Cartridges

Cadenza Blue is true to the music with a tremendous clarity. The Cadenza Blue model is using a Nude FG 70 stylus with a very thin ruby cantilever. The coils are made from 6NX (99.9999 %) pure silver wire. An improved winding process on the armature allows a better channel balance. The soundstage of Cadenza Blue is wide open and grandiose straight out of the box. Micro dynamic and ambience will be evident when listening to complex compositions. It reaches a very high degree of definition in the perspective, which is very present.

You may notice we are not always necessarily the cheapest retailer of cartridges but we will ALWAYS include a free professional fitting with all our cartridges. Along with any routine check-ups on your turntable.

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A custom handbuilt moving coil cartridge with VDH-type 1 tip, boron cantilever, matched crystal silver-wire coils and 0.65 mV/channel. The designation “Special” in this cartridge’s name indicates important improvements over its previous version: The cartridge is equipped with a thicker frontpole and an extra small magnet, both further enhancing its resolution capabilities and output voltage. Production time: The production time for a MC - 10 Special cartridge after ordering is about two weeks. Please call your authorized distributor for delivery time. Learn More

he Soundsmith Zephyr MkIII enjoys a great history, starting with the well loved VPI Zephyr  original, which evolved into the well known Zephyr MKII. In our effort to bring you even higher definition without increase in cost, we introduce the NEW Zephyr MKIII. It features a newly developed aluminum alloy - the same one we are now using in the Paua MKII, just released. This new metal alloy has unique dualistic properties, providing stiffness in the ranges required as well as damping exactly where its needed - and by the proper amount - in the most critical parts of the sonic spectrum. The result  is a cartridge that will slam your Rock and Roll while providing a new level of linearity and clarity for the most complex classical and jazz passages. 

Attached to our new cantilever material is a tiny new super low mass "High Profile" Contact Line diamond we have developed for the new Zephyr MKIII. This stylus traces more of the groove walls than a standard contact line, but avoids some of the alignment pitfalls that can occur with a high profile contact line design, allowing more azimuth alignment forgiveness than is normally possible with such designs. 

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This is Rega's new version of the acclaimed Apheta Moving Coil Cartridge and it builds on Rega's decades long obsession with perfecting the Moving Coil cart.

Like its predecessor, it utilises micro-mass generation systems with super strong yet jointless bodies to minimise resonance transferance. It also uses a super high powered rare earth metal neodymium for its magnets. These were all upgrades that set the Apheta 2 apart and elevated the sophisticstion, separation and musicality from the original Apheta.

Now Rega has taken another look at the Apheta and has introduced the same 'fine line' diamond technique that's been on the reference Aphelion on to the Apheta. This technique involves pushing the actual cut diamond through the counterlever at a perfect 90 degrees.

  

This is capable of getting even more detail out of the groove of you Vinyl and means an even better listening experience.

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In a range that includes models costing thousands of pounds, the MC One Special is a relatively affordable example. It's a 'selected' version of the MC10 Special, a hand-built cartridge using silver wire coils and a boron cantilever (the tube that connects the stylus to the coils). Because of the relatively wide sample variations with cartridges, it's not unusual for makers to charge a bit more for selected samples of a particular model - ones that are found to perform better than the rest. Grado is another manufacturer that does this - the Prestige Gold on page 46 is a 'selected' version of the Prestige Silver, for which an additional £20 is charged

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If you love a sense of space, lightness and refinement in your music, you can't go past the Starling cartridge from Sumiko. 

With the Starling, you get a naked cartridge body like the slightly cheaper Songbird. But here the cantilever is upgraded to Boron for faster transmission of the vibrations through the cantilever.

The micro ridge stylus of the Starling is also a step up from the Songbird rendering even more precision and detail with transparency and musicality.

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Cadenza Bronze is a true high-end reference cartridge, conveying music with supreme precision, impact and dynamics.

The Cadenza Bronze model is using a Replicant 100 stylus and a conical aluminium cantilever. The coil wire is the famous Ortofon Aucurum wire, which is a gold plated 6NX copper wire. Field Stabilizing Element/FSE, is used for optimal linearity especially during complex crescendo passages. Cadenza Bronze stereo imaging capabilities illuminate the farthest corners of the soundstage in all three dimensions.

You may notice we are not always necessarily the cheapest retailer of cartridges but we will ALWAYS include a free professional fitting with all our cartridges. Along with any routine check-ups on your turntable.

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The Soundsmith Zephyr MIMC Star has been talked about a lot in circles I move in. Yes these are Turntable fanatic circles! This is a Moving Iron, low output cartridge so it does require a pre-amp that is MC (Moving Coil) capable.

I think I will simply let this quote speak for this cartridge...

'The Zephyr Star smoothly handled the toughest vocal sibilants and overall produced liquidity not compromised by a soft finish'...

Michael Fremer (acclaimed reviewer)

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The base model from which later on The Colibri and The Condor were further developed. It has the coil of a GRASHOPPER III and the frontpole and suspension of a GRASHOPPER IV. This is without doubt the best cartridge available for its price. Standard output of both the copper and gold coil versions is 0.65 mV per channel. The FROG H.O. is the high output version with 2.25 mV per channel. All FROG cartridges have extra magnet modifications applied for the best result possible

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Cadenza Black is optimized for an amazing tonal neutrality, dynamics and purity of sound.

