Curious Why Benz Micro Slid Into Obscurity

I’ve owned several Benz over the past 15 years, still do. They’re consistently excellent (starting with Ace on up) and compete very well. I really like Benz - generally preferring them to their Euro counterparts Ortofon and VdH. I feel that the lower half of the Swiss-made line (Ace, Glider, Wood) is particularly strong on value. The ruby-plate models aren’t really my thing but they’re very nice too.

There was some sort of fallout with their NA distributor Musical Surroundings, circa early 2010s IIRC. Afterwards, gray market (e.g. far east) or used market was the way to get them here. Lots of rumors over why this happened - ranging from issues with the proprietor, to an inability to keep up with demand for this market (and no desire or ability to scale up). They say Mr. Lukaschek auditions every single Benz cartridge before it goes out the door.

More recently (since 2017-ish?) they were distributed in NA by Sierra Sound. I don’t know the current status of that, but Benz released a new Zebrawood model as recently as 2020 (it’s an updated replacement of the old Wood model). I believe Ace, Glider, and Wood models were discontinued during these years.

Of course Benz not being sold in NA for several years killed the review cycle. You certainly don’t see them being hyped by mags or online like (say) Hana. If they did get hyped like that, it’s quite possible they couldn’t keep up with demand anyways.

There may be rumors recently circling AGAIN about the status of Benz. I just heard something concerning on a Facebook group (0 verification so don't ask). And of course, Mr. Lukaschek is at that age, similar to Fumihiko Sugano of Koetsu (RIP).

Dear @mulveling : Maybe no distributor in USA or Europe but any one of us can buy a new LPS for less than 3k. As a fact when some one ask for cartridges in a higher level price range than what posted lewm I recomended. Problem is that for some time now no one ask in this forym about cartridge recomendation in that price range and that’s all. Btw, I think is the only today cartridge that comes with its FR/separation chart.

@rauliruegas - Yes, that's all very true. I also think these "gray market" Benzes (so to speak) are an excellent deal. I do wonder about rumors circling Benz, and worry this "under the radar" recommendation might dry up at some point, which would be sad. 

I find it intriguing that they build their cartridge frames out of brass versus many of the more exotic materials being used.

@neonknight IIRC it's only the LPS and Gullwing models which use brass frame elements, and this accounts for the LPS's massive 16g (Ebony shell adding its contribution too). Many tonearms are not be able to accommodate an LPS with stock counterweight, so check on that before ordering one.

In my experience so far, exotic cartridge materials don't necessarily correlate into better sound. Good old metals like aluminum and steel (and brass) can be fabulous body materials. I've also liked titanium (maybe that's slightly exotic?). Woods are OK; I've liked some better than others. Stones are really neat but it's only Koetsu doing that (vintage Kisekis aside). I've NOT been a fan of carbon fiber anywhere in the analog chain.

@normb omg, the Glider SL is so damn good for the money, isn’t it? Makes you wonder how you get all that for under $1K. And yes, it absolutely clobbers the 2M Black.

@wrm57 the Ebony TR is such an interesting model, and I’m sorry I never tried it yet. I have a regular Ebony L, which is quite excellent in its slot. Yep, 40x SUT is pretty much required for TR. I was also curious though, what about a 5x - 10x SUT (like a Sky 10) combined with a moderate voltage gain active MC stage (even Benz's own PP-1 @ 62dB). The math works out well. That might also be an excellent combination. 

One of the big things to realize about Benz cartridges is the line of demarcation around coil former (armature) used. From Ebony and down you have the iron cross. These models are a super match with SUT’s, but also work very well with all active gain stages (voltage or current injection). For Ruby, Gullwing, and LP/S models you have a ruby plate. Magnetically, this is not nearly as efficient. These models do NOT work well with a SUT or current injection - use active voltage gain ONLY. I tried so many ways with the LPS and various SUT’s. Unfortunately, my affinity for a good SUT (in place of an active MC gain stage) is SO high, I actually end up preferring the lower Benz models.

@no_regrets

The ruby plate is non-magnetic so it requires more coil windings / turns to effect the same output voltage. With the iron cross armature, the iron core basically makes coils more efficient at generating AC signal. So for example, let’s look at specs. First the ruby plate models:

LPS, Gullwing L, Ruby L: 40 ohms (DC) coils for 0.38mV output
Gullwing H, Ruby H: 80 ohms for 0.7mV

Pay attention to the ratio of ohms to output mV. Now look at the much higher ratio effected with the iron cross models:

Ebony L: 5 ohms for 0.26mV
Glider SL or Zebrawood L; 12 ohms for 0.4mV
Glider SM or Zebrawood M: 24 ohms for 0.8mV
Glider SM or Zebrawood M: 90 ohms for 2.5mV

(note some of the specs on the outdated Benz Micro North America site are clearly miscopied) So the ruby plate "Low" models are using larger coil windings, comparable to somewhere between a "Medium" and "High output" coil configuration in the iron cross line, but with an output strictly in the "Low" category!

This poor ratio is at root of why they don’t match well to a SUT. A SUT basically converts cartridge current into voltage gain. MC carts with a high ohms-to-output ratio have plenty of current to spare for this. But cartridges with a weak ratio run out of current, and then experience voltage divider losses (losing gain) before they achieve the necessary voltage gain. The more you push it, the more the losses start exceeding the intended gains. On paper, an LPS (or Gullwing L or Ruby L) should still be OK with a 10x SUT. This boosts its signal to around 3.8mV into a 47Kohm MM stage. However, that’s still a little on the low side (I shoot for at least 5mV) and there’s about 0.7dB of losses from the net ~470 ohm load (47,000 / 10 / 10) reflected to 40 ohm coils (voltage divider - Ohm’s law). And then we have practice - in practice, I did not like the LPS paired to any 8x or 10x SUT I tried. It was OK, but not great. Just anemic and bland. JFET MC stages were much better (Hagerman, Herron, ARC Reference). Conversely on "normal" MC cartridges, including iron cross Benz, I easily prefer a good SUT to any active MC gain stage.

