So after much badgering and penny pinching, I have managed to prise away Petrat's very sparsely used, Ortofon SPU A95 Anniversary.
I’ve bee playing with a couple of Vintage SPUs over the past couple of years which were wonderful and a great introduction to the unique SPU sound.
Sometimes, for everyday listening they can be a little rich in flavour, other times they just ooze character and really hit the spot with the music I mainly listen to, Jazz.
A fantastic all round cartridge was the more modern approach, the Ortofon Royal N.
This is a cracking cartridge, which retains that SPU richness through the mids and a lovely controlled bass but also ups the detail output and is very clever at balancing both.
The Royal N used a fancier tip than the original SPUs, Nude Ortofon Replicant 100 and also has Electrum coils, consisting of a gold and silver alloy.
Altogether a satisfying combination of juice, oomph and detail...a keeper! ....
but then came along this beautiful thing below.
I can only say the Ortofon SPU A95 Anniversary is such a classy performer it just demands to be played.
It has an Elliptical tip, so tips it's hat towards vintage SPUs, has a wholeness about it's character that is 100% in line with the originals.
It's Coilwire material is Silver-plated Copper and thus surpasses even the Royal N in it's detail retrieval.
For me it's a wonderful combination of legacy SPU sound and feel with a modern spin offering the sparkle and subtlety present in good Moving Coils.
On the end of my SME 3012, it's a match made in heaven. Oh, and it comes in a pretty box!
some more info from the Ortofon site:
The mechanical structure of the SPU A95 cartridge has also been re-engineered, as well as many of its internal assemblies. At the mechanical heart lies a revolutionary customized SLM (Selective Laser Melting) manufacturing procedure. The use of Titanium in SPU A95 has provided a further improvement to the internal damping capabilities as well as to the overall rigidity of the structure.
Another special feature is the inclusion of the renowned Field Stabilizing Element (FSE) system, which consists of a small cylinder of conductive material placed strategically inside of the magnetic system. FSE guarantees that the force field within the system will remain stable at all times regardless of the movement of the armature.
A Nude Elliptical diamond stylus graces the aluminum cantilever, representative of the legacy created by SPUs past, along with a black painted, grinded wood body.
Originally Posted by WESTLOWER
So after much badgering and penny pinching, I have managed to prise away Petrat's very sparsely used, Ortofon SPU A95 Anniversary.
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