Thorens Announces Three New Products

- TD 160 HD pictured above

German electronics company, Thorens, has announced their three latest products, two turntables and one pre-amplifier. Like everything else in the catalog, these new Thorens products use no digital signal modulation; they are "consequently analog," as Heinz Rohrer puts it. Of the three, the only available now is the TD 160 HD, it is the new take on the original TD 160. The new piece uses an acrylic plate driven by a belt internally and also includes a platter mat made of a blend of cork, India rubber, and polymers; it retails for $2700. The TD 550 will be replacing the old TD 350 and also includes suspended chassis and unlike the 160 it uses an external belt drive. The tone arm is 12 inches and is made of a stiff carbon fiber. It will be released sometime in the fall and no price has been released. Designed to fit perfectly with the TEM 3200 mono block amplifiers, the new TEP 3800 will also be released this fall. The preamp uses a complete balanced layout and is entirely DC-coupled. The inputs and outputs can be either line or balanced and use no digital micro-processors. The list price has also yet to be released.