A Turntable Reborn Turns Its Back on Its Hip-Hop Legacy

It is a dilemma most marketers would long for: a product with a built-in fan base and perhaps too much cultural cachet. For all their passion, Panasonic calculated, the SL-1200’s core customers were not numerous enough, or rich enough, to make reviving the Technics brand financially worthwhile. It needed to reach wealthy, older audiophiles who would spend extravagantly on gear — not only the turntable, but also the amplifier, speakers and other equipment that the company markets alongside it.

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