Townshend Audio Blog: Rock 7 Turntable Honored with The Absolute Sound’s Golden Ear Award 2021

At Townshend Audio, our passion for music and engineering drives us to create audio solutions that reveal the true essence of every recording. We are thrilled to celebrate a landmark achievement: in 2021, the Townshend Rock 7 Turntable was awarded The Absolute Sound’s Golden Ear Award by renowned reviewer Robert E. Greene. This prestigious honor recognizes the Rock 7’s innovative design, particularly its unique front-end damping trough, which has redefined vinyl playback for audiophiles worldwide.

A Revolutionary Approach to Vinyl Playback

The Rock 7 Turntable is not just a record player—it’s a triumph of inspired engineering, building on the legacy of our legendary Rock Reference and Rock III models. At its heart is a feature that sets it apart: a front-end damping trough filled with viscous fluid, positioned to dampen tonearm vibrations directly at the cartridge headshell. Unlike conventional turntables that rely on rear-arm damping or heavy platters to mitigate resonances, the Rock 7’s trough, developed with input from Professor Jack Dinsdale, addresses perturbations at their source. A paddle, attached via the cartridge mounting screws, moves through the fluid as the stylus tracks the groove, stabilizing the cartridge and eliminating smearing for rock-solid imaging and focus.

This design delivers a sound that Greene described as “reminiscent of mastertape or even live mike feed.” The Rock 7 achieves extraordinary neutrality, stability, and purity, with a silent background that lets every detail shine. Its belt-driven system, lightweight construction (33 lbs), and compatibility with most tonearms make it both accessible (priced at $3,000 in 2011) and versatile, offering performance that rivals turntables costing exponentially more.

The Golden Ear Award: A Testament to Excellence

The Absolute Sound’s Golden Ear Awards are among the most coveted in high-end audio, bestowed by critics like Robert E. Greene for components that deliver exceptional musicality and innovation. In his 2011 review (Issue 209), Greene awarded the Rock 7 this honor, praising its unique approach and transformative sound. His words capture the essence of its impact:

“The latest incarnation of Townshend’s unique ideas of turntable design, including damping of the arm at the front end via a trough of damping fluid, offers truly remarkable performance at a rational price. With its silent background, stability, neutrality, and purity, and control of the arm in a way not otherwise available, the sound is reminiscent of mastertape or even live mike feed. And the front-of-the-arm damping also gives extraordinary bass. Combine it with the Moerch DP-8 anisotropic tonearm (one of my Golden Ear Awards of 2010), and you will hear all the bass and all the rest, that is really on your records. The Rock 7 is a triumph of engineering insight, with performance at the very top level but at a moderate price.”

Greene’s review emphasizes the trough’s role in achieving “sonic virtues… otherwise unavailable elsewhere at any price.” He notes that removing the trough makes the sound “less convincing,” underscoring its essential contribution to the Rock 7’s clarity and realism. This award places the Rock 7 alongside elite audio designs, celebrated for delivering mastertape-like fidelity without exorbitant cost.

Why the Rock 7 Stands Out

The Rock 7’s design is both ingenious and practical, offering features that elevate vinyl playback:

• Front-End Damping Trough: The arc-shaped trough, positioned over the record, damps cartridge vibrations instantly, ensuring precise tracking and eliminating low-frequency smearing. It’s compatible with nearly any tonearm, making it a universal upgrade.
• Silent Background: The belt-driven system and lightweight chassis deliver a noise floor that rivals the best, letting micro-details emerge with startling clarity.
• Extraordinary Bass: The trough’s damping enhances bass definition and extension, revealing low-end information that other turntables miss.
• Flexible Setup: Supplied without a tonearm but with armboards for Rega, SME, Linn, Jelco, or custom options, it adapts to your preferred setup. Greene recommended pairing it with the Moerch DP-8 for optimal results.
• Ease of Use: The trough’s operation is intuitive—swing it over the record to play, swing it back when done. Greene notes that “slopping” is a non-issue, and setup is stable and straightforward.

Priced at $3,000 in 2011, the Rock 7 offered performance that Greene compared to “turntables costing much, much more,” making it a value-driven choice for serious vinyl enthusiasts.

A Legacy of Inspired Engineering

The Golden Ear Award is one of many honors for Townshend Audio, joining accolades like Hi-Fi+’s Best Product of the Year 2004 for the Maximum Supertweeter, HiFi Pig’s Outstanding Product for the Allegri+, and Hi-Fi+’s Innovation Award 2021 for the Seismic Isolation Podium. Each reflects the vision of our founder, Max Townshend, who collaborated with experts like Jack Dinsdale to pioneer technologies—such as the damping trough—that others overlooked. Introduced with the original Rock Reference decades ago, the trough remains a hallmark of our turntables, proving its enduring relevance.

Greene’s review marvels at the trough’s simplicity and effectiveness, asking, “how other people missed it” and “how, with the idea revealed, they kept on missing it.” This sentiment echoes Max’s philosophy: solve problems with insight, not excess. The Rock 7 embodies this, delivering world-class sound through clever design rather than brute force.

Rediscover Vinyl’s True Potential

The Absolute Sound Golden Ear Award 2021 is a milestone, but the Rock 7’s true legacy is the joy it brings to listeners. As Greene wrote, “The experience will become familiar, but it will never become stale.” Whether you’re spinning classic jazz, intricate classical, or punchy rock, the Rock 7 unveils details and dynamics that feel like a live performance, with bass that’s “otherwise unavailable” and a soundstage that breathes.

We invite you to explore Townshend Audio’s range, including our turntables, on our website and contact an authorized dealer for a demonstration. While the Rock 7 is a collector’s gem, its spirit lives on in our commitment to vinyl excellence. Discover why Robert E. Greene called it a “triumph”—and why the trough still rules.

Thank you for trusting Townshend Audio to bring you closer to the music you love.

Townshend Audio Team