All the equipment that Revox now produces (of course, except for the renovation of its classic reel-to-reel tape recorders) is rather digital and digitally oriented, most of all focused on building its ecosystem and multiroom type systems. There are also devices characterized as “all-in-one”, there is an audio server, and there are wired and wireless acoustics with their characteristic, recognizable appearance. But, I repeat, everyone loves to live Revox T700: Sound Excellence in their ecosystem. The vinyl player seems to be something separate, but this is only at first glance.

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Firstly, its external style. A very laconic design made of aluminum and glass, all completely black, this also includes elegant touch controls. Secondly, the player comes almost ready for use: the head is pre-installed, and you only need to install the counterweight using standard scales. Yes, there is also a built-in phono stage, which again follows from the design of other Revox devices: they do not have phono stages, either built-in or separate.

Close view of Revox T700: Sound Excellence

I first wrote that the Revox T700 Studiomaster is the only player in the catalog, and in essence, this is true. But two configurations are available. One is the usual basic one, it comes with an Ortofon Quintet Bronze MC head, and the one that I got for testing is the Black Edition version, it has a pre-installed older head, Ortofon Quintet Black S. This in itself is nice, the heads, especially the older one, are very good.

The quality of the head pre-tuning is good: I checked everything but did not change the height, geometry, or azimuth. However, when adjusting the height, I note that the tonearm is set for 180-200-220 gram records, not for thinner editions from previous years. But in practice, if it is not possible to reconfigure, then it is better to have a slightly raised option than a slightly overwhelmed one. This means that all that remains is to install the counterweight and the anti-skating weight – and that’s it, you can listen.

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I was a little disappointed by the standard scales included in the kit. Nominally they were calibrated, but the weight was still shown with an error of 0.15 grams. Nominally, the pressure range of this head allows such a tolerance, but in reality, a difference of 0.1 grams can already be heard – the sound is slightly different. However, even with this error you can approximately fall into the average value, and then slightly adjust the weight by ear. But this should be done only after the head has run for 30-40 hours and has broken in.

Close of view of Revox T700: Sound Excellence

Now let’s look at the design as a whole. The table is made of MDF, aluminum on the sides, and glass on top. It was done carefully, I couldn’t find any negligence anywhere. The table rests on three fairly massive aluminum support legs, complemented by rubber hemispherical inserts. You can adjust the position of the table; the package includes a good bubble level.

The player has a belt drive, and the motor is installed in the housing but is connected to the housing in a slightly movable way: logically, the design provides for some kind of damping. A flat belt transmits rotation to the outer surface of the main disk, which is made of polyoxymethylene and operates without any additional mat.

Control – using touch buttons on the table surface. They also show when the disk has reached the required speed. The design provides both adjustment of each speed (33.3 and 45 revolutions) and also an optical rotation sensor. The motor power supply is a remote pulse, but the unit used is of high quality. However, let’s not forget that in our case this unit powers not only the motor but also the corrector board…

The bearing here is a classic non-inverted one, with a fairly massive cup and pulley. A support ball is used inside. Lubricant is poured into the bearing at the factory and the turntable arrives with a corresponding plug. But there is no additional oil included in the kit, although potentially such a bearing may require topping up/replacement after a few years. However, there is nothing complicated here, choosing an analog is not a problem – there are no specific materials or extreme loads in the design, and the oil chamber provided inside the glass allows you to fill in oil with a reserve for a very long time.

The player has a 9-inch tonearm, the most familiar rotary design, with a carbon or combined tube, a carbon shell, and all the necessary settings. Head position, height, azimuth, clamping, and anti-skating – everything here can be adjusted if necessary, and the range of settings does not differ from most average models. Effective weight – 11 grams.

Now has a built-in phono stage. It is designed to work only with MC heads and has a good tuning range for both impedance and gain. But it has neither the required impedance nor the capacitance settings required for MM heads. I opened it after listening and was very surprised – this tiny circuit played better than one would think from its appearance. I have encountered this several times, when either a very budget corrector turned out to be quite good, or when an expensive corrector contained a couple of operational amplifiers and several parts, but in general, this is a rare exception to the general rules.

Side view of Revox T700: Sound Excellence

So, in general, I have only one big question for the phono stage: why didn’t they make a switch that would allow the signal to bypass it? The answer is in the same place as I assumed at the very beginning – in focusing on your ecosystem. However, if the need suddenly arises, bypassing the built-in corrector using a soldering iron will take 15 minutes.

Even the output wires of the tonearm are laid with such a margin that this can be done as comfortably as possible. As a grounding terminal, you can use one of the board screws, for example. But this is an option for non-standard use, although from everything I saw in the mechanics of the player itself, it is very possible, that the hardware and, especially, the standard head allow you to reveal external components of a higher level.

Clsoe view of Revox T700: Sound Excellence

The player did not show any oddities or peculiarities in use. Even the standard brush for cleaning records is included in the kit so that when used, the record will not slip on the disc. However, if desired, you can use a not-very-heavy regular or collet clamp here.

Also, according to my observations, a thin leather or cork mat may not be damaged – only the height needs to be adjusted in this case. It is also quite possible to change the standard phono cable, especially since in the basic version you will not need a phono cable, but a regular analog unbalanced interconnect.

