Part XVIII - Another casualty.


Finally some listening and a brief appraisal of music from the REAL SOUND system. I honestly could not stomach a genre by genre comparison over
many hours of listening with the M55E and the 2MB, I compared just one track that I have a very unhealthy imtimate knowledge, that's Rhyme of
The Ancient Mariner by Iron Maiden. I tend to do a more indepth comparison of the 2MB against the Shure SC35C+SAS/B combo, this is a new cart and I think it will give the 2MB a slightly better run for it's money.


Shure M55E + JICO SAS/B MM cartridge tracking at 1.4g
Ortofon 2MB MM cartridge tracking at 1.7g


Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner - Iron Maiden - Original pressing.

The M55E presented an anaemic sounding set of vocals. I'm used to hearing a certain amount of snarl in Dickinson's vocals, it was there just not
as much as I'm used to. Vocally, Dickinson was central, but far away and recessed, usually you get him more intimate and a little more in your face. Bass was another problem, muted, punitive, lacking punch and power, just no authority. Nicko McBrain's drumming sounded reasonably well controlled but bass drum was lacking in presentation, cymbals sounded wishy-washy, a confused presentation which sadly was muted and recessed into the background. It's usually very easy to pick out each drum in his kit, Bass, snare, toms, cymbals, not so with the M55E. The M55E was unusually good with surface noise which is something the 2MB couldn't beat. The M55E was optimised with the EAR834 clone phonostage

Let's strap the 2MB back into place.

Less anaemia to vocals which whilst sounded centralised also sounded like him singing in a confined box. The 2MB managed a far more realistic
protrayal of the vocals with powerful output and a well centralised vocal presentation, snarl was restored! The bass on the 2MB compared to the M55E is somthing else. It's probably better to described what the 2MB did because the M55E could not replicate it. Bass was very well controlled, well defined, there is a section where you are simply bathed in bass as it panned from left to right and back again, this extended out forwards of the speakers not quite touching me but definitely a weird 3D holographic feeling. The M55E got nowhere near!! One small section of the song in some rainfall, it was heard quite meekly like a drizzle with the M55e but it sounded like a down pour with the 2MB. Drums became a joy to listen with the ability to easily determine individual pieces of McBrain's kit. The big downside to the 2MB is surface noise. The "Black" range of carts excel on surface noise and this no matter how hard or carefully you set the "black" range of carts, even with the use of a test record and a Fozgo meter!!!


I didn't think there was much more point leaving the M55E+JICO SAS/B strapped in place, 2MB restored. Sadly, the M55E has been vanquished and I now need to leave nostalgia behind. The M55E will always live in my stable of carts and I will always have a soft spot for the old thing but better carts exist (as we all knew).


TBH it's a pretty one sided contest. The M55E is 50 year technology, suspension probably not as good as it could be. The M55E did come with a newly fitted JICO SAS/B stylus which did produce a very nice sound but it wasn't in the same league as the 2MB, this 2MB example is an 800 hour example, so probably as good as it's going to get an probably on it's way out in another 500-750 hours time, crumps! The speakers were the IMF Super compact II's which are excellent with all genre's of music, Jazz sounds amazing, heavy metal (well heavy), vocals intimate, instrumental and electronica, all played very well indeed. The IMF's are in no way the last thing in musical presentation but they are the best in the REAL SOUND system. I would probably think that the M55E and 2MB would sound even better through my ATC 50 active speakers but that's not the point, it's all about how they sound in the REAL SOUND system.