Has anyone listened to the soundsmith Paua cart


I was in the market for a new cartridge for my classic 1. I originally wanted a soundsmith zephyr. I then found a soundsmith sussurro Paua with low hours on the classifieds. I went ahead and purchased the Paua because it wasn't that much more than a new zephyr.. It seems the Paua and the zephyr have nearly identical weight and compliance. I talked with Peter at soundsmith and he said the Paua will be a good match on the classic 1 arm. He also said my phono loading must be 1000 ohm minimum as this is a low output .3 mv cart. The only differences I can see between the zephyr and the paua is the output and the stylus shape. I have been using a soundsmith boheme with good results. The boheme has a contact line stylus like the paua. I have always wanted to try a low output cartridge so, I opted for this used paua over a new zephyr. I haven't seen much talk about the paua on the forums here. I just wanted to know if anyone has listened to one. What cartridges would you compare it to? If anyone else owns one, what loading are you using? Thanks a lot.

Andy
andyprice44

Showing 5 responses by andyprice44

Lewm,
I suppose I should have said I don't actually have it in my hands yet. Sorry for the confusion. I intend to post my thoughts of the cart when I actually get it setup and playing. I am going to follow peters advice on the loading. I was just asking what load others have used because I have read reviews that have used different loadings. Hopefully I will have it by the end of the week.

Andy
1K is the MINIMUM load. Some have reported this cart sounds best at 2800ohm. I will find out soon.
Bifwynne,
Peter said that the paua rebuilds for $450.00 when the time comes for that.

Andy
I was just going by what peter told me. He said the loading needs to be 1K ohm minimum and not to be more than 5K maximum. One review I have found said the reviewer preferred it at 2800 ohm which made it a bit brighter. My system is a bit bright so, I plan on trying my phono loaded at 1100 ohm. If it doesn't suit me then I am going to send my phono back to the manufacturer to have the loading altered to allow a higher setting. I will hopefully have the cartridge on friday. I will make a new thread with my impressions when I get it up and running.

Andy
I did end up purchasing the paua. I have started another post where you can read my thoughts about it. In short, it is a great cartridge. It really exceeded my expectations.