Lance Dixon’s Revolve Turntable — A South African Masterpiece
TURNTABLE · PROUDLY SOUTH AFRICAN · LANCE DIXON · REVIEW
At the end of a long phone call with an audiophile friend, he mentioned someone who had built a magnificent turntable — a work of love and pure genius, meticulously designed with very sound mechanical principles. I had always wondered why nobody in South Africa had tackled a properly engineered turntable. How difficult can it be to improve on a Linn LP12 or Rega 3? The call was made, and here starts the story.
The Brief
Lance Dixon’s brief to himself was to design a turntable where all functional requirements perform considerably beyond what would be considered necessary for high-end music playback — ensuring the highest possible specification for every element. The aesthetics were considered a vital functional part of the design: something you love to look at, touch, operate, and listen to, a complete experience. The design blends traditional handmade woodworking craftsmanship with precision engineering. Classical, elegant, understated, fit for purpose — no unnecessary embellishment or bling.
Acknowledgements
Throughout development Lance received support from Schalk Havenga, Grant Thorburn, Roy Wittelson, Chris Klopper, Roland Cook, and his son Luke — who helped with complex engineering calculations.
The Prototype
The prototype was completed for first play by May 2016. With a deep breath and a glass of wine, Lance played the first tracks using an old SME Series III arm and a Grado Gold cartridge — and immediately knew the basic functional design was working. The following eight months were an extended listening, testing, and tweaking phase. After completion, Lance found himself listening for extended periods, deeply enjoying the music. “When the hairs on my arms stand up, I know it’s doing the trick.”
Construction Details
Arm Boards
Two arm boards, allowing two different tonearm and cartridge combinations. CNC machined from solid aluminium to 20mm finished thickness. Bolted to arm board pillars via substantial cap screws allowing rotational adjustment for any tonearm geometry.
Arm Board Pillars
Two pillars securely mounted in the rear corners of the base plate. Made from 40mm diameter solid steel bar, threaded into the base plate and locked with jam nuts, drilled and tapped to accept the arm board fixing screws.
Drive System
An AC synchronous motor drives a 38mm precision-ground stainless steel spindle via a flat belt. The motor is mounted in its own isolated motor pod, mechanically separated from the plinth structure.
Magnetic Levitation
The platter assembly incorporates magnetic levitation to remove vertical load from the main bearing, reducing friction and wear to near zero. A precisely calibrated magnetic repulsion system lifts the platter and leaves the bearing tip with negligible contact force.
Main Bearing
A precision-ground, hardened stainless steel spindle runs in a PTFE-lined bronze bearing housing. The spindle tip rests on a precision-grade ceramic ball, providing a virtually frictionless contact point. The bearing housing is machined from solid aluminium to exacting tolerances.
