Best overall cartridge

[XV-1]

Looking for opinions on what folks think are the best cartridges.

I only want you to answer if you own or have owned these cartridges or have a lot of experience with them.

I want to know what cartridges have speed, purity, density, soundstage depth and realism, extension both in bass and upper frequencies, have the ability to play all musical styles, not just female jazz vocals and alike which sound great on a denon 103.

Of course their will never be a best, but their certainly will favourites.

 

[AMR / iFi audio]

My favourite is the Phasemation PP-200. Its price-to-performance ratio is exemplary. The sound signature, for me is just right.

 

[DasguteOhr]

I prefer to name the best tonearm/cartridge combination i ever had.
fr 64s with lyra olympos sl. tw acoustic 10.5 with zyx universe II. alphason hr 100s with great mm /mi catridge grace f9 or vpi zephir. ortofon rmg 309 and master silver spu. I would be happy and content with all of them.
P.S
the best cheap cart ortofon mc 30 super II with min.phono gain 70db
better then A 90 a bargain

 

[bonzo75]

Most all rounded complete cart, Dava reference field coil as heard on Durand Tosca and SME 3012r. Classical rock jazz. Highest tick boxes on attributes of depth, space, stage, speed, extensions both ways and inner details, resolution

favourite arm cart combo Vyger with red sparrow for classical and jazz.

Then vdh on various arms for classical and jazz but temperamental.

 

[bonzo75]

I prefer to name the best tonearm/cartridge combination i ever had.
fr 64s with lyra olympos sl. tw acoustic 10.5 with zyx universe II. alphason hr 100s with great mm /mi catridge grace f9 or vpi zephir. ortofon rmg 309 and master silver spu. I would be happy and content with all of them.
P.S
the best cheap cart ortofon mc 30 super II with min.phono gain 70db
better then A 90 a bargain

Lyra Olympos and lambda are the best of the Lyra and would love to hear them on FR64 which jcarr used for many years before SAT. Would also love to hear them on a linear tracker

 

[DasguteOhr]

Lyra Olympos and lambda are the best of the Lyra and would love to hear them on FR64 which jcarr used for many years before SAT. Would also love to hear them on a linear tracker

its a killer combination, you dive into the music it caresses you like a good terry bathrobe. it's good for your soul and you understand more what musicians wanted to express with their music. there are magical moments like no other cartridges i've heard until now.
with kuzma airline gets everything out of the groove .the magical moments are a bit lost, sounds a bit more technical one it seems more like hifi than music. is my personal feeling.

 

[Direct Drive]

My favourite is the Phasemation PP-200. Its price-to-performance ratio is exemplary. The sound signature, for me is just right.

I have to agree with this. The PP-200 is exceptional for the price. I have been bowled over. Currently using it in my FR64X.

 

[rob]

For what i have heard in my system i would nominate Dynavector XV-1S. as a favorite all rounder.
Really balanced sound, good detail, resolution and speed. Not tipped up or lean.
Plays all types of music well and sounds realistic and natural to me.
Special mention also goes to a NOS Denon 103D and Amber the tribute MM, these two i have had for many years and sound slighter warmer/fuller, or meatier/beefier. Great for 70's rock.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

in my experience, among cartridges i have used in my system, my favorite for all around performance and ultra musical touch are the Etsuro Gold's. i've owned 4 of them, still own 2 (special versions). amazing inner textures, tonal density, microdynamic energy, space and flow. they always sound like music and nothing reproduced. the DaVa Reference with tubed power supply is a very special cartridge all around too, with amazing life and fire. it might better the Etsuro Gold at certain things, being more spectacular sounding, and makes an ideal companion to my two Etsuro Golds. these 3 are my sail into the sunset cartridges. with my three different turntables and tonearms and the LFD cables, and EMIA phono and MC Trio i am just really happy all around with my vinyl. i just think about the music, not really about the gear any more.

since 1999, owned 10 VDh Colibri's (various), Koetsu Rosewood Signature Platinum, Lyra Olympos SL, Ortofon A90 (2), MC Anna (2), Anna Diamond, Clearaudio Insider Gold and GFS (2). all very good choices and looking back, could live with any of them long term. not a weak one in the bunch.

owned 3 Miyajima carts; a Premium Be mono, and now 2 Infinity Mono's; a 1.0mil and 0.7mil. the Infinity's are the finest sounding mono carts i have heard. the music leaps from the mono grooves and you are connected organically.....particularly with the 1.0mil with the early deep groove pressings.

best overall?......only what i can speak to in my own system experience.

 

[tima]

Among those I have experience with:

The Neumann DST I heard in Utah at David Karmeli's is hands down the best overall cartridge I know. It is genre free, so well balanced across the frequencies, so whole within itself, with believable dynamic contrast, natural attack and decay, detail retrieval and the ambient cues it reveals, with pitch and timbral density that simply takes you -- you don't hear it or think about it, it is simply there. A true rarity that makes you happy to have experienced a few moments from its life.

