TechDAS Air Force 2

MylesBAstor

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Apr 20, 2010
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He was at TAVES this weekend showing the AF1. He is also planning to go to CES I believe.

Yes but CES is a trade, not public show.
 

mep

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Apr 20, 2010
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He was at TAVES this weekend showing the AF1. He is also planning to go to CES I believe.

There wasn't a single AF1 at RMAF. Zero, zip, nada. Why wasn't Bob there marketing for AF1 and his new arm?
 

MylesBAstor

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Apr 20, 2010
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There wasn't a single AF1 at RMAF. Zero, zip, nada. Why wasn't Bob there marketing for AF1 and his new arm?

To my knowledge (and granted it might be slipping), the only show where the AF1 was on display was CES.

I think the answer to your second question was that Bob was busy finishing and making his new arm (s).
 

mep

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To my knowledge (and granted it might be slipping), the only show where the AF1 was on display was CES.

I think the answer to your second question was that Bob was busy finishing and making his new arm (s).

Too many hats?
 

rockitman

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Sep 20, 2011
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There wasn't a single AF1 at RMAF. Zero, zip, nada. Why wasn't Bob there marketing for AF1 and his new arm?

I'm sure he would of gone if he could make it. The bottom line, the market segment for this turntable cost wise is pretty small. That market probably is well aware of this table, so missing a consumer show is not that big of a deal in terms of sales, IMO.
 

mep

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I'm sure he would of gone if he could make it. The bottom line, the market segment for this turntable cost wise is pretty small. That market probably is well aware of this table, so missing a consumer show is not that big of a deal in terms of sales, IMO.

I can't help but think that it would help sales by putting it out there to be seen and heard-especially at shows as big as RMAF.
 

Johnny Vinyl

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May 16, 2010
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The SSI show in Montreal is still way bigger than the newer TAVES show, so you might see it there if indeed it was shown at TAVES. If it's there I'm sure Jeff Fritz will have a report.
 

MylesBAstor

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Apr 20, 2010
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I don't know :) I think the first couple of runs were spoken for sight unseen. Remember also that the US may be a minor market for this table. Weren't the initial run of eight all going to the Far East?

Where reviews/shows might come into play is down the road.
 

audioarcher

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May 6, 2012
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I would still like to know if the AF2 uses the same air pump unit? The air pump of the AF1 is dead quiet and probably the best one out there for audio use. I bet the AF1 air pump would likely work better for an air bearing tonearm than anything else out there.
 

PeterA

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Dec 6, 2011
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Another angle

View attachment 12458

Boy I was wrong. I thought it would be a compact version but the two is actually larger. I can see how casting can save a whole lot of dough compared to hours on hours of machine hours of precision CNC'ing.

Jack, Thanks for the photo. If you actually heard this table playing, could you describe the difference in sound between the two arms, assuming they have the same cartridge? I know the 12" SME is quite popular in Asia and has been photographed on the AF1 a few times. SME arms are not so favored over here in the US from what I can tell. Perhaps TechDas will offer their own arm at some point.
 

XV-1

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May 24, 2010
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I wonder how close to the 2.8 mill Yen or US 28K, outside of Japan price will be?
 

JackD201

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Apr 20, 2010
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Hi Peter, unfortunately I wasn't able to listen to the SME. As the guy manning the table was about to switch. Everything stopped and the next schedule had a wholly different set up and talk begin at the opposite end of the space. As for the table and pump itself, yep, just as quiet as the AF 1. What I could not see was a condenser box which the AF 1 has.
 

Frank750

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Jul 8, 2011
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Hi Peter, unfortunately I wasn't able to listen to the SME. As the guy manning the table was about to switch. Everything stopped and the next schedule had a wholly different set up and talk begin at the opposite end of the space. As for the table and pump itself, yep, just as quiet as the AF 1. What I could not see was a condenser box which the AF 1 has.

Jack, did you get to hear the table at all? What did you think? Any comparison to AF1?
 

JackD201

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Apr 20, 2010
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Hi Frank,

Yes I did. Both were run through Constellation Perseus phonos on to the Hercules IIs through Vivid G1s. Arm on the AF1 was the prototype Elite and on the AF2 a Phantom II. Both used the TD COI carts. Boy, Nishikawa-san sure has a great set of LPs. The AF2 was every bit as quiet as its older brother and thus every bit as dynamic. For someone with the rack space, this is one killer table. It may not be as sleek and sexy as Uno but darn, for the price, Dos got mad skills. Aesthetically, I would prefer a single color for plinth and control plates on the production model but for an intro piece the contrast shows what has been done quite clearly. With two tables and now a cartridge, the next question was is there an arm in the pipeline. Nishikawa-san has designed some famous arms in the past. The answer was.......there are plans.

On the weight, it was confirmed that the weights are indeed intended to be used along with the vacuum hold down. We did some A/Bing and while subtle, effects were audible in a nice way cleaning up a bit of overhang that I didn't think was bothersome and already quite less than most tables I've heard anyway. If you guys go and look at the LP in the TD COI shot in the other thread you can see how perfectly flat the LP is sitting.
 

audioarcher

Well-Known Member
May 6, 2012
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Thanks for your thoughts Jack. Sounds like there may be more competition in the 30k to 40k TT market now.:D
 

JackD201

WBF Founding Member
Apr 20, 2010
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I guess I know what Bob has been up to lately. I spied this shot of him in another forum installing David's AFO.

 

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