Note that SUT limitation goes out the window if you have an MM stage which can load much higher than 47K, but so very few do. MM loading at say 100Kohm or higher solves the voltage divider issue. The Rogue Ares allows this! That blew my mind when I realized that.

My Sonic Lab is an interesting manufacturer with cartridges that have insanely high output ratios. Like 1 ohm coils for 0.5mV output. I think they do this by using larger gauge (thicker) coil wire than usual. Which probably makes the coils just as massive as typical High output coil configurations anyways, lol. Still, I want to hear them.

@no_regrets

You’re welcome! I think about this stuff way too much lol. One correction: when I was saying "ohms to output" ratio I really meant the reverse "output to ohms". For an "ideal" transducer (and SUT match) you want as much output voltage as possible from as little coils (lower ohms) as possible. So looking at output voltages in microVolts (uV) might help get a nicer ratio number for comparisons:
Benz Ruby L / LPS: 380 uV / 40 ohms = 9.5
Shelter Harmony / Accord / 901: 500uV / 15 ohms = 33.3
Benz Glider L / Wood L: 400 uV / 12 ohms = 33.3
Ortofon Cadenza Bronze / Koetsu Urushi: 400uV / 5 ohms = 80
MSL Eminent Ex: 400 uV / 0.9 ohms = 444

I think it’s no coincidence that cartridges towards the bottom like Koetsu and MSL are renowned for their matching to SUT. You could probably make an analogous argument for current injection phono stages!

So why do they use a rube plate in the upper Benz models? The theory is that a piece of moving iron (iron cross) dynamically disrupts the magnetic field (it should remain static in an "ideal" transducer), which causes distortion. They can also use a much larger & stronger neodymium magnet in these models - it’s so powerful it would be impossible to accurately position the iron cross in there. The ruby plate has no problem there. "Air coils" achieves the same thing, but without the structure (and mass) provided by the plate - but these are rare.

An alternative technique: Dynavector has that big copper coil wound around its front pole piece to "damp" magnetic flux disturbances from the moving iron armature. It's not in the signal path, it's just there to bleed off magnetic flux disturbances.

@lewm Yes - current, amperes! Silly me lol

@sbank 

Yes, I tried the LPS with Renaissance SE phono stage which has the same MC SUT inside as Ren V (also had a Ren V but did not use its onboard phono). Those Lundahl LL1931 worked OK on the 8x (lower) setting, but it was not my favorite. The VAC's MM stage is really wonderful, and the suboptimal MC match on LPS holds it back IMO. Just to be clear the LPS sound this way isn't bad, it's just not where I wanted it to be; I preferred Ebony L on this setup. 

For my preferences I got better LPS results from the Hagerman Trumpet MC, or even the Hagerman Piccolo (a JFET based step-up with flexible gain & loading) set at 26dB gain and 1K Ohm load into the VAC's MM mode (under $300 just to pick up a new Piccolo to try). Note the weakness of these Hagerman units a higher noise floor versus higher end MC JFET stages like a Herron or ARC Reference (and definitely versus a SUT). 

@chowkwan 

From everything I've read, and all my experience with other Benz's (the Glider SL with similar body is wonderful, one of my favorites), I'm almost certain I'd prefer the Gullwing model over LPS. Maybe by a lot. However its electrical matching issues will be the same as LPS. That is high praise indeed given your list of comparisons!!

@narrowfellow 

Electrically, your OG Glider 0.9mV is similar to output of a modern Glider SM (or M2) at 0.8mV, but with almost twice the coil impedance: 41 ohms versus 24. It's still an OK match to a SUT, but not as good as a newer SM or SL, and kind of in the awkward zone where your ideal ratio would be 6x - 7x.

Bob's Devices makes a switchable 5x/10x Sky SUT. I've owned a Sky 40 and Sky 20/10 - they are excellent. However, given their price tag, a newer cartridge might be warranted too (Benz has improved over time). Lundahl LL1931 is switchable 8x/16x. They're not my favorite flavor, but are quite good, and less expensive than Bob's. 

@lewm 's concern with MM stage overload at 10x * 0.9mV = 9mV is warranted (especially since max level will exceed this), but I've never had a problem with a good tube MM stage at these levels, or even a bit higher. Some solid state stages may be more sensitive to overload. 

All that said, a 0.9mV output is pretty friendly to active-gain MC phono stages in the 54dB - 62dB range. Benz's own PP-1 is pretty good, for not too much money used. I've also used and liked Sonic Frontiers Phono 1. 

I don’t like constant innovation, innovation is not always an indication of improvement, perhaps in terms of measurements but listening ears could say the opposite and I don’t appreciate factories that put new products on the market that replace older ones at an incessant pace, but I believe that a company is serious even if it doesn’t have anything new to show for some time.

@best-groove  I love that! Well said. This especially applies to phono cartridges. Not that new tech and materials aren't great, but I think it's too easy to upset the delicate balance and lose the beauty of sound here. I prefer good old aluminum bodies over (say) carbon fiber or exotic-wood-flavor-of-the-month. Copper coils and iron armatures are hard to beat. And aluminum cantilevers are underrated (though Benz incorporates boron absolutely beautifully).