During the warming-up process (and here we are talking about both the head and the phono stage), the sound changes quite a lot. Only out of the box, the system doesn’t sound very good – harsh, flat, tight. At this time I was playing records, which I didn’t particularly mind, but I turned the sound on the amplifier to almost zero and left the room. After several records, you can already start listening, although you need to understand that the sound will still change, although not as noticeably as in the first hours.

When the device has more or less come to its senses, you can already draw some conclusions and look for characteristics.

Back view of Revox T700: Sound Excellence

I started listening to the John Coltrane Quartet album “Ballads”. The sound is detailed, but a little chamber and moderately pedantic, although there is no sharpness. The sound is not chopped up, there is unity and, perhaps, even neat musicality. The tonal balance is very fair, nothing is sticking out or falling through. The presentation as a whole tends rather to be neutral. The character is not very complex.

There is a slight tendency to enlarge the sounds and slightly muffle the after-sounds. I think this is the main merit of the built-in phono stage – the head is capable of more. Here, indeed, the Ortofon Quintet Bronze mentioned in the passport would probably be more appropriate, and Black S already somewhat exceeds the capabilities of the corrector. Although from a good point of view, you can also hear the head – very accurate reading of the material, good detail, plasticity. But timbrally the sound is a little more formal and strict than I expected.

Down view of Revox T700: Sound Excellence

Regarding individual components: the bass is there, as far as it is present on the recording, the elaboration is neat, but not very complicated, and the rhythm section is readable well. The mids are neither bulging nor flattened, but rather closer to flat, the upper frequencies are neat, not smoothed out, but not flashy either. The detail is not bad, there are enough dynamics in the example of this recording. In general, the sound is neat and unhurried, but without the feeling of lethargy or slowness.

The stage is medium in size, more in width than in depth, but the images are well-separated and readable. There is no holographic precision, but there is no mess either.

Then I put on the Dave Brubeck Quartet’s “Blue Rondo” CD. The sound has lightness, mobility, and some plasticity. However, there is also something like restraint, maybe a little dryness. Quite a bit, but there it is. And you certainly can’t say that the sound is warm or overblown.

The frequency range is transmitted smoothly, without distortions. The presentation is definitely light, but there is no brightness or sparkle – rather a kind of muted matte light, so to speak.

Internal View of Revox T700: Sound Excellence

Using this recording as an example, I did not notice any noticeable problems with the dynamics: there is no stiffness, and the sound is quite harmonious, although not sharply rapid-fire. The detail is simply assured. I wouldn’t call it very high, even from the head itself I expected a little more, but I won’t say that there are few details or that there is an obvious simplification.

Rather, one feels a certain uncomplicated visual presentation with a claim to neutrality. The sound is perceived normally, just as sound, just as music. Without any lofty epithets, there is nothing particularly to belittle here.

The scene of this recording turned out to be slightly larger than average, but, again, more in width than in depth. The images are readable, and the air between them is moderately present.

The third album in the test is JJ Cale & Eric Clapton’s “The Road To Escondido”. The sound is full and juicy, and here it already seems a little warm. However, even with knowledge of how the record was recorded, there is still a slight restraint and emphasized accuracy.

The detail is not bad, or sufficient, and the dynamics are all right. Good melody, unity, neat emotionality – and all this without getting into details and nuances. Yes, the sound is painted with large strokes, of course, with an emphasis on emotion rather than analyticality. Does this spoil the overall picture here? Not really. Rather, looking at the familiar from a slightly different angle.

Listening is quite comfortable, even in a high-resolution system there is no obvious contradiction, even if the device does not coincide with the other components in the coordinate system – the character and handwriting are audible, and the shortcomings as such do not stick out, everything is at the level of emphasis. Listening to such a sound is not at all boring, and due to moderate restraint, no wow effect leads to fatigue throughout playing one-and-a-half records.

FAQs Revox T700: Sound Excellence

Q1: What type of audio component is the Revox T700?
A1: The Revox T700 is a high-fidelity tape recorder designed for audiophiles, offering exceptional sound quality and performance for both recording and playback.

Q2: What makes the Revox T700 stand out in terms of sound quality?
A2: The Revox T700 features advanced audio technology, including precision-engineered components and high-quality tape transport mechanisms, which together deliver a rich, dynamic sound with excellent clarity and detail.

Q3: What are the key specifications of the Revox T700?
A3: Key specifications include a frequency response of 20 Hz to 20 kHz, a signal-to-noise ratio of 60 dB, and support for various tape formats, including 1/4 inch and 1/2 inch tape.

Q4: How easy is it to operate the Revox T700?
A4: The Revox T700 is designed with user-friendly controls and a clear interface, making it relatively easy to operate for both experienced users and newcomers to analog tape recording.

Q5: Can the Revox T700 be integrated into a modern audio setup?
A5: Yes, the Revox T700 can be integrated into modern audio systems, with line-level inputs and outputs that allow it to connect to amplifiers, mixers, and other audio components.

Q6: What types of users would benefit most from the Revox T700?
A6: The Revox T700 is ideal for audiophiles, recording engineers, and music enthusiasts who appreciate high-quality analog sound and are interested in the unique characteristics of tape recording.

Q7: How does the Revox T700 handle tape maintenance?
A7: The Revox T700 features built-in mechanisms for tape tension control and automatic tape alignment, which help maintain optimal performance and reduce the need for frequent maintenance.

Q8: What is the build quality of the Revox T700 like?
A8: The Revox T700 is built to high standards, featuring a sturdy chassis, premium components, and an aesthetic design that reflects its commitment to quality and durability.