Micro Seiki AP-M1

Micro Seiki's ultimate turntable : not the last one but among the best.

The mat and power supply were "shared" by the Marantz Tt 1000 mkII, a turntable produced and engineered by Micro Seiki for Marantz. The AP-M1 was never officially exported but it is probable a couple of units traveled here and there - the US literature is in fact only the original japanese with a semi-transparent sheet added with the succint description in english...

The production run must be of a hundred, or much less. The M1 was slightly later joined by the AP-M2 : a much simplified and low-end version of the AP-M1. So much simplified that it got overlooked by everybody, distributors included - the AP-M2 is closer to the Invisibilia kind than anything else.

Based on the same motor as that of the SX-8000 II, the AP-M1 brought performance even further with dedicated vibration-damping, oil-insulating and special construction materials - while remaining more traditional in looks and footprint.

Oil-suspension insulating system
Contains a precision floating spring mounted on a damping disc and floating in vibration-damping oil, all contained in an insulator housing. This therefore isolates effectively the entire pivot/shaft/rotor from external vibrations.

Vibration-damping construction
Based on COS-MAL-ZM11 zinc alloy for high rigidity, high internal vibration damping and very high signal-to-noise ratio. The base is supported by tripe-construction insulators using ferrite, felt and alloy. The side panels are of Brazilian rosewood to diffuse any kind of vibration modes - and to contribute to the classic look of the AP-M1.

Precision motor unit
Ultra-precise 8-pole synchronous motor driven by a bi-amp BTL amplifier with a CR oscillator added for frequency control.

Separate power-supply + motor control
Equivalent to that of the SX-8000II ; provided with a variable torque generation system - 100V for startup and 50V for play for more stability of platter rotation.

Unique spindle design
Newly developed tapered spindle shaft with a self-adjusting centering mechanism consisting of spring and damping oil to ensure the record is properly centered.