Back in the mid nineteen seventies, the Revox name was considered by many to be the best of the best. The company was regarded as being a purveyor of ultra high end hi-fi equipment, head and shoulders above even the top US brands. Evidence of this, as if it were needed, was the A77 tape recorder, which was used in recording studios and top end hi-fi systems alike. The subsequent B77 consolidated this, and became a badge of pride for any well heeled, self respecting audiophile with a thousand pounds (or two) to spend…
The company also made other hi-fi separates too, including some superb amplifiers and tuners, and even a range of turntables. Being Revox, these had to be special, and expensive, and engineered and built like absolutely nothing else. They were also expected to have superlative performance and reliability second to none. Not to put too fine a point on it, Revox set out to swat the emerging (and meticulously made) high end Japanese competition like a fly. By the look of their products of this era, you could say that they largely succeeded.
Retailing for £400 in 1978 (when a new Linn LP12 would have set you back £230), the B795 was an extremely expensive device. This was reflected in both the design and build, which was (at the time) utterly state-of-the-art. The 449x142x395mm deck was finished in exactly the same style as the B77 tape recorder, being a mix of grey Nextel finished steel and aluminium (weighing 11kg). It sported a quartz-referenced, direct drive motor (giving a claimed 0.05% wow and flutter), and a parallel tracking 40mm ceramic tonearm that was the subject of no less than three patents, weighing 40g and with an effective mass of just 3g. The deck sports an independently sprung subchassis – a rare feature for any direct drive, and a desirable one too. The turntable motor is silent, as you’d expect, and gets up to speed within around 0.9 of a second.
In keeping with the company’s pro credentials, the B795 does not offer a welter of facilities. Features are confined to stop-start and cueing; the three buttons (up/down, arm left, arm right) being a model of ergonomic excellence. Still, such ergonomic excellence concealed engineering sophistication; the arm has servo-electronics to control its movement and LED optical sensing to detect the end of side, along with automatic muting for all cueing activities. Put a record on, swing the arm across into position and be amazed with the precision with which is ‘clicks’ into place. Then press the lower button, which itself has the exact feel of something only found in the best laboratory measuring instruments, watch the cueing ‘courtesy light’ switch off and hear the ‘whirr’ of the arm electronics-activated lift-lower motor. In use, the general feel of the deck is sublime. It feels like only a Revox can; this is the sort of crazily over-the-top build that the likes of classic EMT and Garrard turntables exude.
The B795 sounds like it feels, which is like a rock – it has tremendous power. If ever there was a turntable with ‘steam roller’ like sonic characteristics, this is it. Having that fine quartz-locked direct driven motor, a massy platter and superb isolation, you can expect it be tight and taut. Bass is prodigious, with a sense of unflappability that you simply don’t hear from belt drives. It’s dynamic like few others, and blessed with remarkably low rumble or any other extraneous noises.
Love them or loathe them, the Revox’s parallel tracking arm is very well implemented. It is smooth, quiet and gives that distinctive sound you get from parallel trackers, with an expansive soundstage, vast from left-to-right, and fine dimensionality. There’s also no sense of an arm moving across a groove (with the concomitant changes in treble response as the stylus heads ever closer to the run-out groove), making for a very neutral, even sound right across the frequency range (and indeed across the radius of the disc). It’s a clean, incisive and self effacing sound; it isn’t charismatic or romantic (as per Linn LP12), but is never less than neutral and in control. It seems to ‘just play music’, rather akin to a high quality open reel tape recorder, indeed…
These days, the Revox B795 is a rare beast on the secondhand market, but its build means that whilst many Japanese and British superdecks have either failed or gone out of tune, the Revoxes tend to continue to give sterling service. A surprisingly large number of 795s (and 790s, which were basically the same but with variable pitch and a digital speed readout) were sold, but you’ll have to look to Germany to find them in decent quantities on the secondhand market. Still, an top example is easily worth £500 of anybody’s money; and parts and service manuals are still in reasonable supply. Not every audiophile’s cup of tea perhaps, but those wanting a superb semi-auto analogue disc spinner with a legendary name on the front should start searching.
