Cartridge bodies (wood, acrylic, etc)...do you have a preference and why?

Johnny Vinyl

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May 16, 2010
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Surely the materials used for cartridge bodies have an impact on how it sounds, but I have no idea why. So when one has a choice of cartridge body (like Soundsmith for instance) how do you know which one to choose? I'd love to hear some thoughts/opinions on this so I can understand it and perhaps make more informed decisions down the line.
 

mullard88

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Jun 5, 2010
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I have not been actively involved for almost three years. i do remeber different materials for a cartridge's body definitely colors the sound. I have seen a few Denon 103s who's owners have stripped away the original body and replaced it with a wooden body. I just can't tell as I have never heard any of these Denon 103s. However, I remember that the different Koetsu wood body sound different. To my ears, the wood body Koetsus are the most truthful. The stone body Koetsus tend to make voices sound more "angelic". The Koetsu tiger eye with the diamond cantilever will make the singers sound younger. As for Soundsmith, I have no experience with the brand. I do not know if the Koetsu experience will be consistent with Soundsmith. Soundsmith is a friendly organization. They fixed and modified one of my Koetsus. I think it would be easy to ask them to describe the sound of the different cartridges that they make.
 

mullard88

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Jun 5, 2010
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You might even want to try no body at all. I recall a nude Koetsu that Jadis used for years. I do not remember how it sounded but I remember enjoying its sound every time I listened to it.
 
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DaveyF

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Jul 31, 2010
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You present a very interesting question, John. I have wondered for years whether the sound of the Koetsu's ( as an example) differ only due to the type of cartridge body used. Does anybody actually know if the internals ( motor structure, etc.,) of say again, the Koetsu's, actually truly differ from cart to cart as one goes up the line?
With the cartridge that I am currently using, the Benz Ruby, the sound does seem to be influenced by the use of the wooden body. I have heard other Benz cartridges with very similar motors to the Ruby and with different bodies that do have different ( albeit very slightly) sounds. As to the reason, I suspect that the damping factor of the body material has a lot to do with the overall sound of the cartridge.
 

tdh888

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Nov 4, 2010
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Surely the materials used for cartridge bodies have an impact on how it sounds, but I have no idea why. So when one has a choice of cartridge body (like Soundsmith for instance) how do you know which one to choose? I'd love to hear some thoughts/opinions on this so I can understand it and perhaps make more informed decisions down the line.

Hi,

At present both cartridges that I'm using are nude or assumed nude but am not sure for the Lyra ( Benz Micro Gullwing SLR & Lyra Kleos ) . I used to have a Koetsu Rosewood STD and a Benz Ace SL . For me I chose the Gullwing over the Benz LPS because what I read in the reviews regarding the effect of the wooden body of the LPS . They said the SLR is more extended in the highs and less mellow. This was what I needed to balance my system. W/ the Koetsu what I got was an overblown Bass , too much warmth. It worked in my old room but when I moved in to our new home it did not. Regarding the Kleos I just listened to it in my friend's system & I got hooked.

Tdh888
 

JackD201

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Apr 20, 2010
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As I am not into "always warm" as in many soft wood bodies or "always super quick" as in nude and light polymers, I've tended to gravitate towards dense woods like ebony (Dynavector), lacquered wood and stone (Koetsu) and densely made and damped metal (MY Sonic, Lyra Atlas, GFS, Ortofon, MuTech, TechDAS) I find these to have the most jump with articulation to go with the jump factor. As always however this is all just my personal preference and I am obviously shamefully generalizing here since there is a lot more than just the body that contributes to a cart's sound.
 

Ron Resnick

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Jan 24, 2015
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I have attempted to line up each of the Koetsu names (i.e., stones) of the stone body cartridges against the MOH list of stones, but, based on the subjective comments I have read about the sonic characteristic of the stone body cartridges, there does not seem to be a consistent, linear relationship between MOH number and sound (i.e., the harder stone bodies being progressively more detail-oriented and analytical as you go up the MOH scale, and the softer stone bodies progressively having a warmer total balance as you go down the MOH scale).

The different pricing for different stone body cartridges where there is little agreement on the sonic characteristics of the cartridges makes the Koetsu stone body line of cartridges a confusing morass. Is there any way to rationalize the Koetsu stone body line-up (or not because different people will hear different things from each model of cartridge)?
 

jadis

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Apr 28, 2010
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You might even want to try no body at all. I recall a nude Koetsu that Jadis used for years. I do not remember how it sounded but I remember enjoying its sound every time I listened to it.

