What Cartridge(s) Is Everyone Using

[Mike Lavigne]

Mike

I am surprised that you parted with your vdH Colibri. I always thought it occupied a special place in your system. What prompted your decision?

Steve,

i did primarily use a van den Hul Colibri XCP from 2001 until 2009....mainly one particular one. Colibri's are the formula one cars of cartridges. they are literally knife edge physically as well as their sound. they are 'nude' and have very short cantelivers and the coils sit directly above the canteliver exposed and the coils almost drag on the record surface....so they look and are very direct and immediate. they are a bit fragile and on every one i've seen the canteliver is not 100% aligned with the body.

many people try the Colibri and find them too edgy or not compatable with their taste or system. any edgyness in a system will be multiplied by a Colibri. but when all is right they are magnificant...breathtakingly fast, explosive, spacious, ultra detailed, lots of top end energy as well as tight but powerful bass.

anyway; in 2007 i accidently broke my favorite Colibri and try as i might could not find another that behaved in my system. after a year of frustration i went another direction. eventually i will get another Colibri and see if i can tame it. looking back i think i needed to learn more about set-up than i knew a couple of years ago to deal with the Colibri properly. particualrly with my Rockport i've learned some stuff that might have been the probem.

i have found the Lyra Olympos and Ortofon A90 to be better all around cartridges; maybe not quite as big an upside when everything is perfect but always listenable and with more body and less knife edge. Lps are not all perfect.

 

[Steve Williams]

the Colibri is the one I heard when I visited you along with IIRC the Koetsu Rose Signature

Both were suberb

 

[The Smokester]

I am using a Koetsu Platinum Onyx.

 

[MylesBAstor]

I am using a Koetsu Platinum Onyx.

What do you have the Koetsu mounted in and with what phono stage?

Nice cartridge BTW

 

[brianherlihy]

I am using the Air Tight PC-1 Supreme (or will be again when i get my TT back). i agree with Steve it has great bass, the Supreme better bass than the original PC-1

 

[ggendel]

I'm on my last Supex from my original purchase many years ago. When this one goes, I'm not sure where I will go.

 

[The Smokester]

What do you have the Koetsu mounted in and with what phono stage?

Nice cartridge BTW

It's mounted on an SME 20/2 with Series IV.Vi arm. Phono stage is a Wavestream tubed with Tele's at the moment. System includes Wavestream line stage and V8 power amp pushing Dunlavy SC-IVa's.

 

[JackD201]

My two go to carts are my Koetsu Jade Platinum and Dynavector XV-1t mounted on a Graham Phantom each

On ready 5 mounted on their own wands are a M.Y. Sonic Labs Ultra Eminent BC, a Clearaudio Titanium, an XV-1s, and an Airy 3 S

Still in its box awaiting its own wand an Ortofon A90 and just stuck in its box, the Transfiguration made, Graham Nightingale.

On my Technics DJ decks I have a pair of Ortofon Pro S carts with Nightclub Styli and a pair of Shure M-44s

 

[Albertporter]

I have (or about to have) six cartridges:

Koetsu Coralstone, Air Tight Supreme, Ortofon MC A90 and Haniwa HRTC-01 and will soon try out my NOS Shure V15Vxmr. I also have the new Allnic MC on order.

 

[jcmusic]

Mine is the Dyna 20X S.V. it is the only cartridge I own now. May look around later but, it is good enough for now. My interest are in other places at the momet.

Jay

 

[MylesBAstor]

I have (or about to have) six cartridges:

Koetsu Coralstone, Air Tight Supreme, Ortofon MC A90 and Haniwa HRTC-01 and will soon try out my NOS Shure V15Vxmr. I also have the new Allnic MC on order.

Be interested by you comments on the Shure. When I heard it years ago my impressions were amazing tracker, musically so what?

 

[XV-1]

I have a few

Dynavector XV-1 since 2000, on its 2nd rebuild.
Ortofon A90 that Mike Lavinge early adopter strongly recommended - a wonderful cartridge that takes on the character of whatever table you put it on
Koetsu Rosewood - always wanted to hear the koetsu sound but not spend 5k of above
Ortofon SPU Royal, Ortofon SPU classic E - to hear what the magic is
Audio technica OC9mk2, Ebony wood denon 103r - two overacheiving cheap MC's at the opposite spectrum of each other.

