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About Koetsu Rosewood

Hello,

I was given some days ago a Koetsu rosewood cartridge for a test run

in view to buy it for some 1500 usd.

It was the first time that I could hear such an expensive and highly regarded cartridge.

My system is Marantz sc-9 premp (with its very good mc and mm phono inputs) and Marantz sm-9 amplifier. The TT is a Sony TTS-2510.  (I like vintage)

 

I have also a Phasemation ea-200  phono unit which is very good.  And my LS are Cabasse Brigantin 372 (very very good ls which I am very fond of)

I could compare this Koetsu cartridge with some very good (but  much less expensive) cartridges in my collection such as (MC) sony xl-44L, at33ml, victor mc-1, and (MM)  Pioneer PC-600 and Victor X-1E.

Well, what can I say. I liked Koetsu very much. It is an excellent cartridge indeed. Even it can be called perfect sounding cartridge. I noticed well the difference between Koetsu and the other cartridges.

But all that said, I decided not to buy it. Because I did not find that with Koetsu my system would sound so much better. The test (for me) showed not that Koetsu was much better than the others, but than the others were if not equal (of course not) at least also very good and so much less expensive. In that sense the test was in their favour. I prefer to spent money on records J)

That is what I think.

 

Now, I took the photo of the Koetsu needle, and I would like to ask if it is an original needle or retipped but I did not find how to attach a photo to the message ;((( Could anybody tell me ?

 

Thank you very much

 

Serge

serge8

Showing 3 responses by ghdprentice

ghdprentice
7,641 posts
 

Like tape a nickel to the headshell... or was it a quarter? Like we used to do... long ago. smiley

ghdprentice
7,641 posts
 

Perhaps if your system is sufficiently resolving, then there is something wrong with the Koetsu cartridge. 

ghdprentice
7,641 posts
 

The Rosewood is a very good cartridge. To get the most out of it you need very good equipment and sometimes having one component much better than the others just does not get the most out of it 

I have a Koetsu Rosewood Signature cartridge. My phonostage is an Audio Research Reference 3... ~ $17K phonostage, and a top end Linn turntable. It sounds great.  I upgraded phono stages multiple times, finding them standing in the way of the performance of my turntable many times. So, your phonostage, and perhaps other components stand in the way of getting the sound of which the Koetsu is capable. 

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