zStereo 
i recentelly received from my father ,who passed away in last jully having started is Revox system in the late 70´s ,this turntable wich had a cartridge or complex system originally made by ortofon , i have it stoped but was in use since 77 and as a complete system in 85 ,being the last components the B215 cassette deck and the compact disc, a kind of professional series with all ,including the speakers from Revox ,the model i think it´s studer(something) and they are heavy, having given to me a 76 pioneer catalog top-end series of components, everything works today but the Revox some components had to be restaured in early 90´s ,the pioneer which was his ,it´s still kicking with nothing else than some cleaning and belts in the cassette deck also some repair on the RT-707 ,not that didn´t work but some attention was needed, being after using the minidisc again my main record system for it´s quality and reels either than having boxes filled with them are still available for sale in many websites at low prices ,some talk about nakamichi decks ,maybe they never tried a reel deck and i bought three nakamichi decks ZX-9 ,Dragon(the worst) and the CR-7 wich when working properly they recorded with good sound cassettes from Sony, Maxell, TDK and till 1984 BASF too, after mid 90 only TDK and Sony had well built cassettes all others were real garbage being some responsable for the destruction of cassette decks, no matter the range or brand , returning to the turntable this system is perfect and only from Revox .Others today after buying Pro-ject or rega turntables have after a couple of years spent money on several upgrades, there were still good amplifiers(integrated ones) with good phono stages i have some turntables in use but most of them i never changed the cartridge only the stylus, don´t know if it´s fashion but cartridges and stylus are maybe the most sold today . when the first doesn´t sound that good ,other is installed then another .Well ,all of this could be avoided by purchasing a amplifier that as a phono input with a bit of quality ,if in the 70´s was rare to see a cheap amplifier or receiver that didn´t had a very good phono stage ,normally when upgraded at a cartridge level it stayed perfect no need for improving, today ,i don´t know if money was passed under the table but turntables as an example from the brands i refer ,they do when less than 5.000€ have great reviews but anyone can see that they are garbage ,has i call them Lego turntables ,they come in boxes with a lot of bits of plastic and half of the normally included parts sold separatelly but this is not for all ,one can buy a technics turntable for 80€ or more and with a new stylus or a new cartridge from Nagaoka the MP/JNP-110 it becomes better than any 1.000€ new turntable having at all levels better sound and already with almost 50 years of use and maybe another 50 ,i wanted to see if this new plastic badly built very looked after turntables will work perfectelly in the next 50 years, being in reality after 6 monthes of use not comparable with a 50 years old turntable at all levels measured and compared with the cheapest technics turntable released in the 80´s ,sold at the time for what today is 100€ or maybe less, i know a person that is older than me ,so he was into high-fidelity with almost 20 years earlier diference but he bought a pro-ject and all missing bits and something elso also till the price for it´s good sounding Pro-ject is already in 8.000€ ,this project i remenber that was expensive ,i remenber my mother almost asked for divorce after looking at the invoice of the Revox system ,but that only happened some years later in the mid 80´s . I have to say that it´s still working with great quality sound ,the stylus from Ortofon that came with it it´s not sold anymore but because we live in a interior south village where nothing exists, i have still around 7 stylus that my father bought when they were still available, and the last time i played there the bitches brew album ,this maybe 8 monthes ago it sounded perfect and not comparable with this new wave of turntables ,i heard a lot of positive reviews for this turntables and made by some that have enough age to know what a turntable is, there is only two options ,money was given to buy them reviews or with age there are deseases that afect memory. This Revox system of improving the way records were “readen” was well critisized but if those could see what the future holds they would have only said that “it´s a new system and it can give problems, excelent sound”, regards