HISTORY
About Rik Stoet
From an early age, audio was part of my life. I grew up with a grandfather who was widely known for his transformer factory, renowned for producing high-quality audio transformers and tube amplifiers. On Sundays, he would invite me into his world, showing me his work and introducing me to the fundamentals of electronics. I was still too young to grasp it all, but the fascination stayed with me.
Years later, I pursued Electrical Engineering and, in 1993, founded my own company: Rik Stoet Audio. My first products were tube amplifiers, released under the brand names Heart and StoetKit. Over the years, this journey led to many more products. Our tube amplifiers and tube CD players found their way into many Dutch homes, while the Marantz “tubed-by-Heart” CD players even reached the United States.
About ten years ago, I turned my attention to a new challenge and designed my first turntable — the Takumi.
The very first Takumi made use of a few third-party components. It was a smart, straightforward design — simple in form, but with impressive sound quality. The limited run of one hundred units quickly sold out in the Netherlands.
Encouraged by that success, I knew I wanted to continue. But this time, my goal was clear: to create a turntable that not only sounded even better, but also had a refined appearance — all while remaining reasonably priced.
That decision marked the beginning of the Takumi journey. It was the moment this turntable was truly born — and from then on, Takumi became my passion.
Rik Stoet
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