Yes Mullard88, I had a nude Koetsu (modified by Lyra) in the late 80s, which I got from you as it didn't match well with your tonearm then, if I'm not mistaken. Before that I was using the Madrigal Carnegie 1. By comparison, the Carnegie 1 was darker and warmer. The nude Koetsu was extended on top, detailed, fit mid (not thin nor flabby) and had tight bass. Overall it was pretty good. So good that a doctor friend asked me to get him one upon hearing it. But when I shifted to the an old design Koetsu Black with aluminum body, the miracle mids sprouted out magnificently, giving me years of musical joy till I replaced it with a Koetsu Rosewood Signature as I applied to be the country distributor and the rest is history. I haven't looked nor become enamored with another cartridge brand.
 

mullard88

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Jun 5, 2010
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Hi RonR,

That is very interesting. In my set ups, I have never thought of rationalizing parts of a system by cost. I just put together what works together regardless of the vintage, technology, or cost of the equipments. The final sound is dependent on the combination of equipments. Perhaps an analogy would be professional team sports which combines several levels of salaries among the players to create good teamwork.
 

anders

New Member
Sep 9, 2015
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Connecticut
I have attempted to line up each of the Koetsu names (i.e., stones) of the stone body cartridges against the MOH list of stones, but, based on the subjective comments I have read about the sonic characteristic of the stone body cartridges, there does not seem to be a consistent, linear relationship between MOH number and sound (i.e., the harder stone bodies being progressively more detail-oriented and analytical as you go up the MOH scale, and the softer stone bodies progressively having a warmer total balance as you go down the MOH scale).

The different pricing for different stone body cartridges where there is little agreement on the sonic characteristics of the cartridges makes the Koetsu stone body line of cartridges a confusing morass. Is there any way to rationalize the Koetsu stone body line-up (or not because different people will hear different things from each model of cartridge)?

Forget about trying to ascertain differences between different stone bodies. Even two Koetsus with the same stone body type can sound different. I have had two different Jades in my system, according to the dealer the demo I tried and my personal cartridge were less than 6 months apart in build time frame. Verified after break in as well.
 
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flez007

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Aug 31, 2010
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I have not changed any of the original "housing" of my cartridges during these years, but I tend to like those designs where are "naked" by design.
 

Ron Resnick

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Jan 24, 2015
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Forget about trying to ascertain differences between different stone bodies. Even two Koetsus with the same stone body type can sound different. I have had two different Jades in my system, according to the dealer the demo I tried and my personal cartridge were less than 6 months apart in build time frame. Verified after break in as well.

I appreciate that two copies of the same cartridge can sound different. The sample to sample variation can sometimes be greater than the differences between allegedly different models. But the (unecessary?) multiplicity of Koetsu stone body models just makes an always-confusing situation even more confusing.
 

jadis

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Apr 28, 2010
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But the (unecessary?) multiplicity of Koetsu stone body models just makes an always-confusing situation even more confusing.

I'm beginning to feel that way. Clicking Koetsu Urushi on ebay show lots of sellers from Japan selling brand new units at around -40% off the SRP. Too many models resulting in marketing wars.
 
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rockitman

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Sep 20, 2011
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I have attempted to line up each of the Koetsu names (i.e., stones) of the stone body cartridges against the MOH list of stones, but, based on the subjective comments I have read about the sonic characteristic of the stone body cartridges, there does not seem to be a consistent, linear relationship between MOH number and sound (i.e., the harder stone bodies being progressively more detail-oriented and analytical as you go up the MOH scale, and the softer stone bodies progressively having a warmer total balance as you go down the MOH scale).

The different pricing for different stone body cartridges where there is little agreement on the sonic characteristics of the cartridges makes the Koetsu stone body line of cartridges a confusing morass. Is there any way to rationalize the Koetsu stone body line-up (or not because different people will hear different things from each model of cartridge)?

Keep in mind it's not about the stone type that gives the large swing in price variance...rather it has to do with how close to spec each of the motors are. Since each one is hand made, there are naturally variances in spec tolerance. The more expensive range motors are closer to the desired/ideal spec Koetsu has set for itself. That is how I understand it.
 

jadis

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Apr 28, 2010
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Keep in mind it's not about the stone type that gives the large swing in price variance...rather it has to do with how close to spec each of the motors are. Since each one is hand made, there are naturally variances in spec tolerance. The more expensive range motors are closer to the desired/ideal spec Koetsu has set for itself. That is how I understand it.

When I was carrying the brand here, that was what my regional distributor told me (tightly matched specs), specifically between the Rosewood and the Rosewood Signature. And upon listening to these 2 models, I concluded that sonically, I heard clearly the superiority of the Rosewood Signature over the Rosewood in terms of sound stage qualities, wider, deeper, and even more transparent.
 

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