Koetsu Coralstone vs Olympos or Universe?

M189009, You have selected three of the really great cartridges. I am using all but regarding the Coralstone the Mono version. Let me say that I wasn`t a great Koetsu fan, e.g. with the Rosewood I could not cope so far.

This changed with the Coralstone completly. While the Olympos offers more clarity it entertains you also on the soft side, much more than the Titan I - this is a very nice mixture, precison and warmth. The Coralstone on the other hand also provides details but is able to build up dynamics I have not heard in this dramatic way. In no way: warm midrange,but top and bottom is `missing in action` as some comments do illustrate the character of some Koetsus.

The UNIverse is a good contender in this playfield. I will never sell my two UNIverses but you might assess them as upper middlefield. This should not be related to the price in my opinion. Well adjusted the UNIverse is precise, full of dynamics and being able to transport room and feeling, not the warmth of the Olympos.

So for which cartridge are you going for?

Hello Fjn04,
I did listen to various Koetsus in a lot of modern Arms, but not in all. I have no experience with the Vector Arm. I always wanted to get one but you know...so much out there....
I found the result "Koetsu+heavy Arm" by accident. I listened to a System with a Koetsu Onyx + an unknown Arm (for me at that time) and the reproduction was different to my - former - experience with Koetsus. It was a FR-64s Arm.
When I had a Koetsu RSP I mounted it in all of my Arms (see my System) and with the "old" FR Arms it was simply better from tones and dynamics compared to the other ones.

Syntax: All Koetsus I did use or listened to, give a better Performance in a heavy Arm which has precise tough Bearing. Lots of pics show Koetsus with Triplanar, for sure most owners like it, but I found better solutions (for me)

Thanks for your comments. I am using my Jade on a Vector 3,
with very good results. I am curious what tonearms you found to be best w/ the Koetsu's. One tonearm that has ben recommended to me is the SME 5, but I haven't had the opportunity to hear this combo. Thanks in advance.

Not to worry, I don't spend 30 minutes/day tweaking. More like 30 seconds.

The parameters that need most frequent attention are VTF and arm height.

We adjust the latter for each LP, but whether you'd want to depends on your sensitivity to integration in the time domain. What changes with the U's SRA is not frequency balance, but the relative timing of fundamental vs. harmonics. Getting these perfect matters most for natural/acoustic instruments. Whether it matters to you and your music is definitely a personal choice.

VTF changes we monitor simply by listening. If it's too heavy then speed, HF's, air and snap go missing. If it's too light bass weakens and/or you get incipient mistracking. A fine adjustment of .01g is all it takes. No scales or fuss, just a little tweak and on you go.

Pretty simple, or at least not a time waster at all.

i am surprised by that. doug, could you expand on that? what needs to be adjusted? i just about to spring for one, but not want to spend 30 min tweeking each day. can u help? love all your very intelligent comments from experience in the forum . thanks from all of us.

Agree with Syntax that Koetsu/TriPlanar is not the best match. I'm no fan of the classic Koetsu sound, which always sounds artificially smoothed to me. This is true of every model up through the Onyx Platinum (haven't heard the Coral). The stone bodies (especially above the Jade) are much more neutral than the wood bodies, which I find insufferable. Just me. Agree that a higher mass arm is essential to get the best from any of them.

I've A/B'd several Olympos's (Olympi?) with UNIverses in my system and in two other systems. The first thing to know, as Syntax implied, is that one Olympos is not necessarily the same as the next. A friend who's owned 4 of them confirms this. That said, the comparison in the most revealing system (mine) with the most neutral of the friends's 4 Olympos's showed that the Lyra was a hair less neutral. It brushed each note with a hint of mink (the owner's phrase, very apt). I could have lived with that one or with Frank Schroeder's. Not so sure about the others.

I've had at 10-12 UNIverses in my setup, 3 of my own plus others in for checkups as a favor to friends. While each one needed individual setup, especially as regards, VTF and SRA, once dialed in the performance was consistent from sample to sample. Reflecting on something else Syntax said, the UNIverse does not feed much energy back into a tonearm, which is why has such low sonic overhang and is easy to move around. If you want a cartridge that does a disapearing act behind the music, that reveals everything in the groove, and are prepared for the constant (daily) adjustments needed to achieve this, it will do it. Its sweet spots are tinier than the Olympos's, certainly tinier than a Koetsu's, so be prepared for that. If it isn't perfectly dialed in it's just a very good cartridge that does nothing wrong. With everything truly sweet-spotted it's really good, at least in my system.

Doug

I did listen to several - expensive - Koetsus, but not to Coralstone, UNIverse or Olympos I bought. To be honest, they are different from sound and they work better in some arm than in others, specially Koetsu or Olympos.
Independent from your units you use, the UNIverse works best with nearly everything I tried. Very good sound, good color, one of the real good ones. really easy to go and no risk when you buy it from someone and you did not hear it before.
The Olympos is for me a special chapter. It is rare and I listened to it in different, but expensive set ups and was not impressed at all. Then I got one from a friend and all who did listen to it in my System, were very impressed. It gives the reproduction a kind of life which is very rare with modern cartridges. But it requires some work (at least for my Standard).
It moves a lot of energy into the Arm, the better that one is, the more details you will hear. My choice for it is FR-64s/66s or from the modern ones, the Phantom II. But I think, a SME V can be a interesting match, too. Arms with weak bearing should be avoided (they make the sound harsh/analytical and the high frequencies are sharp). When you read a "description like "the warmth from a Koetsu but linked with the analytic details from a Lyra": forget it, not true. I mean, not really true. The Olympos has some abilities which are very remarkable, but it is like a journey. It refelcts what you have.
All Koetsus I did use or listened to, give a better Performance in a heavy Arm which has precise tough Bearing. Lots of pics show Koetsus with Triplanar, for sure most owners like it, but I found better solutions (for me).
Good luck