The Cadenza Black model is using a Nude Shibata stylus with a boron cantilever. The effective mass of the stylus/cantilever system is extremely low due to the use of a very thin boron rod. This material is extremely stiff and even more lightweight than aluminium. It also uses the WRD/Wide Range Damping-system applied for MC Windfeld, MC A90, MC Anna, Xpression and MC A95 cartridges, controlling the high and low frequency damping separately. The coil wire is the famous Ortofon Aucurum wire, which is a gold plated 6NX copper wire. Cadenza Black is high performing on areas like detail, consistency and sound staging.

You may notice we are not always necessarily the cheapest retailer of cartridges but we will ALWAYS include a free professional fitting with all our cartridges. Along with any routine check-ups on your turntable.

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The van den Hul Frog Gold MC Cartridge is a custom hand-built moving coil cartridge with matched Gold-Wire coils and a Solid Boron Cantilever making it sound even smoother and more refined than the standard Frog - the best cartridge available for the price! The Frog Gold has a 0.65 mV/channel output, matched gold-wire coils and an extra internal support magnet.

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For over five years SUMIKO has provided the Celebration Pearwood Signature to music lovers seeking the musical experience of the finest and most expensive phono pickups at a more reasonable cost. New advances in material technology and construction techniques have allowed for a significant improvement in sound quality and have resulted in the creation of this new Mark II version.

Low Output MC Cartridge

Hand-crafter Pearwood cartridge body

0.5mV output via an Alnico magnet assembly

Long-grain boron cantilever

New ultra low-mass Ogura Jewel Co. P9 Stylus (Vital Design)

Milled Teflon billet back plate

Custom hollow point & tapered brass gold plated connnecting pins

For some Turntables including Regas, we will need to fit a 2mm spacer on you tonearm for this cartridge. Like the HiFi Guru Spacer

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Since its introduction in 2009, The Voice has won numerous "product-of-the-year" awards and is – in Peter Ledermann’s words –"probably the best High Output cartridge in production today." Our design goal was to produce the lowest moving mass high output design possible using novel and advanced technology. Featuring a single crystal Ruby Cantilever and our Optimized Contour Line Contact Stylus, we developed a specialized metallurgy for the low mass moving iron system.

A cartridge that disappears. After all, if it sounds like a “record" it’s wrong. The cartridge should bring your directly to the performance; not stand between you and the music.

Also available in dual-coil mono.

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The Aphelion is the third generation of Rega's unique moving coil cartridges.Taking the technology developed from the latest Apheta 2 to the next level, our engineers have fine tuned every aspect of the original design. Aphelion features a new boron cantilever and super high-powered, neodymium magnet and a coil meticulously hand wound on an iron micro cross that is fifty percent smaller than the original. The weight reduction of the generator allows us greater freedom to track the vinyl groove accurately ensuring even more detail is extracted from the vinyl.The Aphelion is housed within a completely redesigned, single piece, aluminium black anodised body and protected by a CAD designed, clear rigid cover to protect the internal fine wires, making handling whilst fitting, safe and risk free. The Aphelion is the perfect partner for the RP10 turntable and RB2000 tonearm - see complementary components. Learn More

Originally this was a cartridge that AJ Van den Hul made after a specific request from a customer to produce a high end cartridge at a lower price point. He did it and sold a couple of other units after the word got out. Now they're a permanent mainstay of the Van den Hul inventory.

This particular Crimson has a Polycarbonate body. Some people really like the slightly more analytical sound of this cartridge than the wooden bodies. I admit though, we do sell more of the wooden bodied Crimsons than this Polycarbonate. I find the wooden bodies more open, more organic sounding.

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The Crimson is a top performance custom handbuilt moving coil phono cartridge. The cartridge body is made from Pau Ferro wood. This is a Brazilian wood which instrument makers have used for centuries to make instruments and in particular, bows. It has extraordinary resonant qualities as well as stiffness and strength making it ideal for cartridges as well!

Specific characteristics for this great cartridge are a relatively high (0,85mV) output, gold coils, a Samarium-Cobalt magnet, extended channel separation and superb tracking ability.

We have many happy customers with these units. It is musical, warm and sounds effortless. Certainly, if we're being picky, it doesn't reach the heights of resolution that the more expensive Colibri range of cartridges do. Still an astounding performer and well worth a listen.

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Soundsmith cartridges are handmade in the USA and are little jewels to adorn your most beloved Turntables. 

They are a Moving Iron design - the third, less talked about category of cartridge design. This design uses less mass than a Moving Magnet design so it's more reactive and dynamic.

The Paua MkII uses a new Aluminium Cantilever which is stiff where it's needed but is also acoustically dampening in critical areas.

An important factor when we choose we high-end cartridges to stock is their retipping service. We like to recommend cartridges that when something happens to the stylus there's a skilled in-house retipping service. Soundsmith offer just that.

And isn't the new sea shell casing just beautiful!

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The Mezzo and the Nautilus can perform this sonic magic of sounding lifelike and with the exact intentions of the musician, whether it’s played in the concert hall, in the studio, or on electronic hardware and software. Both these cartridges made each record sound like the best sounding record I've ever heard. That is, until I played the next record.” - Tom Lyle, Enjoy The Music

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For over thirty-five years, SUMIKO has provided a comprehensive range of phono cartridges to music lovers seeking the finest musical experience at a variety of price points. In fact, the great market success of SUMIKO phono cartridges has hinged on their phenomenal cost-to-performance ratio. The Palo Santos Presentation is no exception. New design requirements incorporating advances in material technology and construction techniques have resulted in a significantly improved product which delivers a highly refined and resolved, yet musically satisfying sound quality previously unavailable at or even near its price.

For some Turntables including Regas, we will need to fit a 2mm spacer on you tonearm for this cartridge. Like the HiFi Guru Spacer

 

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