Technics - SL-1210GR2 Direct Drive Turntable System II (Black)

The SL-1200GR2 in black: Technics’ second-generation GR, rebuilt around ΔΣ-Drive motor control and a Multi-stage Silent Power Supply, on the same aluminium-and-BMC chassis and two-layer platter the GR made its name with.

The GR2 is not a mechanical redesign and Technics does not pretend otherwise. The two-layer aluminium and BMC chassis, the 2.5kg two-layer damped platter, the S-shaped aluminium tonearm and the silicone rubber insulators all carry over from the SL-1200GR essentially unchanged, with a new colour match across the parts and a revised surface finish. What changed is the electronics that spin the platter.

ΔΣ-Drive is the headline. Rather than the previous generation’s PWM drive, the GR2 synthesises its motor waveform using delta-sigma modulation — the same one-bit conversion approach Technics uses in the SU-R1000 amplifier — to get closer to a true sine wave. A cleaner drive waveform means less vibration injected into a platter that is sitting, by design, a few centimetres from a stylus reading grooves measured in microns.

Behind it sits a new Multi-stage Silent Power Supply: a switching supply running above 100kHz paired with a noise-cancelling circuit that Technics says comes down from the SL-1000R reference deck. The two changes together are aimed at the same thing, which is the noise floor.

This is a fully manual turntable with no cartridge fitted and no phono stage inside. It has a PHONO output and an earth terminal, and that is it. You will need a phono input on your amplifier or a separate phono stage — we sell plenty of both — and a cartridge, which we will mount and align for you.

Technics’ packaging for the GR2 is free of expanded polystyrene, replaced with shaped cardboard.

Features

• ΔΣ-Drive Delta Sigma motor control, new for this generation
• Multi-stage Silent Power Supply with noise cancellation, inherited from the SL-1000R
• Coreless direct-drive motor — no iron core, no cogging
• 332mm two-layer aluminium die-cast platter with rubber damping, approximately 2.5kg
• Two-layer cabinet combining aluminium die-cast and BMC, on silicone rubber insulators
• S-shaped aluminium static-balance tonearm, 230mm effective length, 0–6mm height adjustment
• 33 1/3, 45 and 78rpm with ±8% and ±16% pitch adjustment
• 2.2kg-cm starting torque; 0.7 seconds from standstill to 33 1/3rpm
• Expanded-polystyrene-free packaging

