Thorens

thumb|Early Thorens grammaphone (Musée d'automates et de boîtes à musique) thumb|Thorens Tube Amplifier AZ25 Thorens is a formerly Swiss manufacturer of high-end audio equipment. Thorens is historically renowned for the range of phonographs (turntables) the manufacturer produces. In addition to audio playback equipment, Thorens is also a historical manufacturer of harmonicas and has been separately a producer of Swiss-made cigarette lighters, most notably the button actuated "Single Claw" and "Double Claw" lighters.

==History== thumb|100px|left|Thorens "Single Claw" cigarette lighter (1930s) thumb|Thorens turntable (Musée d'automates et de boîtes à musique) In 1883, the Thorens family business was first registered in Sainte-Croix (Ste-Croix), Vaud, Switzerland by Hermann Thorens. An initial producer of musical boxes and clock movements (which they were still producing in the 1950s), as well as cigarette lighters, they started producing Edison-type phonographs in 1903. thumb|Thorens TD190-1 (first 190 since 1999) In 1928, they produced their first electric (motor-drive) record player, and went on to produce a range of audiophile record players in the 1950s and 1960s which are, even today, regarded as high-end audio equipment, and are much sought-after, for example, the belt-driven and sub-chassis suspended TD 150 which was presented 1965. Its principle is also found in the Linn Sondek LP12. Its successor TD 160 appeared in 1972 and was built nearly without discontinuity for 20 years. With the TD 320 Thorens presented in 1984 changed the springs of the sub-chassis to laminated springs.