1982 Technics P100Mk4 MM cart - every bit as good as the Ortofon A90 or dyna XV-1.

cheap MM's which sound great and are fun to play with
Ortofon M20Fl Super, ADC XLM mk11, Empire 1080LT, ELAC ESG 795E, Nagoka MP-50, Linn K9, Audio Technica AT 25 with integrated headshell & Stanton 881 with E & S stylus

 

[markc2]

Lyra Skala- which to me has been amazing after coming from 2 wood body Grado's and a Lyra Dorian.

Though I really want to hear a Koetsu or a Miya-jima laboratory cartridge.

Mark

 

[apanton1952]

I have Linn Asaka, Ortofon MC1 Turbo and Shure V15 cartridges. The Linn is mounted in an Alphason HR100S arm on an LP12 and is seldom used.
The Ortofon is mounted in an SME3009 on a TD125 and is used a lot.

The V15 collects dust and it has been shelved for so long I don't recall it's performance at all - I seem to recall it came mounted in the SME when I bought it - yes of course the headshell has "Shure SME" badging.

The Ortofon SME is a really good match and I use it for recording my vinyls to the pc; the sound is clear, great audio "picture" and it tracks faultlessly.
The Asaka has a better sound but it don't track so good; maybe an arm mismatch?

And, oh yes, I have a BeoGram 4000 with a really worn stylus but sounded good 20 years ago - not used currently as it requires a rebuild - one day when I have the time.

Finally, in a box, in a forgotten corner is a TD 124 with a lesser Shure in it - details in the mists of time.

 

[MylesBAstor]

I have Linn Asaka, Ortofon MC1 Turbo and Shure V15 cartridges. The Linn is mounted in an Alphason HR100S arm on an LP12 and is seldom used.
The Ortofon is mounted in an SME3009 on a TD125 and is used a lot.

The V15 collects dust and it has been shelved for so long I don't recall it's performance at all - I seem to recall it came mounted in the SME when I bought it - yes of course the headshell has "Shure SME" badging.

The Ortofon SME is a really good match and I use it for recording my vinyls to the pc; the sound is clear, great audio "picture" and it tracks faultlessly.
The Asaka has a better sound but it don't track so good; maybe an arm mismatch?

And, oh yes, I have a BeoGram 4000 with a really worn stylus but sounded good 20 years ago - not used currently as it requires a rebuild - one day when I have the time.

Finally, in a box, in a forgotten corner is a TD 124 with a lesser Shure in it - details in the mists of time.

Why about the Ortofon in the Linn? My only concern might be that combo proves a little bright-esp. since Alphason didn't have a great rep in tightening its bearings.

 

[apanton1952]

At my age (58) a little bright would be about as smooth as it gets.. although surprisingly my hearing is way good. I have a theory that listening to music exercises the sonic muscles! That's probably in the category of saying PlayBoy exercises your eyesight... mind you, my mom and her cronies in their late 70's now all do wood carving. So they wanted a female form for some project and decided a Playboy is just the trick except they are too straitlaced to buy one so sent me to shop. Keeper of same gave me raised eyebrow as he knows it's out of the norm for me. I gave up explaining halfway thru as the eyebrow only went higher! The final outcome was a set of curvaceous wenches, all suitably clothed, but entertaining.
Anyway, I digress - yes, it's a possibility never explored. In time (adds to list). About Alphason bearings I know nothing - but thinking laterally makes me pause at mistracking Asaka! What do you think? And is there a cure?

 

[MikeDuke]

The Amadeus GTA is my first table so I have bought one Cart so far. I use the Dynavector DV XX2MkII. I was going to get the one bellow that but my conversations with Mike Pranka convinced me to step up to the next level. In his opinion it is a real sweet spot for that table. I also wanted to get everything from one dealer to make the install easy. So far I am very happy with it.

 

[microstrip]

I use mainly a Van den Hul Black Beauty XP - excellent tracker, and a very good match for my Forsell air bearing turntable. Full, detailed sound with great dynamics.
I also own a Sumiko Palo Santos in a Graham 2.2 in another turntable but I still did not have the time to mount the Palo Santos in the Forsell.

 

[MylesBAstor]

I use mainly a Van den Hul Black Beauty XP - excellent tracker, and a very good match for my Forsell air bearing turntable. Full, detailed sound with great dynamics.
I also own a Sumiko Palo Santos in a Graham 2.2 in another turntable but I still did not have the time to mount the Palo Santos in the Forsell.

I remember the older Grasshopper IV in a fellow reviewer's Forsell. Really fast, detailed and lot's of low level resolution-esp. with his MBL 101s!

Never got to hear the Palos Santos. Was supposed to get for review but never showed up. Really did want to hear this cartridge. JH has always had a good ear.

 

[mdabb]

Dynavector Karat 17D3