Specifications

• Type: Direct drive manual turntable
• Finish: Black. Technics’ own launch announcement is explicit about the convention: “the silver version will be called SL-1200GR2, whereas the black will be SL-1210GR2.” The regional model codes agree — SL-1200GR2EBS for silver, SL-1210GR2EBK for black
• Relationship to the SL-1200GR2: Mechanically and electrically identical per Technics’ own launch announcement. The two model numbers denote finish only, and every published specification matches across the pair
• Drive: Direct drive with ΔΣ-Drive (Delta Sigma Drive) motor control
• What ΔΣ-Drive does: Technics generates the motor drive waveform using PWM derived from ΔΣ modulation — the same high-precision one-bit conversion technique used in their full-digital amplifiers — to produce what they describe as a perfect sine wave. The stated result is a large reduction in motor vibration, and improvements in tracking precision, imaging and noise floor. It was introduced on the SL-1200GR2.
• Power supply circuit: Multi-stage Silent Power Supply: a low-noise, high-speed supply switching above 100kHz combined with a noise-cancelling circuit, which Technics says is inherited from the SL-1000R reference turntable.
• Motor: Brushless DC, described by Technics as a coreless direct-drive motor. Coil and pole counts are not published
• Platter: Aluminium die-cast, two-layer with rubber damping. 332mm, approximately 2.5kg including the rubber sheet
• Speeds: 33 1/3, 45 and 78rpm
• Pitch adjustment: ±8% and ±16%
• Starting torque: 2.2kg-cm (1.91 lb-in)
• Start-up time: 0.7 seconds from standstill to 33 1/3rpm
• Wow and flutter: 0.025% W.R.M.S. Technics does not cite JIS on the GR2 spec pages, though it does cite JIS C5521 for the same figure on the SL-1200G
• Rumble / signal-to-noise ratio: 78dB (IEC 98A weighted) is published on this model’s US page. Note honestly that the figure does not appear on the identical SL-1200GR2’s page or on either UK page, and that the same number appeared on the discontinued SL-1200GR’s spec sheet — so it may well be inherited copy rather than a fresh measurement. It is Technics’ own published figure for this model, so we are printing it, with that caveat
• Tonearm: Static balance, S-shape, with a lightweight high-rigidity aluminium arm tube. The owner’s manual describes traditional Technics gimbal suspension construction with high-precision bearings; bearing material is not published
• Effective tonearm length: 230mm
• Overhang: 15mm
• Offset angle: 22°
• Tracking error angle: Within 2°32′ at the outer groove of a 30cm record; within 0°32′ at the inner groove
• Effective tonearm mass: Not published. Technics publishes no tonearm effective mass figure for any turntable in the current range.
• Arm height adjustment: 0–6mm
• Anti-skate: An anti-skating control dial is fitted and set to match the stylus pressure. Technics does not name the mechanism type
• Headshell: Included, approximately 7.6g. No model number is published
• Cartridge weight range: 5.6–12.0g without the auxiliary weight (14.3–20.7g including the headshell); 10.0–16.4g with it (18.7–25.1g including the headshell)
• Cartridge fitted: None. The owner’s manual instructs the owner to fit a cartridge of their choosing — bring us yours and we will mount and align it
• Built-in phono equaliser: None. The only output is PHONO, with no LINE output and no PHONO/LINE switch. You will need a phono input or an outboard phono stage
• Auto lift: None. This is a fully manual turntable
• Outputs: PHONO (pin jack) x1, earth terminal x1. The phono cable and earth lead are supplied as separate accessories. No balanced XLR output
• Cabinet and insulators: Two-layer cabinet combining BMC and aluminium die-cast, on special silicone rubber insulators
• Dimensions: 453 x 173 x 372 mm (W x H x D), with the dust cover
• Weight: Approximately 11.5kg. Technics rounds this to 25.35 lbs on its web pages and 25.4 lbs in the owner’s manual
• Power supply: AC 120V, 60Hz in the US; AC 220–240V, 50/60Hz in the UK
• Power consumption: 11W on
• Standby consumption: Technics’ own sources conflict. The US product page and Panasonic’s support page both say approximately 0.3W; the owner’s manual PDF that covers both the SL-1200GR2 and SL-1210GR2 says 0.2W. The previous-generation SL-1200GR also published 0.2W. We are reporting both rather than picking
• Country of manufacture: Not published. Technics prints no country-of-manufacture statement on its product pages, specification sheets or owner’s manuals for any model in the current range — we checked all three for this product. Claims circulate online about where Technics builds its turntables; none of them come from Technics, so we are not going to repeat them here as fact.
• Warranty: Panasonic administers Technics warranty in the United States and the term varies by model rather than by product category. Neither the SL-1200GR2 nor the SL-1210GR2 appears in Technics’ published US warranty table yet. The previous-generation SL-1200GR and SL-1210GR are both listed at three years parts and labour, as are the SL-1200G and SL-1210G. Ask us and we will confirm the GR2 term with Panasonic rather than assume it carries over. Technics states that product registration is not required and does not extend coverage. A dated sales receipt is required, coverage runs to the original purchaser, and the product must be purchased and serviced in the United States. Non-rechargeable batteries, antennas and cosmetic cabinet parts are excluded. Note that Technics’ warranty statement does not explicitly name styli or cartridges as excluded items, even though wear-part exclusion is normal industry practice — we would not assume coverage either way without asking Panasonic first.