Pro-Ject The Classic Evo incl. MC Quintet Red - Turntable

Subchassis turntable with 9" carbon/aluminium sandwich tonearm
The Classic meets the 175 VPO to merge design ideas
incl. MC Quintet Red cartridge

The new Classic Evo is based on the successful EISA Award winner The Classic and the experience we gained from designing and manufacturing our icon turntable, the 175 VPO. The biggest improvement is the sub-platter, where we took our cue from the Vienna Philharmonic turntable to make crucial changes to the Classic Evo that are rarely seen in this price category and have a significant impact on performance and sound. For improved comfort, an electronic speed switch is built in, so you can switch from 33 to 45 rpm at the touch of a button.

Improved Sandwich Subchassis

Compared to the old Classic, we've also improved the sub-chassis. It is heavier and stiffer to eliminate resonance and isolate the platter and tonearm from the rest of the cabinet and motor.

Turntable & Subplatter

A solid aluminum platter design uses TPE* to optimize resonance performance. The disadvantage of most conventional designs is in the platter. Cast metal turntables are fundamentally heavy (which is advantageous for high speed stability with low synchronization fluctuations), but they come with the disadvantages of strong material resonances (ringing) that cause sound coloration. The turntable of The Classic Evo is precisely manufactured from a special aluminium alloy, which is furthermore damped with TPE*. The design of the main platter is based on the principle of the Vienna Philharmonic turntable.

The new aluminium sub-disc, precision machined with diamond cutting tools, as used in the special limited edition 175 VPO, allows for much improved tolerances. This sophisticated component ensures excellent isolation between bearing rumbles and the platter.

New Carbon/Aluminium Tonearm

The fundamentally redesigned Classic tonearm is the result of 25 years of experience in precision engineering. The tonearm tube is a sandwich construction of carbon and aluminium: carbon offers stiffness and speed, aluminium allows high damping. The tonearm bearing is now the same high quality design as on our Pro-Ject CC EVO tonearms. It guarantees unrestricted fluid vertical and horizontal movement, ensuring precise tracking across the entire span of a record. The counterweight is fitted with TPE* damping, which helps to reduce arm/cartridge resonance amplitudes by 50%. Typical of Pro-Ject, but uncommon with other manufacturers in this price range, is the ability to adjust the azimuth and VTA to allow optimum matching to a wide range of cartridges. Various counterweights for cartridges up to 25 grams are optionally available.

MC cartridges

We supply the Ortofon Quintet Red MC cartridge as standard. As the tonearm has excellent damping characteristics and its effective mass can be classified as medium, it is considered a very good playing partner for MC systems. The Classic is a wonderful state of the art piece, which is why we decided to use an MC cartridge to fully unleash the player's potential. MC cartridges are expensive but the better choice and even rarer to find in this price range. We are convinced that this way we can offer an unbeatable price-performance package.

Features

• Ortofon Quinted Red cartridge
• Electronic speed switching (33/45 rpm)
• Belt drive
• Height-adjustable decoupling feet
• Precisely balanced TPE-damped aluminium platter
• 9" carbon/aluminium tonearm, suitable for MM & MC cartridges
• Four stainless steel spikes mounted in ABEC 7 quality ball bearings form the inverted tonearm bearings
• Extremely solid gimbal construction is used to hold the bearings. The outer bearing block is open, preventing interference energy from circulating.
• Extremely low friction zirconium tip gimbal bearing (top & sides)
• Fully adjustable azimuth and VTA setting
• TPE insulated tonearm counterweight
• 2 classic matte real wood chassis surfaces (walnut, eucalyptus)
• Dust cover included

Technical data

Speeds 33, 45, 78 (electronic change)
Drive principle belt drive
Turntable 300 mm aluminium
Main bearing axle stainless steel
Synchronisation variation 33: ±0,10 % 45: ±0,09 %
Speed deviation 33: ±0,13 % 45: ±0,10 %
Rumble 70dB
Tonearm 9" Carbon/Aluminium Sandwichtonarm
Effective arm length 230 mm
Effective arm mass 13,5 g
Overhang 18 mm
Tracking force range 10 - 30 mN
Accessories included 15 Volt DC / 0,8A power supply, dust cover
Mains connection 110/120 or 230/240 Volt 50 or 60 Hz
Power consumption 5 Watt max / < 0.5 Watt standby
Dimensions 462 x 131 x 351 mm (WxHxD) Hood closed
Weight 10.5 kg net