The Wilson Benesch GMT One, regarded as the pinnacle of turntable design, was initially introduced in 2019 as a special model commemorating the British company’s 30th anniversary. Since then, the launch of this turntable has faced numerous delays, with its first public appearance occurring in the spring of 2023 at the High End Show in Berlin. It has only recently entered serial production, five years after its initial announcement. The development of the GMT One system involved collaboration among various individuals and organizations within the GMT Consortium. This turntable features over 30 innovations, all of which are protected by international patents or are in the process of being registered. Wilson Benesch retains ownership of all intellectual property associated with the GMT One project, along with two registered trademarks: GMT and GRAVITON.
GMT, which stands for Greenwich Mean Time, has served as the global standard for timekeeping for over 135 years. The creators of this system highlight that the name reflects the exceptional accuracy of their drive mechanism, which is touted as the most precise ever created for vinyl record players. In contrast to conventional drive systems such as belt, roller, or direct drives, the GMT One employs a unique magnetic drive technology known as Omega Drive.
The Omega Drive utilizes a synchronous motor, which ensures exceptionally low torque ripple and consistent speed stability. The root mean square (RMS) torque ripple measures a mere 0.001342 Nm. With a diameter of 15 inches and a weight of 14 kg, the Omega Drive stands as the largest motor ever engineered for a turntable. In contrast, the most prevalent direct drive motor used in turntable designs measures only 3.07 inches, making it five times smaller than the Omega Drive. Numerous elements influence the performance of a turntable motor. These include the arrangement of the coils, the density of the coil windings, the positioning of the magnets, the characteristics and intensity of the magnetic flux, the weight of the moving parts, the method of current delivery to the system, and the design of the bearings. Throughout the development phase, precise dimensions for the rotor and the arrangement of the NDFeB magnets were established using finite element modeling techniques.
The ALPHA Drive technology was developed concurrently with the OMEGA Drive motor. This advanced electronic system is designed to provide low torque, effectively reducing torque pulsation, which is a significant challenge in motor drives. A microprocessor facilitates a new motor start-up algorithm that addresses the substantial air gap between the stator and rotor in the OMEGA Drive. Once the OMEGA Drive reaches the appropriate speed, the microprocessor in the ALPHA Drive maintains this speed by delivering three pure sine waves through three Class A linear amplifiers to the 21 magnetic poles of the OMEGA Drive. The precision of the sine wave is ensured by an integrated 11.2896 MHz quartz crystal.
Wilson Benesch has introduced three new tonearms designed for the GMT One turntable. The flagship model, the GRAVITON Ti tonearm, is constructed from a single-piece molded conical carbon fiber tube, which is additionally strengthened with a graphene epoxy matrix. While the tube geometry of the GRAVITON Ti is derived from the previous generation of Wilson Benesch tonearms, it has been enhanced for this new version by incorporating unidirectional carbon fiber and a Rohacell sandwich structure. In addition to the GRAVITON Ti, the company also provides the lightweight Moment model and the mid-range CTi-30.
A groundbreaking feature of the Wilson Benesch GMT One turntable is its Piezo VTA technology, which enables precise VTA (Vertical Tracking Angle) adjustments with a remarkable accuracy of up to 2.5 microns, all performed remotely. This innovative system utilizes the patented Eco-Grip cartridge. In contrast to conventional VTA adjustment methods that rely on screw threads, the Eco-Grip employs a linear piezo actuator, allowing for adjustments with an astonishing precision of 1 nanometer. To put this into perspective, the diameter of a human hair ranges from 80,000 to 100,000 nanometers, highlighting the extraordinary accuracy of this technology.
To facilitate remote operation of the Wilson Benesch GMT One player, the manufacturer provides a dedicated mobile application known as WB GMT Control. This application represents a major advancement in user control and convenience. With its intuitive graphical user interface, users can manage all system functions remotely, offering unparalleled oversight of essential features. Additionally, the GMT One System comes equipped with a pre-configured network router, designed specifically to connect with the SMART Device that has the WB GMT Control application and GMT One System installed.
The GMT Control app empowers users to meticulously adjust various settings, enabling them to customize the sound of the system according to their individual preferences. This includes the capability to modify the OMEGA Drive’s speed for different recording formats, allowing for precise adjustments in increments of 0.01 rpm. Users can conveniently start and stop the OMEGA Drive, as well as adjust the height of the GRAVITON Ti Armwand. Furthermore, the GMT Control App provides users with the ability to finely tune the PIZEO VTA system, allowing for adjustments in increments as small as 1 nanometre. This exceptional level of control over essential components of the turntable system guarantees that users can achieve optimal performance and playback quality with unmatched accuracy.
In summary, it is important to highlight two key figures that exemplify the uniqueness of the Wilson Benesch GMT One turntable: the turntable has a total weight of 370 kg, and the price for ownership is set at 370 thousand US dollars, equating to one thousand dollars for each kilogram.
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