Franci Kuzma and the pursuit of audio perfection, as played on Kuzma turntables and tonearms
The Kuzma record: In 1985, the first turntable (Stabi) is exported to Japan; also, first tonearm (Stogi) review in a UK magazine; Stabi Reference turntable is selected analogue component of 2003 in USA and UK; Air Line arm is voted analogue component of 2003 in UK and Germany; Stabi XL table is selected analogue component of 2005.
JB Your (Kranj-based) Kuzma turntables – and tonearms – are extremely fine pieces of equipment: very well designed and highly precise functional objects. They are also very specialized, niche-products, not intended for the mass market, but for a very discerning – some might say neurotic (perhaps fetishist) – few. How did you decide on such a speciality item as high-end turntables?
FK Back in the early 70s, the turntable was the primary source for quality audio reproduction – and actually still is. Also, the LP was something that held the latest music from my favourite rock bands, so it was always a special occasion when a new record arrived, usually from the UK, by post. Everything together created – for me – a special personal relationship, between record, turntable, and me as listener. I believe that many people today who still prefer listening to their music on vinyl share much the same feeling.
This condition or process aroused an interest in me, in the quality of reproduced sound. To understand and improve this, I began to pursue an interest in how the parts of the audio chain worked – and later tried to improve on it. Being more mechanically then electrically-oriented I became very interested in the mechanical parts of the reproduction chain: turntables, tonearms and needles or styluses. In order to understand how the process worked, I began studying how various turntables and tonearms were made, what made them different, and slowly started considering making one for myself. Good turntables were expensive – and I couldn’t afford to buy one, especially as most of the money I earned went to records and hifi equipment.
JB Your designs-products go well beyond the strictly functional – and symbolic – levels connected with the playing of vinyl recordings. At what point does necessity become indulgence, fantasy? Is it turntables you make? Or are they (industrial) art; or something else entirely?
FK The more you understand, the better you know what to do and how to do it. Only at this point can you start to create something which could be good but is different from what already exists. Attention to every detail – in this case a turntable or tonearm – is what helps create a good product. Every little part or component can affect the end-sound. If this is understood, and you’re able to create parts that have only minimal negative effects, then you can work toward making a great product.
The tonearm, for example, should theoretically have zero mass and, at the same, an infinitely large mass, all the while moving with zero friction. In real life we can only create or mimic this condition through compromises. This is where vision is important – what’s possible to construct out of real materials in the real world. At the same time, (these) products are made for people who will own, look at and use products them in their leisure time, relaxing in their dens or living rooms. This aspect – everyday utility, appearance, interface – is also very important, but for me, uncompromising performance comes first, while looks and everything else come second.
JB Your client-base is far from the ordinary person on the street – or the listening room. What kind of profile do your customers have, and where are they from?
FK (My) customers are music lovers, whose hobby – alongside the love of music – also extends to pursuing the goal of better, even optimal or some unachievable, perfect sound. To this end we’re prepared to do a lot normal things outside the ordinary. From having special, custom-made circuits for the audio system and special, acoustically-designed listening rooms, to the constant changing of components and tweaking of the system to effect minute changes – or improvements – in the sound.
At the same time, you might hunt for new records or try buying some second-hand LPs of your favourite music, together with borrowing the latest cables from someone to see how it affects the sound of you system. Or you go and listen to a friend’s system and at the same time, hear some new music. The life of an audiophile (one who pursues audio excellence) is a passion, even something of an addiction; hopefully, however, it’s an enjoyable or positive part of someone’s life which, with its absurdly high prices, is not easy to understand for an outsider.
JB Living music as a hobby is, as a rule, an acquisitive process; yet vinyl is more of a specialty collector’s item; or, if you like, the (fixated) object of desire. Do you have an extensive – and equally eclectic – record collection?
FK At the end of the day, sitting down with a glass of wine, being transported to Carnegie Hall back in 1959 to a live performance of Harry Belafonte, and in the next half hour listening to the vocal work of Luis Armstrong and later still, switching over – and a bit louder – to some Led Zeppelin, all in one evening, in the comfort of your living room is something special and extremely satisfying.
Author: Jeff Bickert, with Franci Kuzma
Photos: Vlachy, Kuzma
