Quote Originally Posted by Dr Bunsen Honeydew View Post
While we are going on about old things, I would be fascinated by anyone trying a Sonotone 9tahc. It is ceramic so you will have to keep the volume down as it has loads of output, far more than a moving magnet.

Now these were largely only fitted to radiograms and record players and the Garrard 1025tc autochanger, but I remember them having zonking dynamics if a little limited in HF and not exactly flat across the frequency band, some would say full of character.

Richard
Got it in one Richard. Been there and doing it now

The trouble now, is that tracking is marginal on later vinyl cuts and, more impotantly, the rubberised material used to couple the cantilever to the ceramic elements can harden up with the decades' passing.

I have very fond memories of the Acos 104, a high compliance (for this type) ceramic of very low mass and 2 - 3g tracking. The new-old-stock one I bought last year has significantly stiffened up and although incredibly "direct" sounding, the sweetness has gone that I remembered. The previous top model GP96-1 I also have is as smooth as ever, the coupling element made of a whitish coloured material which hasn't gone off. The sound is smooth but so dull and bland without eq.

Back to the 9TAHC. The very early ones have a more flexible coupler and the ones I've seen appear to be set far back on the cantilever, allowing more flexibility to the stylus. Perfect in a Garrard 3000 autochanger I remember. Sadly, later ones and all the current Jap copies, are low tracking ability groove-wreckers IMO, as is the copy of the Sonotone 3559/garrard KS41C that was another goodie when it was new.

How do these compare to modern cheap magnetics, even if loading is good (I have a simple little J-FET 1.5M line buffer I made), not a hope in heck I'm afraid, as in my opinion, an AT95E is far better.. Doesn't stop me playing though

http://www.roger-russell.com/sonopg/sonopc.htm