Beogram 4000 family

(1974-1975) Stereo turntable, 33/45RPM, tangential tracking

Type number: 5215

Perhaps the definitive B&O product. Combining innovative, cutting edge technology, precision engineering, superlative performance and outstanding appearance in a tasteful, usable, relevant package, it set the standards for top end Hi-Fi. For a small organization like B&O to release a product like this stunned the audio industry, who were used to seeing a lead from the likes of Technics and Sony. Both these companies, and many others besides, tried in vain to imitate the Beogram 4000, but none ever offered a convincing alternative. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.

The Beogram 4000, as well as being a styling triumph, was a technical tour de force. The large and weighty platter was belt driven by an electronically regulated servo motor, when idler drive and induction motors were still the norm. The user could easily vary the speed within small limits, if for example, it was desired to accompany a recording with a piano in a slightly differing state of tune. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.

The controls were large flush aluminium surfaces, which were sequenced by digital electronics beneath, when most turntables still relied on levers and mechanical linkages. What really set the Beogram 4000 apart though was the arm. Actually it had two, both of which were moved under the control of an electronic analogue servo, at a tangent of a fixed angular relationship to the record, keeping the pickup at the same angle to the groove as the cutter would have been at when the master was cut. This system was known as tangential tracking, and remained in use with minor updates until the last B&O’s last turntable, the Beogram 7000. The system had many advantages, including that it enabled the arm to be made very short and stiff, a great benefit. The use of dynamic balancing removed the need for a counterweight, and “optimum pivot point” (OPP) suspension was employed, making the arm shorter still. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.

The second arm, to the left of the first, served a novel function. At its tip was a downward facing light source and sensor, which could “see” the radial bars on the platter. This was used to automatically sense the size of records, as the electronics “knew” the distance between the arms. Thus the arm always lowered in the correct place, and the pickup was protected in the event that the machine was accidentally activated with no record on the platter, as the arm would scan in towards the middle, find nothing, then return and shut off. Assuming a record was found, the electronics were programmed to set the turntable servo to the right speed, though this could be subsequently overridden with the manual control for non-standard records. All Beograms with tangential tracking have two arms, but in later designs, from the Beogram 5005 and Beogram 3000 onwards, the second arm was to the right of the first, and only served to carry the speed indicator, record size being determined by weight. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.

During play, the arm could be manually moved using a control which took the form of a flat aluminium square with arrows pointing out at the edges, like the points of a compass. Pressing “north” raised the arm, so as to pause playback, and “south” lowered it, to resume. “east” and “west” moved the arm right and left, slowly if pressed lightly, faster if pressed firmly. If they were pressed while the record was playing, the arm would be automatically raised first, though it would be necessary to lower it manually using the “south” side of the control when the correct point of the record was reached. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.

The centre bearing, a massive assembly, and the mechanical parts of the arm control system, and the arm itself, were all mounted on a die cast sub-chassis, suspended from the main chassis (also die cast throughout) from steel wires hung on tapering single leaf springs. These three spring assemblies, adjustable for levelling, supported the sensitive parts of the record player, and effectively isolated them from external vibrations, be they from the loudspeakers or from dancing feet. This method of suspension, called either “pendulum” or “danceproof”, was patented and featured as part of all subsequent Beograms. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.

Such an advanced turntable needed a pickup capable of making the most of it, so the SP 15 was specially developed for it (see Accessories section). Such was the superiority of the 4000 that it was bought for use by people who did not normally buy B&O, and was used with all makes of equipment. To perform at its best though, a proper Beomaster receiver should be used. The 40 watt Beomaster 3000 of the period, perhaps with Beovox 5000 loudspeakers and of course a Beogram 4000, would have been a fine system indeed. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.

The styling of the Beogram 4000 is recognised worldwide as a masterpiece, and features in the permanent collections of many museums. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.

