About Pure Fidelity
Pure Fidelity was founded in 2015 by John Stratton, a dedicated audiophile and vinyl enthusiast who waited more than ten years after the CD player’s introduction before reluctantly buying his first one. John owns more than 3,000 LPs in genres from rock, pop, jazz, folk and blues, including rarities like a 70-year-old mono pressing of B.B. King when he was first starting out and countless first pressings originally purchased for $4 and now worth so much more. Through the years, John has owned, evaluated and discovered issues with a litany of high-end turntables from all the usual suspects.
Modest beginnings
Spurred by the insights of his listening experiences, John began modifying turntables for like-minded vinyl enthusiasts, replacing the factory platters and bearings on many a high-end turntable. Encouraged by the response from delighted owners, John started building complete turntables of his own, under the Pure Fidelity banner.
Every Pure Fidelity product reflects a few, fundamental beliefs.
- We believe in “hybrid” turntables. After years of listening, John Stratton determined that while high-mass turntables can achieve rock-solid bass, they tend to sound dull. Low-mass turntables can have excellent speed and dynamics, but tend to sound bright. Suspended decks can have good timing, but lack bass. It was to combine the best elements of each design that Stratton developed a “hybrid” approach with intermediate mass based on an ultra-MDF plinth: the foundation of every Pure Fidelity turntable. Fittingly, when each Pure Fidelity turntable reaches completion, John Stratton proudly signs the plinth.
- We don’t believe in reinventing the wheel. We don’t immediately reach for the latest “breakthroughs” or techno fads. Bronze has been with us since the Bronze Age. 6061 aluminum alloy dates from the 1930s, while Delrin was launched in the 1960s. We don’t aim to reinvent turntable design, just do it better. That’s one reason why our products consistently achieve superior value for money – and why they’re often compared to more expensive alternatives.
- We don’t believe we have all the answers. We’re not afraid to recognize the virtues of products from other companies, including but not limited to GAIA™ footers from IsoAcoustics and tonearms from Origin Live.
- We believe in unit-to-unit consistency. Because we want you to enjoy all the performance our products can deliver, we’re laser-focused on high precision, tight tolerances and total repeatability. So we make extensive use of computer numerically controlled (CNC) machining with tolerances down to 1/1000 inch, one-third the thickness of a typical human hair. And we individually calibrate each Maestro speed control unit to its paired AC synchronous motor.
- We believe in careful listening. Even the cheapest CD player will out-measure any turntable. But measurements don’t stir our souls. Music does. That’s why every principal design decision is based on hours of careful listening on well-known reference systems with well-loved LPs.
- We believe in the power of great analog. When people hear just how good analog sound can be, they get excited about music all over again. We know that sensation because we feel it, too.