The other on my list is one of the top van den Huls. I have a couple Master Sigs and I've heard the Grand Cru. These are wonderful for classical and jazz, especially large orchestral. From the third octave above middle-C for solo violin to the tremendous bass drum whumpfs at the end of Shosty's 'Festive Orchestra' these carts hold it all together, parts and sum.

 

[mr-particle]

Lyra Olympos and lambda are the best of the Lyra and would love to hear them on FR64 which jcarr used for many years before SAT. Would also love to hear them on a linear tracker

May I ask, if somebody has made investigations if either FR-64s or FR-66s is the btter matching tonearm with Olympos, respectively Olympos SL?
Thanks in advance.

 

[bonzo75]

May I ask, if somebody has made investigations if either FR-64s or FR-66s is the btter matching tonearm with Olympos, respectively Olympos SL?
Thanks in advance.

i don’t think there is Olympos SL. Olympos is an older Lyra model.

in newer ones try atlas lambda.

Jonathan Carr himself used FR 64s for his carts till he upgraded to SAT. FR 66s is the more premium arm version, you can read many notes about difference in 66 and 64. If you want to try, trying with FR 64 will be low cost. If you like it, you can buy the 66 later for another trial. If you don’t like 64, try something else

 

[DasguteOhr]

i don’t think there is Olympos SL. Olympos is an older Lyra model.

in newer ones try atlas lambda.

Jonathan Carr himself used FR 64s for his carts till he upgraded to SAT. FR 66s is the more premium arm version, you can read many notes about difference in 66 and 64. If you want to try, trying with FR 64 will be low cost. If you like it, you can buy the 66 later for another trial. If you don’t like 64, try something else

LYRA - A bit more detailed information: OLYMPOS

Welcome to LYRA. Based in Tokyo, LYRA is headed by Stig Bjorge from Norway, with American design engineer Jonathan Carr, and Japanese master craftsman Yoshinori Mishima making cartridges and supervising production. All products are manufactured in Japan with microscopic attention to detail under...

www.lyraconnoisseur.com

 

[bonzo75]

LYRA - A bit more detailed information: OLYMPOS

Welcome to LYRA. Based in Tokyo, LYRA is headed by Stig Bjorge from Norway, with American design engineer Jonathan Carr, and Japanese master craftsman Yoshinori Mishima making cartridges and supervising production. All products are manufactured in Japan with microscopic attention to detail under...

www.lyraconnoisseur.com

thanks. didn’t know about the SL

 

[mr-particle]

LYRA - A bit more detailed information: OLYMPOS

Welcome to LYRA. Based in Tokyo, LYRA is headed by Stig Bjorge from Norway, with American design engineer Jonathan Carr, and Japanese master craftsman Yoshinori Mishima making cartridges and supervising production. All products are manufactured in Japan with microscopic attention to detail under...

www.lyraconnoisseur.com

The picture does not show my box the Olympos SL was supplied with, but at least also the box of my cartridge does state SL as well.
They might be not from the original production run and are made later most likely.

 

[DasguteOhr]

The picture does not show my box the Olympos SL was supplied with, but at least also the box of my cartridge does state SL as well.
They might be not from the original production run and are made later most likely.

I think most Sl were before Parnassus d.c.t. there was handwritten on the box (sl) written. upgrade then cost 9000€ in germany if I remember correctly. here if someone wants an olympos.

Lyra Olympos (4636689853) | Second-hand device | Pick-up | Offer on audio-markt.de

Offered is „Olympos“ by Lyra as second-hand device from the category „Pick-up“ on audio-markt.de - the online market place for high-end. The advert with the number 4636689853 ends on 29.09.2023 at 11:02 o'clock.

www.audio-markt.de

 

[Mike Lavigne]

my Olympos SL was made from a Parnassus donor and took 4 months. had it for a year, then i broke it ($3k ouch), and had it factory rebuilt. then sold it with my Rockport Sirius III.

 

[gian60]

Thanks to a friend last week i took with some trade and few money a new in box Zyx Universe Diamond

I not yet told to Ked otherwise already was here to listen

 

[gian60]

I have This Zyx,VDH Grand Cru and Master Signature,Opus 1,Goldfinger Statement,Atlas Lambda SL,Koetsu Coralstone Diamond,Benz Special,Ortofon Spu 95 and Kondo IO XP

and for me this Zyx is the best among these cartridges,every cart has something special,Grand Cru the mid high,Lambda has dynamic,goldfinger is explosive,Opus special mid bass and Holographic,Coralstone very natural mid,and this Zyx is very good in everything

 

[gian60]

Other 2 fantastic cartridges i havent and listened to a friend are Etsuro gold and AN IO Limited