Has anyone seen this? A really beautiful turntable

Wow, what a JOKE that is!!! That much wobble is considered acceptable?
I cannot imagine the damage being done to the record and the entire cartridge..... What a waste of time and money.
For nearly "silent" operation, choose a good belt drive......

Mijostyn, you say, "... since when are air bearings not mechanical? There is a shaft in bushings just like any table except this one. "

Not so. Not at all. In my first post I specifically mentioned an air cushion in three dimensions. That is achieved by the New Way air bushings. Look it up.

Although the thrust bearing accounts for most of the friction, hence the noise, the shaft bearing generates enough noise to be easily noticeable. Please re-read my post regarding conclusions - noise is not in the 20Hz region, it's in the 5KHz region.

Further, @ct0517 notes how those attuned to such things can hear the difference between different engine oils. I expect that you can too - just before and after an oil change. It's not some deep psychological thing with your pride of ownership - the sound changes.

Last, I suggest that you conduct your own experiment. Get your platter up to speed by hand, and listen to the purity. Get that sound firmly in mind. Then disconnect the belt and do it again. It will sound different - and better - at least, it does with all 3 motors I have tried. What has changed is noise from the sleeve bearing on the motor - it's gone.

Mijostyn, from your posting about computer files I infer that you have not experimented much with the sound of electronic components. It is highly rewarding, and the physics is pretty much understood.

In general, lower dielectric absorption is better (take-away: teflon or styrene film and foil caps). Faster devices are better (hyperfred diodes, high ft transistors). Etc. A whole new dimension ! Enjoy ! 

As per usual, this discussion has turned into several arguments. That’s OK. Terry, you seem to have presented evidence that it is worthwhile to have as noiseless a bearing as possible. With that sentiment, I wholeheartedly agree, and I am not at all surprised at the excellence of the performance of your DIY air bearing. Kudos to you, if what you report is accurate. But your bearing is a "real" bearing, not at all like that of the maglev turntable we are discussing, in that your bearing takes into account the necessary function of a turntable bearing: First and foremost, the bearing has to position the platter firmly and fixedly in space while also allowing for rotation in a plane perpendicular to the vertical only, with as low friction as possible. THEN you try to make it as quiet as possible, as you have done.

Quite so, lewm. Stability first.