Quick update. I noticed my tonearm was not level leading to the cartridge not being ideal for playback. After leveling and correcting anti skate 47KOhms sounds best. Thank you all for your help
Load Settings Help: Luxman E-250 and Koetsu Black Line
Hi Folks, I could do with some help as I don't understand load impedance or capacitance settings.
I have a Luxman E-250 for my phono stage which is connected to a Michell Gyro SE with a Tecnoarm 2 and a Koetsu Black gold line cartridge mounted on the arm. This all feeds a C900u and a M10x.
The settings on the E-250 are default but I feel there is more to be had with the sound based on some other similar setups i've heard. Could I get some recommendations on load settings?
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@sdavada The cartridge literally does not care how you load it until the load value is quite low and then the cartridge output will decrease. But when the cartridge is tracking, it generates Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) and many phono sections are unhappy with that. You can cut the RFI entirely by using a loading resistor. On this account its not a critical value but might vary from phono section to phono section. The load shunts the RFI noise by detuning the RF resonance that causes the problem. Its a bit technical; let me know if you want the full explanation. If the phono section is immune to the RFI you’ll find the industry stock value of 47KOhms to work fine and loading to have little effect. If the phono section has RFI problems the loading will have quite a lot of effect. Phono cartridges are a balanced source; if you are looking for a phono section you might take that into account. If running balanced from the cartridge to the phono section, the cable can be really neutral (one of the reasons to go balanced is to eliminate cable colorations). There’s really no way to correct for losses or colorations downstream from the phono, no matter how good your amps or speakers are! | ||||||
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I did not know the specs on his phono pre and was/am going on the assumption that he could use 47K with a 60db gain as I can. My mistake in this particular instance. .But the idea is still appropriate for those who’s phono pre can load 47K with the MC gain. I have done this with several cartridges. But considering that the OP may be somewhat new to MC cartridges its good that you pointed this out. | ||||||
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As I understand atma-sphere (Ralph Karsten's) explanation, the lower your setting is, the stiffer the cantilever (& suspension) of your cartridge will get. The higher settings allow the cartridge to track more freely. I have found that many LOMC cartridges sound best at 47K ohms, even though that is the typical MM cartridge setting. I'd suggest that you start off with the 47K ohm setting & move down from there. At 47K you may have a brightness or glare If your phono preamp doesn't have a stable circuit. Move to 1K if that is the case and work down. Ralph explains it much better. But I've used 47K for many years with little or no issue | ||||||
your Luxman Phono needs to be carefully understood, the MC High is not what I imagined, it will work with fairly low signal strengths, so you can try the MC Low and MC High options as suggested above
and it will accept very strong signals without overloading (as noted, caution with the volume when changing from low to high).
other settings should be understood (or restored to defaults perhaps), Your going thru your C-900U control unit via RCA unbalanced I suspect as the E-250 Phono has only RCA out, so the c 900U RCA in is 43K input sensitivity
so I would set the Luxman E 250 dip switches 1 and 2 for 47K impedance I don’t know, but would like to learn about dip switches 3 and 4 for capacity pF, anyone? | ||||||
still hopping about, found a review of a Koetsu Rosewood from 2007 with some info, but tell me what is the Stylus Shape? "Stylus: specially designed and ground for Koetsu" "Description: Low-output, moving-coil phono cartridge. Stylus: specially designed and ground for Koetsu. Output: 200µV (1kHz, 5cm/s). Internal impedance: 5 ohms. Frequency range: 20Hz–100kHz. Channel separation: >30dB/1kHz. Channel balance: within 0.5dB/1kHz. Recommended VTF: 1.8–2.0gm. Recommended loading: 5–100k ohms. Compliance: medium-low. Recommended tonearm: medium-high mass." a typo? Recommended loading: 5–100k ohms | ||||||
Information on the maker’s site is pitiful "Black, Goldline, least expensive For many, their Koetsu journey starts with the Black Goldline. While it is the most affordable Koetsu, it doesn’t sacrifice what makes a Koetsu special. The Black Goldline uses many of the same parts as the higher end models and the result is effortless musicality and magic. "From the clarinets in the opening to the deeply textured final chord of the first movement, the Koetsu’s performance was impossible to ignore: This wasn’t just pretty sound in place of the music but sound as a part of the music." Art Dudley, Stereophile “The thing that really grabs me when listening to this moving coil cartridge is its overarching realism, musicality, clarity, and wide open extended sound.” Michael Corsentino, Positive Feedback
Specifications Anodized Aluminum Body Copper Coil Wiring Samarium Cobalt Magnet Boron Cantilever 0.4 mV Output 10.2 g Net Weight Recommended Tracking Force 1.8-2.0g Recommended Load 75-500 ohms $2,995" they don't even tell you it’s a moving coil, (the reviewer mention’s that it is) or it’s coil’s impedance (member viridian tells us above it is approximately 5 ohms coil impedance), or publish any performance specs for stereo separation or channel balance. they give a wide range of recommended load 75-500 ohms, and tell you it has a boron cantilever, but tell me, what stylus shape is it? guidance formula for loading a moving coil is start with 10x it’s coil impedance, which is approximately 50 ohms, yet they say 75 to 500 ohms. ........................................ top of the line, Blue Lace, $16k, this is all they tell you "Specifications Blue Onyx Stone Body Silverplated Copper Coil Wiring Platinum Magnet Boron Cantilever 0.3 mV Output 12.5 g Net Weight Recommended Tracking Force 1.8-2.0g Recommended Load 75-500 ohms $15,995" ...........................................
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@viridian Thank you. I completely missed that on this preamp. I'll have a play with the options at the front to test what sounds best | ||||||
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Thanks @theflattire | ||||||