Tuberoller's Huge Cartridge Comparison Part 2

[Tuberoller]

Please read the gear and music list from part 1.


Dynavector 10X4 (red body) -$350.00 -this is a high output MC and has an elliptical stylus.I'm sure you have heard that Dynavector cartridges have a "signature sound".This is a fact,but that sound happens to be a very detailed,almost bright, upper midrange and lower treble.This sound seems to make vocals seem more forward and present.I don't think the sound has a "hump" in the midrange as some have complained.I wouldn't exactly called the sound balanced but if you like the vocals right in your face,this is your rig.The bass is fast and impactful and never seems bloated or out of control.This is true multi-note bass.Treble is a bit on the hairy side and recordings that are already bright will sound painful.This cartridge makes bland recordings come to life.the soundstage is wide and deep.This cartridge was easy to set-up and was very quiet.It tracks best of any cartridge I have yet used.I own this cartridge.

Dynavector 10X4 Gold -$450.00 -this is a high output MC cartridge with an ellpitical stylus.I was really loving this cartridge for the superb overall balance and nice,smooth sound until the stylus broke off while playing a perfectly good record and scratched it.I sent it out to be retipped nearly three months ago and have not gotten it back yet.This was easy to setup but proved fragile and skipped on every scratched record.I own this rig.

Dynavector 17D2 MKII $750.00 this is a super-low output(.023mv) MC cartridge with a microridge stylus.This cartridge is one of those pieces of audio gear that has a personality all it's own.It has a huge,dynamic, presentation that makes it seem you have moved your seat a few rows closer to the stage.I played with the gain and load settings on the phono amp to make sure I had everything set up correctly.I did.This cartridge just likes to play.It is not subtle at all,even the quiet passages are lathered up.The soundstage is,of course,expansive but not that deep since your listening perspective seems to be closer.Bass is a hammering,single note affair and instruments in the lower frequencies are difficult to tell apart.Treble is typical Dynavector and can be bright if given the wrong music.there is nothing "laid back" about this rig.It mounted easily and was a bit difficult to get set-up.It actually dug into the grooves of the record,producing black dust when the stylus force was off just a bit.I gave up on trying to get the overhang to spec.It just didn't work out that way.It tracked very well and was very quiet.I own this cartridge.

Grado Prestige Green - $60.00 -High Output Moving magnet with an elliptical stylus.This is another cartridge that has a sound all it's own.It also does not seem to benefit from extensive tweaking and set-up.I guess some would say that's a good thing because it provides best performance with little fuss.I liked the midrange a lot.It was nice without being too forward.the treble and bass both seemed to have a heavy layer of syrup all over.Bass was of the one-note variety and the treble was kind of peaky and bland.the soundstage seemed to be compacted and instruments seemed placed on top of one another.this rig was super easy to set-up and never skipped.It was also dead silent.I borrowed this one.

Grado Prestige Gold - $180.00 -high output moving magnet with elliptical stylus.All I can say is that this Grado is a mile ahead of the Prestige Green.They sound nothing alike.The gold has great bass with impact and accuracy.The treble detail is fantastic.Miles's trumpet sounds perfect.The transitions between the different parts of the frequency range are seamless.Detail across the entire frequency is sharp and never messy or uncontrolled.The soundstage is wide and vocal and instrument placement is good.Imaging in the opening sequence to Miles' "So What" is crucial,this cartridge does it to perfection.This cartridge was easy to set up and did not seem to suffer from poor installation.It was very quiet and skipped only on the worst record with the deepest scratches.I borrowed this rig.

Grado Statement Platinum (High Output) - $300.00 - High Output MM,elliptical stylus.This is just so smooth.This is the Gold with any suspect of imperfection removed.I want to use the word effortless to describe this cartridge but that may seem to imply that it even worked at all to make great music.There is nothing but pure music coming from my room when this cartridge is playing.this one does piano and the female voice to perfection.there is just a truth and conviction in the delivery of every note.I found music to play just so I could hear how it sounded with the Platinum.The perspective from my listening chair is one of great stage depth and precise placement of all instruments and voices.Solos are given center stage against a silent backround with razor sharp,accurate imaging.This mounted easily and was prone to no skipping.It did have a slight elongation of one of the mounting holes but was easy to set up.It was dead silent and I bought this one.


Grado Statement Sonata ( low output) - $500.00 - low output MM,elliptical stylus.the big improvement over the Platinum is a natural decay and super silent,jet black backround.The decay and backround silence served to add a depth to the soundstage that seemed to extend beyond the walls.Snare drums seemed to benefit from the slightly improved upper bass.The lowest bass notes were delivered in way that let you know this rig means business.Some have said this rig improves on upper frequency extension.It was not able to discern that with the music I was using.I found no aspect of this cartridge's performance to be lacking.It mounted easily,was dead silent and tracked very well.I borrowed this.

Sumiko Bluepoint Special - $350.00 -high output MC,elliptical stylus.The Sumiko sound has gained a fantastic reputation.It does seem to blend well with all types of music and many different systems.I found it to be very neutral across the entire frequency range.Nothing stood out in terms of emphasis in any one area.The soundstage was wide and somewhat deep.Instrument placement was good and imaging seemed accurate.This is a very direct rig and does not sauce things up,good or bad.It is the Swiss Army Knife of cartridges,it does all things,but none of them really,really well.It was very easy to mount,tracked very well and was silent.I borrowed this

I was unable to mount the two Rega cartridges I borrowed on the Clearaudio tonearm.The Rega manuals(if you can call them that) state that the rigs are both standard mount.I do have a Rega arm but I didn't have everything long enough to mount the arm and both cartridges.Maybe later....

