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Deciding on which of my cartridges to go on Origin Live and Kuzma arms

I have a Kuzma Ref 2 and Ref 313 VTA and I’m considering the purchase of a Feickert Volare w/ the packaged Origin Live Silver mk4 arm. I own a trio of cartridges that include a My Sonic Hyper, an EMT Tsd 75, and a Charisma (Denon) 103. I’m trying to figure out which cartridge to mount on each of these arms. I’m not the technical sort, but for those who are, I was hoping for some guidance. Here are the specs I have gathered:

Kuzma 313 VTA- Effective Mass: 13 Grams. Has played all 3 of my cartridges well.

Origin Live Silver mk 4- Effective Mass: 12 Grams. I read the OL Silver may be better suited to low/medium compliance cartridges. I believe my EMT is High Compliance.

My Sonic Lab Hyper: weight: 9.5 grams......Compliance: 10 X 10-6cm/dyen

EMT Tsd75: weight: 12 grams...... Compliance: 12 UM/mN

Charisma (Denon) 103: weight: 8.8 grams.....Compliance: 7 UM/mN

I’m aware it’s best to mount and compare each cartridge, but my goal is to obtain an educated starting point. I also noticed the Compliance spec on the My Sonic appears different than the other two, so hopefully this can be translated for comparison. One of these cartridges will be a backup, and will likely reside on a spare head shell I have for my 313. Any thoughts are appreciated. It’s been a fun ride.

fjn04

Showing 3 responses by fjn04

fjn04 OP
1,561 posts
 

I just thought I'd make it clear...I have a Shindo/Altec setup that is in my system profile. But the plan for my next table is to play it into my Naim XS which is driving my Harbeth C7's. 

 

fjn04 OP
1,561 posts
 

dodgealum: The PF tables look gorgeous. I prefer the looks to the Volare, but that new Walnut Volare is quite nice. I actually started this quest in the $2K range. The Marantz TT 15 was the top choice until I opened my price range to $4K. So while I'm sure the PF tables are wonderful, I have to stop somewhere. (-:

mijostyn: Are you suggesting the My Sonic is better suited to the OL arm than the Kuzma.

lewn: No question, that the specs indicate the Charisma Ruby cantilever/wood 103 isn't a good match w/ the Kuzma.... but go figure...I'm quite happy with the sound.  

fjn04 OP
1,561 posts
 

This is certainly true as far as what shouldn't be a good match sometimes is. I've heard of two Volare/OG users having great success with a Koetsu Black. So while in theory it shouldn't work, sometimes it does. I've thought of a 4 point, but at the moment my budget is $4K max. Not only that, a second turntable allows me to complete a well balanced second system with the above mentioned Naim integrated and Harbeth speakers. 

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