(1975-1979) Stereo turntable, 33/45RPM, tangential tracking, MMC 4000 pickup

Type numbers: 5501, 5503, 5504, 5511, 5513, 5514, 5521, 5523, 5524

Beogram 4002 replaced Beogram 4000, but beneath a minor restyle there were major changes. The changes were in the direction of simplification, B&O were clearly finding that producing such an over engineered product as the Beogram 4000 profitably, even at its high price, was not easy!

The Beogram 4002 was most easily identified by its new keys, made from thin brushed sheet cut with strips. These matched the new top line models, such as the Beomaster 6000 4 channel and the Beocord 5000, nicely. Another change was that the fine speed controls were now tiny scales with a thumbwheel next to each, the centre position being marked for reference. The neon strobe display had gone though, a victim of the simplification. Even though a substantial amount of both Beogram 4000 and Beogram 4002 remained powered even when the machine was switched off, the designers felt that Beogram 4002 needed a “standby” indicator, in the form of a tiny red LED near the bottom of the plinth at the front. This was fitted in a clumsy plastic clip and looked like an afterthought on what was otherwise a superbly styled product. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.

Inside, all was new. The most important change was that by refinement of the mechanism the electronic logic unit beneath the keypad was dispensed with. Extra contact switches and individual transistors replaced it, though it looked like a backwards step. The excellent electronically regulated AC motor of the Beogram 4000 was replaced by a simple DC servo of a similar type to the one which later appeared in the Beogram 1902 range. Since the parts now came from Japan, as opposed to Switzerland, the cost savings must have been large! Finally, the platter and bearing were completely redesigned into a smaller and lighter assembly, a change perhaps made necessary by the less powerful motor. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.

What was remarkable about the Beogram 4002 was that despite all the changes it still performed pretty much as well as its predecessor. Perhaps this demonstrated that the Beogram 4000 was indeed over engineered? It formed the basis for systems of the very highest quality, working with such models as the Beomaster 4400 and the Beocenter 4000. A long life meant that there were many detail changes along the way, though the excellent performance remained unchanged. There were however two special derivatives, the Beogram 4004 and the Beogram 6000, both intended for use with particular systems. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.

Beogram 4002 was replaced by Beogram 8000, which brought technology and complexity back into view. However, the real successor to the Beogram 4002 arrived a few years later, in the shape of the Beogram 6002. Despite looking much like the Beogram 8002, this model was technically very similar to the 4002. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.

(1975-1978) CD4/stereo turntable, 33/45RPM, tangential tracking, built in CD4 decoder/line amplifier, MMC 6000 pickup

Type numbers: 5502, 5505, 5511, 5515

A quadraphonic turntable for use with the Beomaster 6000. In most respects, Beogram 6000 was identical to Beogram 4002, the difference being that the components needed to decode CD4 quadraphonic records were fitted, so that the machine provided 4 discreet outputs, equalised and raised to line level. When a CD4 record was being played and successfully decoded, a “CD4” indicator, positioned between the two speed control dials, lit up in red. A small switch allowed the decoder to be switched out if necessary. The MMC 6000 pickup had a stylus of special multi-radial “Pramanik” geometry, and was classed by RCA (the originators, along with JVC, of the CD4 system) as of the highest performance grade. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.

The Beogram 6000, with its special pickup and Beomaster 6000, formed a CD4 quadraphonic system of the very highest quality, but even this was not enough to prevent quadraphony disappearing into obscurity, and once the need passed, Beogram 6000 disappeared too. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.

(1979-1980) Stereo turntable, 33/45RPM, tangential tracking, remote stop/start, MMC 4000 pickup

Type numbers: 5525, 5526, 5527

A special version of the Beogram 4002 for use with the Beomaster 2400-2. A 7 pin plug was fitted to the signal lead which contained the connections necessary to allow the Beomaster to stop and start the turntable, and because the turntable was fully automatic this made remote operation from the Beomaster’s ultrasonic remote control terminal possible. The system of control used was quite simple, and was not similar to or compatible with the Datalink system found on later models, despite the similar connector. The Beogram 4004 was nevertheless the first remote controllable turntable offered by B&O. It was replaced by the Beogram 8000 range. Text copyright © Beocentral. Unauthorised reproduction prohibited.