I actually did this audition a few months ago and mentioned it to the folks at the Chicago head-fi meet.I just got around to putting my thoughts to words so I can understand how Jude is having difficulities finding the time to do the Digital review.Give him a break.

In summary I would offer that there are some great cartridges in this price range.I have used much more expensive cartridges than these and have been much less pleased.The Grado Platinum was my overall favorite followed closely by the Sonata and Clearaudio Virtuoso Wood.My bang-for-the-buck favorite would have to be the Grado Gold with a strong recommendation also going to the Clearaudio Aurum Beta.The Ortofon is a cartridge that proves what can be done in the lowest price ranges and is easy to improve via stylus changes into a great rig.

I don't know if the guys at MD will print or post all my thoughts.We had some differences of opinions on a lot of these and most likely only snippets of my impressions will be added to whatever it is they are planning to post.

 

[smokey]

Tuberoller,

Thank you very much for what must have been a lot of hard work.

 

[darkclouds]

Thanks Tuberoller for the informative reviews.

Question:
What's the advantages/disadvantages between MC vs. MM?

 

[Hirsch]

Tuberoller,

I've been using the Dynavector Gold 10x L (low output version), and have had no tracking issues. I'm wondering if the stylus was suspect from the start.

I've also got to put in my $0.02 on the Sumiko's. I've tried a few, the Oyster, and the Blue Point Special, and one other. There seems to be a Sumiko house sound, with a very smooth midrange, and absolutely nothing on top. I was unable to get either of those cartridges to give me anything resembling impact. They were all sweet sounding, and unbearably tame. Tracked well, though.

 

[zowie]

Quote:

Originally posted by Hirsch Tuberoller, I've been using the Dynavector Gold 10x L (low output version), and have had no tracking issues. I'm wondering if the stylus was suspect from the start. I've also got to put in my $0.02 on the Sumiko's. I've tried a few, the Oyster, and the Blue Point Special, and one other. There seems to be a Sumiko house sound, with a very smooth midrange, and absolutely nothing on top. I was unable to get either of those cartridges to give me anything resembling impact. They were all sweet sounding, and unbearably tame. Tracked well, though.

I got decent impact from a BPS, just not at the very low end. What I didn't get was very long life.

Although the price has increased, I recommend the standard BP to non-audiophile friends that have a passable mass market Japanese turntable (they don't seem to be made anymore, stuff like the better Pioneer models from the 80s) instead of the $20 Audio Technica they usually seem to have. The improvement just knocks them out -- FAR more resolution and treble extension, less colored midrange, and less surface noise. Better than a major speaker upgrade for much less money.

If they won't spring for the BP, I at least push them into an entry-level Grado, which gives many of the same improvements, but less so.

 

[Beagle]

Excellent job tuberoller!

 

[Old Pa]

Tuberoller: I know you have posted extensively on analog source matters, but perhaps you would like to wax philosophic on the issues concerning selecting, matching, and setting up phono cartridge, tone arm, turntable, and phono stage amps for use. While I have had good advice and lucked out over the last thirty-five years in these matters, I have found that it does not hurt to have knowledge and mechanical skills to get an LP analog source to work out well. Your information is both more extensive and more current than mine and I think newbies and others would benefit from your knowledge and experience to give them initial success. The more a newbie knows about the analog source process before they get into it, the better off they will be in the long run.

Happy Holidays!

 

[jopi]

Perhaps I can chime in about differences between MC (moving coil) and MM (moving magnet) cartridges.
With MC cartridges the cantilever is coupled to two coils that bounce around a stationary magnet to induce voltage and current. With MM cartridges magnets move inside stationary coils.

In general MC cartidges are mechanically more accurate, because the weight of the coils is less than the magnets. More detail in the record groove is capturd by the coils. The low weight and resulting low inertia makes it easier for moving coils to resolve high dynamics.
On the other hand in general MC cartridges put out only a tiny amount of voltage, that needs a lot of good and clean amplication all the way to the speakers. MC cartridges also provide sometimes too much detail spoiling your fun on dirty, scratched records or average turntables by bringing out surface noise.

I myself have a MC cartidge (Benz Micro Glider L2, which Tuberoller also reviewed) and it's a mixed blessing. It sounds absolutely fantastic on prestine records, but I've also have a lot of great music on used records that I haven't spun in a while, because of the surface noise.
Especially with headphones you're picking up a lot of detail. Daycart could also chime in on that one, he's made similiar experience, I guess.

I'm seriously considering changing to a MM cartridge like a Grado or Clearaudio to open up my software vault again.
This may be considered a down-grade, but I've learned a lot about audio within the past year and one thing is that better is not always better.

 

[nebuchadnezzar]

great job (again!)
thanks for the impressions and the time spent!
and i hope you enjoy your new grado

 

[acidtripwow]

Wow, great job Tube! This was a perfect chance to go through those 10,000 records.

 

[millerdog]

Damn Tuberoller!
You just bumped me from Grado Red to Gold

Nice reviews,
md

 

[Tuberoller]

I have been trying to compile, in a reasonable fashion,the analog tweaks that I have tried and know to work well.I will post these with a few pics,after the holiday.I also was able to compare three really high-end cartridges and will try to post impressions of those after I record all my thoughts about them.

 

[Tuberoller]

I was thinking myself that the Dynavector 10X4 Gold may have been suffereing from the problem with the stylus all along.I sold the last two that I had and was unable to verify any problems with the stylus on the 15 or so I have sold over the past year.I do like the Dynavectors but have to warn all about the long repair and upgrade times.I may have damaged mine by laying it around carelessly when I was swapping rigs.After the initial problems I was much more careful when handling the cartridges.

 

[ServinginEcuador]

Another great and readable post!! Great job Tuberoller.

 

[rickcr42]

very nice job man .