PRO-JECT X-1

TURNTABLE

When the compact disc was introduced in the early 80s, nearly everyone in the world said it was the end of the vinyl era. The CD was smaller, played for longer, was more robust and, according to co-inventors Philips and Sony, would deliver ‘perfect sound forever.’ Turntables disappeared from hi-fi stores and started appearing at garage sales throughout the suburbs. Australian record companies shut down their local LP pressing plants. By the end of the 80s, more than 400 million CDs were being manufactured every year.

Meanwhile, in faraway Austria, Heinz Lichtenegger was designing his first turntable, and in 1991 established a company to build it—Pro-Ject. Seemingly against all the odds, Lichtenegger’s Pro-Ject P1 turntable went on to become a success story for the fledgling company. Skip forward nearly 30 years and Pro-Ject, whose turntables are now built in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, has released the Pro-Ject X1, which it says is a direct descendant of the original P1. ‘,’ says Lichtenegger.