"Harry and the VPI team are to be cobgratulated. A good wet cleaning machine opens up the latent power lurking in secondhand record shops, as well as spring cleaning your existing collection." - Reuben Parry, HiFi+

"I have found the HW 16.5 to be an outstanding performer. The record surfaces are microscopically clean and are so prestine they look new!" - Bert Whyte Audio Magazine

After starting his turntable manufacturing career with the legendary HW19, VPI owner, Harry Weisfeld, decided to take the basic concepts of the HW19, and improve it with little regard for cost. The new turntable, simply called TNT ( rumoured to be named after the explosive effect it had on the market, but actually it simply stands for 'The New Turntable') was based on a large plinth manufactured from two pieces of 25mm thick acrylic, a four point suspension, a heavy weight constrained layer platter and a precision motor. That was 18 years ago, now the latest incarnation of the TNT is the new Mk. 6.

Whilst the new Mk. 6 is still an evolution of the original TNT, and still uses two pieces of 25mm thick acrylic as the main plinth, the new plinth has a large 'U' section removed from the left hand side of the plinth, where the new drive motor / flywheel unit is . The stand alone flywheel / motor assembly was used for several reasons. The obvious advantage of the stand alone unit is to completely isolate the drive system from the plinth and platter, the only connection between the motors and the platter being the belt. To further isolate the drive system, dual motors are used to smooth out any vibrations, and a further isolation system is achieved via the flywheel. Both motors are turning at 300 RPM and are precision made in the United States, whilst the flywheel contains the energy equivalent to a platter five time the actual weight of the platter. The platter itself has been redesigned since the original to permit the usage of the Teflon / Delrin inverted bearing, the new acrylic platter is lighter with lower energy retention, with the actual rotational energy being stored in the flywheel. The motor drive is provided by the SDS (Synchronous Drive System) which is a precision sine wave generator which provides a precise sine wave to the motors, which can be precisely adjusted to deliver an ideal AC sine wave at an adjustable frequency, optimizing the motor drive system.

The suspension system uses air bladders at the top of each suspension pod, adjusted via knurled nuts, making it easy to level the turntable and optimize the operation of the suspension system.

The TNT Mk.6 is an incredibly high performance turntable which will continue to give stunning performance for years to come, the TNT Mk.6 has proven itself to be a reference grade turntable platform which has been easy to upgrade with subsequent developments. The TNT Mk.6 effectively isolates the critical stylus / vinyl interface with a completely isolated drive subsystem, a state of the art inverted bearing and an easy to maintain, highly effective suspension system. The VPI TNT Mk.6 will provide musical enjoyment for many years to come.