An Experience of Pro-Ject

 

 Founded by Heinz Lichtenegger in 1991, Pro-Ject’s home is located in Vienna, Austria, and houses the firm’s manufacturing and management facilities. With around 300 workers in the company, Pro-Ject may be a small company, but they certainly are big on the results of their products!

Pro-Ject originally came about due to Lichtenegger finding the market of turntables to be un-inspiring and to be certainly lacking in the true Hi-Fi and audiophile sector. We must remember that in the late 80s the CD was beginning to exceed sales of vinyl records for the first time. Although the CD was, and still is, a convenient format that can produce phenomenal accuracy and superb tonal results, Lichtenegger still firmly placed his trust in the format that was beginning to fade away from mainstream production. But, after many ideas and self-built examples, Lichtenegger soon found that his turntables were breathing new life into the format that was seemingly dying a fast death. On the timeline of Hi-Fi history, CDs were becoming as cheap as CDs, offering more clarity on budget systems and stood up to the reliability tests that vinyl records were failing to: record releases toward the end of the 80s saw cheaper materials and thinner albums being produced, resulting in hastened wear and tear. Eventually, the mass production of vinyl records ceased on mainstream releases ceased.

Pro-Ject's 6 Record Deck

As the years went by, people found that they wanted to enjoy their collections of vinyl records again. Not only due to nostalgia, but due to the quality and warmth of the iconic sound produced. Pro-Ject proved that their engineering lead to the vinyl record sounding new, fresh and [in many peoples’ personal opinions] better than that of the CD. Soon, and effectively overnight, mainstream releases were starting to be issued on CD, MP3 downloads and onto 180 gram vinyl records. Yes, although it was a novelty at first, vinyl records have become progressively popular again! This time, due to the extra weight of the record, the quality is certainly stronger and allows for more wear and tear, along with superb playback quality. However, CD critics now look at new releases to be of poorer quality than before as discs are thinner and often are burned faster, losing essential codec information (music that’s coded for then disc) in the process. So, to cut it short, vinyl is back and it’s here to stay!

Vinyl’s renaissance has only allowed for Pro-Ject’s expertise and quality of produce to exceed previous standards. This is because many people rely on Pro-Ject for their superb designs that combine ingenuity with simple, un-hassled designs and appearances. This combination allows for more information to be retrieved from the vinyl record as Pro-Ject’s primary concern lies within the sound retrieval process – ensuring that each player hits the right notes. The simple philosophy of ‘sound: first, sight: second’ has ensured that Pro-Ject, even on their cheaper components, have delivered a product that will deliver the true best bits of the beloved format.

In the manufacturing facilities, men and women are devoted to building true Hi-Fi turntables for both the audiophile and the general consumer alike. Each player is lovingly crafted by hand from start to finish. As each player is crafted by hand, faults are often seen by the naked eye and are rectified, if there are any, which is a very rare occasion. As each player is finished on the assembly line the engineers rigorously test each player over a period of seven hours before they are finally inspected for packaging and distribution.

Pro-Ject's Xtension Turntable

As Pro-Ject stated their place on the scene with their turntables, their attention also looked toward conquering the world of digital, too. As we live in a world where most people rely on digital storage of their music, Pro-Ject realised that they could extend their expertise by manufacturing true Hi-Fi alternatives for iPod docks, Hi-Fi components and speaker systems. Many consumers in today’s day and age often ask for a demanding combination of big sound, small appearance and an even smaller price tag. Although this combination initially seemed hard to comprehend, Pro-Ject managed to devote some time to delivering us products that fit all of the aforementioned criteria.

The result of their engineering leads us to the ‘Box’ range. The ‘Box’ range consists of high-end components in the form of integrated, pre and power amplifiers, iPod docking stations, CD players, tuners and switch expanders. All of which are built to the highest of standards and all provide a true Hi-Fi experience for prices that make a bag of sweets seem almost too expensive. We decided to put their Box range on test within our demonstration room, being stunned at the result of their products. Even compressed music seemed to have depth and dimension – something that had previously been a very hard achievement to attain.

Pro-Ject's 'Dock Box' iPod Dock

Our new staff, Jamie Grindrod and Alex Maher, have travelled to Vienna to see the Pro-Ject team in action, they can now also give exceptional advice on the majority of Pro-Ject’s superb line of high-end audio, low-end priced, Hi-Fi products.

 

Tom Parker,

Sales & Website Admin.