benz ruby

I believe that the Ruby was made in the mid to later 90s, as the next step up after the Reference in the Benz line. I'm not sure of all the technical details, but one big (maybe the only) difference between the Ruby and the Ruby 2 I recall is that the latter is a higher output cartridge. The original Ruby could be bested by the Reference if you didn't have enough gain in your phono section to handle it, while the Ruby 2 is compatible with more phono stages. Perhaps there might be other differences that our other members can point out. Be careful buying older cartridges, as they do age, particularly in the suspension materials.

what is your tt and arm. phono info will be ok as well and helpful.

The current ruby 2 is extremely low output - .3 mv. They also make a ruby h which is higher - .8 mv I think.

Not very many phono stages can handle that low of an output. I am using a pass labs phono ono with my ruby 2. It has 76 db of gain and I find that to be an appropriate amount. I still have to use middle position gain on my pass labs aleph P preamp. I know the aesthetix IO is supposed to be a very good tube unit for low output cartridges.

The benz lukaschek is another that is mentioned as a very good match - some very knowledgeble people think it's the best best. TAS reviewed the ruby 2 and the lukaschek. The felt the lukaschek was an excellent phono, but noted that the pass labs XONO and a herron phono brought out a few more details.

Hi and thanks for the comments. Arm is OL rb250 and phono section has 66db of gain. I have been using a Dynavector Karat 17 with 23 output and while I have to turn the volume up to the half way point it seems to sound fine.
What I really would like to know is the difference in the ruby and the ruby 2. When did they stop making the ruby????
Thanks

I think it was 1999 or 2000. You might want to check with Garth at Musical Surroundings. I seem to recall the old Ruby being around .2mv output, a very low number, and why I chose the Reference over it when I bought a Reference in 1998. When the Ruby 2 came out, I auditioned it, liked it a lot and upgraded at that point, and I seem to recall that being in early 2000. Hope this helps.

they came up with 2 series on almost all their higher-end carts and so far i've compared only gliders and M series i.e. benz M.09 vs benz M2. i found no differences between these cartridges and so i believe not too much can be found b-n ruby and ruby2.
a good step-up transformer + your current phonostage might make more sence budgetwise. i use with my lyra helikon Ortofon T1000 with great results.
if you have to bring volume behind 12o'clock you basically amplifying the weak signal instead of attenuating a strong one which brings me to the conclusion that you need either different phono or step-up transformer.

Used to own the Ruby,now own the Ruby 2. In a nutshell, the original Ruby, circa 1990 had an output of 0.2mv, while the Ruby 2 has 0.3mv. The Ruby 2 is a little more resolving and airy in the top end.
According to Garth the new Ruby 2 is a biig improvement over the previous model. I've heard all three versions, (owned two) and frankly there isn't a huge difference between them IMHO. Not really worth the difference in trade in/price.
Like many things in Hi-end, small differences are sometimes boosted through the roof for marketing purposes. Best advise is to listen for yourself and you'll hear through all the hype.
Nonetheless, the Ruby's are excellent cartridges.

Hi, Thanks to everyone for the info. It let me make an informed decision about my cartridge purchase.
Happy listening