Quote Originally Posted by Marco View Post
Hi Jules,

That's the trouble with hi-fi: there's never a 'free lunch', and so some sort of trade-off is inevitable. Like you say, a cartridge that excels with classical music rarely pulls off the same trick with rock and pop, as the requirements are somewhat different. That is precisely why I've invested in a DL-S1!

A 103R will be better than a stock 103, but it's still not ideal for classical music. You have to watch the 103R, as it can get a bit 'shouty' in some systems, and it too has a tendency towards brightness (although loading can help here), especially if the partnering tonearm has insufficient mass. You could consider a DL-301II, which has a higher output (0.4mV) and a nice 'punchy' and open sound.

Ironically, as I've just slated the DL-304, if you were to use it solely for playing classical music, its traits (and overall voicing) would be more suited to accurately reproducing that genre of music, so you could give one of those a go. Another option would be the 103Pro, as the Highphonic boys have modified it to be a rather more musically mellifluous item than the stock DL-103, and it would sing its heart out through your Lentek head amp.

Is your Lentek completely original? If so, if you want, I could loan you my Nick G-modified one, which is a considerable step-up from the stock unit, and if you like what it does, you could get Nick to carry out similar (fairly inexpensive) modifications to yours - just a thought!

Marco.
Many thanks for your kind offer! My Lentek is completely original - I'd like to see what it can do in its current state, and if I like what I hear I might well take you up on that. I read about the mods Nick did for you on an old thread. I don't think I will bother with the 304 as I think I will find it too polite for the likes of Black Sabbath!! The 103 pro is a new one for me and will do a bit of research into that. Cheers.