This good-looking tangential record player had a unique tone arm suspension system among its many outstanding features. Optimum Pivot Point (OPP) was designed by Bang & Olufsen to give you the most faithful possible sound reproduction. The pendulum suspension isolated all vibration at the back of the tone arm so that the sensitive stylus tip was completely unaffected. It also had electronic Servo-drive and was fitted with the MMC 4 cartridge. The stylus pressure was 1,2g.
Facilities: search function – backwards and forwards; repeat playing of records; Datalink for connection to Beosystems.
This was the first of the lightweight tangential decks which were to become the mainstay of the Beogram range. The expensive tangential drive system of the 8000 was dropped and even the tangential arm mechanism was considerably simplified. They did however look the part and allowed far more control using a remote than the earlier radial 5000. Many owners of Beomaster 5000s ‘upgraded’ their systems with this deck but would miss the overhead light built into the lid of the 5000 and, dare one say it, possibly lose some sound quality.
If you wanted to treasure your record collection, you couldn’t do it better than with Beogram 5500.
The electronically-controlled tangential arm played the record at the exact angle that the original master was cut. This allowed the ultra-sensitive MMC 4 pick-up to give the most precise possible reading of the signals in the groove. And with a stylus pressure of only 1,2g, this extraordinarily gentle touch added years to the life of your precious records.
Beogram 5500 was a tough customer though; dancing feet wouldn’t shake it up, courtesy of the special chassis suspension and short, rigid tone arm. You also could enjoy features such as the automatic registration of record size and speed; plus full track search and record repeat facilities, via the Master Control Panel.
Beogram 5500 was aesthetically balanced to match the rest of the components within Beosystem 5500 and could be controlled with the rest of the system through Master Control Panel 5500.
The 5500 was essentially exactly the same as the 5005 but re-badged to match the Beosystem 5500. As befitted what was regarded at this time as the midrange system, it sported an MMC4 cartridge.
This tangential-tracking record deck offered superb sound quality from records plus the assurance that its playing precision minimised groove wear and kept your albums ‘like new’ for a very long time.
Operation was totally automatic. Record size and speed were identified by a ‘magic eye’ (photodiode) carried on a detector arm which travelled ahead of the tone arm. Fast and slow scan (both inward and outward) facilities allowed you to locate and play inner tracks without touching the delicate arm or pick-up.
The pick-up was the MMC3 with an unframed elliptical diamond carried on a tapered tubular cantilever of aluminium. The total effective tip mass of this arm/pick-up combination was a mere 0,35mg – no wonder Beogram 6002 was so kind to your records!
The motor was a DC tacho-motor controlled by an electronic servo-circuit. Turntable drive was via flat belt. The turntable and its bearings were mounted on the same inner chassis as the tone arm, and this was totally isolated from the motor, deck plate and outer chassis by a sophisticated pendulum suspension system.
When connected to Beomaster 6000, Beogram 6002 had a one-way data-link which makes it controllable via the Beomaster’s main controls or optional remote Terminal. Beogram 6002 could be used as part of a full stereo system – the Beosystem 6000 or 8000.
This deck was the Beogram designed for use with the Beomaster 6000.
To all intents the same deck as the Beogram 8000, it had a MMC20EN cartridge and black keys to differentiate it from its more expensive brother. Not replaced directly when the newer cartridges were released as the Beogram 6002 was belt drive rather than tangential drive.
This was a confusing product as it offered the same performance as the Beogram 8000 but was cheaper due to the lesser cartridge. It was not a big seller and it was not surprising that the range was rationalised by keeping a top performing Beogram in the Beogram 8002 and a substantially simpler deck in the Beogram 6002.
If you built up an LP Collection of good music to conjure up wonderful memories, you obviously would have wanted to enjoy it for many years to come. Which is why Bang & Olufsen put so much effort into Beogram 6500.
It was a superb, precision instrument that ensured perfect sound reproduction of your records. The electronically-controlled tangential arm played the record exactly as it was recorded.
The tone arm was suspended in a special Optimum Pivot Point system that prevented vibrations from reaching the MMC2 cartridge which has a stylus pressure of only 1g for minimal friction. And Bang & Olufsen’s special chassis suspension prevented external vibrations from reaching the platter. And Beogram 6500 automatically registered the size of the record you were playing and adjusted the speed accordingly.
The BeoGram 6500 also contained an inbuilt RIAA pre-amplifier, which essentially means you can just “plug in and play” with any modern B&O system through an AUX or similar socket – making this a very desirable deck! Of course as part of the Beosystem 6500, it was part of the top of the line system comprising in addition, the BeoMaster 6500, BeoCord 6500, BeoGram CD6500 and MCP-6500.
Like many Bang & Olufsen turntables, Beogram 7000 was designed with a tangential arm, which ensured optimal playing of the record. It also came equipped with the patented OPP system (Optimal Pivot Point), so that the pick-up – MMC2 – was not disturbed by vibrations.
