555 Hz), the servo could be stabilised and its gain set to a high value, so that overshoot and wow/flutter were extremely low.

The design also included an easy-to-view stroboscope with pulsed illumination synchronised with the crystal oscillation. The lighting frequency of the neon stroboscope lamps was derived separately from the standard crystal oscillator, a feature that ensured very high frequency accuracy. Furthermore, the lighting was powered by a supply unit with a short pulse width, a solution that made the stroboscopic bands particularly easy to observe and avoided fluctuations linked to the mains frequency.

This motor unit was fitted to the full-featured turntable and plinth version marketed by Denon as the DP 2500, a model that was one of the most popular configurations produced by the Japanese brand at that time.

This unit has been fully refurbished and is in good condition. It comes with an external transformer and a European voltage adapter.

Dimensions: 375 x 146 mm;