Despite digital audio streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music dominating a significant portion of the market, there has been a notable resurgence in the popularity of record players in recent times. One potential reason for the unexpected surge in vinyl sales is a growing appreciation for nostalgia and vintage aesthetics. Most people buy a record player to add a vintage vibe to their space than for its sound quality. I am not demeaning those who still find analog’s enduring appeal to be gratifying, but record players are more of a statement piece today.
Whatever the case, record players are getting popular again, and riding on the popularity are various designers who are making renders and prototypes of turntables in the hope that some vinyl manufacturing company will track them down and give them the break of a lifetime. Oscar Olsson is one such design buff looking for an opportunity and his shot at the moon is a sleek, wall-mounted record player, the Disco Volante.
Translating to flying saucer in English, the record player boasts retro-futuristic aesthetics and is famously associated with extraterritorial spacecraft. When viewed from a wide angle, the name appears unrelated to its namesake. Yet, upon closer inspection, intriguing parallels emerge. When mounted against the wall, the turntable’s hinged platter rises from its perpendicular resting position, evoking the illusion of floating records, hence being reminiscent of its namesake.
Another intriguing aspect of Disco Volante is its three-way assistance. An amalgamation of form, function, and aesthetics; the turntable not only rides the record grooves but also adds aesthetics to the interior. Most people avoid buying turntables because they seem to take up a lot of space but that is not the case with Disco Volante, thanks to its wall-mounted design.
Speaking of form, the turntable is crafted from aluminum and is finished in black, orange, yellow, or green hues. The steel framework offers a rigid foundation for the turntable, meanwhile, the molded, funky plastic tonearm housing plays the main role visually. “By separating each component of the turntable into free elements, a more playful approach to the form is enabled,” Olsson comments on the organic and vivid tonearm housing. He further adds, “This separation makes it appear as though the tonearm housing is a separate instrument that plays the record”.
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Though majorly acting as a statement piece for the interior, Disco Volante is still a render. Olsson didn’t disclose details about the technical aspect of the player or when he plans to drop the prototype. But the day it happens, it will be intriguing to see how practical the design is when it comes to managing cables, reducing vibrations, and integrating other components.
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