Fully automatic and remote controlled via Beolink 7000
Integrated MMC 2 pickup cartridge
Tangential tonearm with OPP (Optimum Pivot Point)
Pendulum suspended sub-chassis
Built-in RIAA amplifier
By the mid-1990s the CD had rapidly become a replacement for the black vinyl record with many new albums released only in the CD format. This is why Bang & Olufsen ceased production of its record decks, with Beogram 7000 being the last in a very long line of high quality turntables. However, even today the vinyl format is alive, as so many treasured record collections were originally based on the vinyl format in its heyday, with many more of the more esoteric albums still awaiting CD reissue. The requirements that have to be met by a record player have become threefold:
“The preservation of precious vinyl records in as perfect a condition as possible
The ability to pick up information from the grooves and reproduce them faithfully
The operation must be made as similar to the other sources in a system as possible.”
Beogram 7000 met and exceeded all these requirements. The MMC2 pick-up cartridge weighed only 1,6g – the lowest own weight of any pick-up cartridge – and had a very high compliance and low effective tip mass. The result was a very good tracking ability with little record wear and in combination with the contact line nude diamond the optimal contact with the groove walls was ensured – to pick up the full music information. The MMC principle – Moving Micro Cross – gave a high channel separation, especially in the bass range, a low distortion and very little channel difference, which are all elements that significantly contribute to the achieved sound quality.
The MMC cartridge was mounted in a tangential tonearm, which eliminated tracking errors. The unique Optimum Pivot Point and the pendulum suspended sub-chassis made the reproduction virtually immune to vibrations from the outside.
The tonearm’s axis for horizontal movement was positioned behind the vertical axis and thus behind the tonearm’s centre of gravity. If the pivot point for horizontal movements vibrated, the rear part of the arm with the counterweight also vibrated, whereas the stylus remained still, because it was in the centre of the vibrations. The MMC was completely integrated with the tonearm and the low weight of the cartridge meant that the tonearm resonance could be optimised to the ideal value of 10 – 15Hz.
The pendulum suspension efficiently insulated the inner chassis with tonearm and platter from the outer cabinet to prevent vibrations to affect playback. The suspension consisted of three pendulums and leafsprings and gave the inner chassis an inherent resonance of 5 – 6 Hz.
Operation of Beogram 7000 was via Beolink 7000. The turntable automatically determined record size and selected playback speed accordingly (33 or 45 rpm.). If no record was registered, playback did not begin. It was only possible to lower the pick-up cartridge if there was a record on the platter. When you operated Beogram 7000 from Beolink 7000 you could not by accident lower the stylus outside of the record surface. By preventing unauthorised operation of Beogram 7000, Bang & Olufsen gave priority to both the preservation of the pick-up cartridge and the vinyl records.
Beogram 7000 could ideally, be used as part of Beosystem 7000
In 1973, Bang & Olufsen launched the world’s first record player with an electronically controlled tangential arm. It was dubbed a state-of-the-art product by the industry, and revered and appreciated by music lovers all over the world.
Beogram 8000 was Bang & Olufsen’s third generation of tangential arm decks.
The special benefit of the tangential arm is that it helped to secure the most authentic reproduction of sound from records because it tracked records in the same way they were cut. But the tangential arm was only one of the features that contributed to the achievement of the company’s goal. For Beogram 8000 also benefited from B&O’s unique approach to turntable design: integration, in which all components of the gramophone were carefully matched from the product’s earliest design stage.
To secure constantly accurate rotary speed a Tangential Drive system was developed. It incorporated a quartz-controlled electronic flywheel, similar to the system used in electricity meters. Like your domestic meter, the system is highly reliable and extremely accurate. It works all day, everyday, and never needs repair. You never needed to make corrections in the Beogram’s rotary speed. A digital display kept you informed of speed during play. Because the conventional motor has been discarded, there were no motor vibrations to distort the sound. A unique pendulum suspension system prevented external shocks and vibrations from affecting sound reproduction.
Beogram 8000 was fitted with the widely acclaimed MMC 20 CL pickup cartridge, which guaranteed excellent tracking and minimum record wear, thanks to its low effective tip mass and optimum groove contact. A stylus brush, mounted inside the tangential arm compartment, kept the diamond free from dust and micro-particles, thereby enhancing the gentle treatment of records.
Beogram 8000 could be used as part of a full stereo system – the Beosystem 6000 or 8000
To complement Beocenter 8500, a dedicated record player – Beogram 8500 – was designed specifically for this particular hi-fi centre.
The technical aspects of Beogram 8500 were identical to Beogram 9500; it was only the finish that was different which was coloured soft grey to complement the rest of the system.
In design, technology and operating philosophy, the Beogram 9500 turntable was a perfect match for the Beocenter 9500 system.
Using a light-weight MMC2 cartridge, its electronic tangential arm played each record at the exact angle it was cut giving the most precise reading of the grooves ensuring that every nuance of a recording was captured.
The arm was suspended by a patented Bang & Olufsen system which helped prevent vibrations from any source reaching the cartridge. And the chassis suspension acted as an effective buffer against external vibrations.
If you valued your record collection, rest assured that it would have been in safe hands with Beogram 9000. The electronically controlled tangential arm played the record at the exact angle that the original master was cut, giving a precise reading of the signals in the groove. The delicate MMC 4 cartridge had a stylus pressure of only 1,2g, minimising friction between record and cartridge.
Beogram 9000 – Beocenter 9000’s record player
There was built-in protection against vibration too, with the special chassis suspension and a short, rigid tone arm. Which all added up to longer life for your record collection as well as superior sound. Like the rest of Beocenter 9000 the record player could be operated through the remote control.
