Music Hall: The history of the brand and its best turntable models
As you know, the key to any successful business is to be in the right place at the right time. This is exactly what happened with the Music Hall brand, which today occupies a position of one of the leaders in the vinyl turntable market in the world.
It would seem that the bet on the production of turntables, made by the founder of the company Roy Hall in the midst of the digital age, could not and should not have played. However, by the time the turntables were launched, Music Hall had already been on the market for a decade and a half as a distributor (since 1985), and its owner and permanent president was good at guessing trends. And the decision to design and manufacture analog players turned out to be a real gold mine. By the time other manufacturers realized that the vinyl renaissance was serious and for a long time, Music Hall had already occupied a significant part of the US market, and continued to expand to other countries.
In time, Roy Hall managed to agree on the production of turntables with a plant in the Czech city of Litovel, which had not yet been buried under a barrage of orders. As a result, Music Hall turntables today occupy one of the leading positions in the global vinyl turntable market, and analog sound lovers can choose a model to their taste and wallet. In this material, we will consider the most interesting and popular belt-driven turntables of the American company.
Contents:
- Music Hall mmf Mark1
- Music Hall mmf-1.5
- Music Hall mmf-3.3
- Music Hall mmf-5.3
- Music Hall mmf-7.3
- Music Hall mmf-11.3
- Conclusions
Music Hall mmf Mark1
The new development has concentrated everything necessary to obtain the maximum result for the minimum money. The new VTA aluminum S-arm arm with magnetic anti-skating system, Teflon-coated bearing, special alloy disc, adjustable anti-vibration mounts and a whopping 7.5 kilograms of weight – nothing like this in the entry price category has yet been produced. The turntable is completed with a high-quality entry-level MM-head from the Danish Ortofon.
Music Hall mmf-1.5
The popularity of plug’n’play solutions is due to the fact that neophytes do not like to tinker with settings in search of the best sound, they need a player on which they can immediately listen to music. This is exactly what Music Hall mmf-1.5 is. The set includes a table with a tonearm mounted on it, a bearing, a motor and a phono stage board, an aluminum platter, a rubber mat and a plexiglass dust cover. There is even the possibility of smooth adjustment of the rotational speed and support for the speed of 78 rpm. Head – Music Hall Melody. Luxurious equipment, beautiful appearance, very nice price.
Music Hall mmf-3.3
The first low-cost model in the company’s range, which uses the proprietary double casing, in which the top and bottom plates are mechanically decoupled from each other using anti-vibration cones. All other structural elements to match the body – tonearm with carbon tube and anti-skating with a weight on the line, solid aluminum alloy disc, proprietary anti-vibration feet, Ortofon 2M Red head, support for three rotation speeds, luxurious body finish with varnish or natural veneer, dust cover. A great set for the same amount.
Music Hall mmf-5.3
As we move through the product line, the components become better and the design becomes more solid. Although this model is in the middle of the company’s hierarchy, it already uses a top-end 9-inch tonearm with a carbon tube on a gimbal with adjustable azimuth and vertical tracking angle (VTA), a double body and an aluminum alloy disc with a threaded clamp for records. The installed head is also good – Ortofon 2M Blue with a solid diamond elliptical needle. The case even has a built-in liquid level for precise horizontal positioning of the turntable. The turntable weighs more than ten kilograms, and the branded support legs give it the necessary stability.
Music Hall mmf-7.3
This turntable actually contains all the best technologies and solutions of the company. The double body system effectively decouples the journal bearing, tonearm and motor so that the influence of the motor on stylus movement along the soundtrack of the record is kept to a theoretical minimum. The engine not only does not touch any of the plates, but is also mounted on a special vibration damping washer. The disc in the model is made of acrylic and equipped with a threaded clamp. The tonearm is completely made of carbon, including the shell, and has all the necessary adjustments. The speed control system of the turntable is electronic; two rotation speeds are available – 33 and 45 rpm. Usually this model is equipped with a very high quality MM-head Ortofon 2M Bronze with hyperelliptical sharpening of the Nude Fine Line needle.
Music Hall mmf-11.3
The pinnacle of the company’s lineup. This player can already compete with many models from the transcendental High End world. It has a four-layer housing with mechanically decoupled levels, with the ceramic support bearing and tonearm spaced apart on separate plates. In this model, a massive bottom plate serves to drain and absorb all vibrations that occur in the system. The acrylic disc weighs 3.35 kilograms and is driven by a freestanding engine block of two flywheel motors to drastically reduce noise and vibration. Another barrier to external influences is set by anti-vibration feet with a magnetic suspension system. The all-carbon arm uses Swiss ABEC 7 grade steel ball bearings, and the high purity copper internal wiring has just two points of contact from the cartridge terminals to the RCA output connectors. The total weight of the turntable is 17.9 kilograms.
Conclusions
The assortment of the Music Hall company includes turntables for both beginner vinyl lovers and experienced audiophiles who are ready to spend on their hobby not only free time, but also the necessary funds. The choice is yours!
Official site: musichallaudio.com