Innovative Motor Design

Innovative Motor Design

There are innumerable low-noise motor designs we could have chosen for Obsidian—but only one proved good enough to please our dream team of designers. In fact, this motor runs so smoothly its developers simply refer to it as “The Quiet One.”

The 35mm, 60-volt DC motor was designed and manufactured specifically for optimum performance with Obsidian’s platter mass and physical harmonic characteristics. It combines a set of specifications uncommon for low-noise applications, but that combine to deliver exceptionally smooth operation and the highest power currently available in a motor of its size. Its zero-cogging motor is controlled by a servo amplifier running at 53.6 kHz, far above the range of audibility.

The Quiet One uses stainless steel pre-loaded ball bearings. Why ball bearings, when sleeve bearings are typically preferred for low-noise applications? Because sleeve bearings do not have the load handling or durability of ball bearings—and through careful design, our dream team was able to ensure that any vibrations created by the bearings would be damped by other components in Obsidian’s structure.

The Quiet One uses graphite brushes. Why graphite, when precious metal brushes are typically preferred? Because precious metal brushes often do not have the current conducting capacity required to drive a heavy platter—and because our dream team created a special damping system, calibrated precisely for the motor’s speed range, that attenuates brush noise.