Optimal loading for the Orpheus

I appreciate the great feedback. I am upgrading from the Temper V to the Orpheus. I use a Sutherland PhD phono stage. To Jtimothya: I tried a variety of loadings for the Temper V using blank configuration boards I got from Ron Sutherland. I settled on 60 ohms using the Vishay S102's. I also tried some generic tantalum resistors (too bright), Caddocks (nice sound but too rolled off) and Kiwame's (a little too 'Koetsu'). I was anticipating loading the Orpheus in the 60-90 range. I have a few Vishay's in this range.

I can't wait to get the Orpheus given the great threads and plaudits you all have generated over the past 2 years. I have read them all back to the Temper V dissertations(nB. SirSpeedy- I know you were a great fan of the V)through to the Orpheus which ultimately pushed me to upgrade. Extremely useful stuff!

Rauliruegas (and Goldeneraguy): A brief history of cartridges in my system...I changed from a Benzmicro Ruby 3 (low output) to the Temper V a couple of years ago. This was a great improvement, particularly in realism/ natural tonality and presentation. Detail was also vastly improved. For the past 2 months, I have had a ZYX UNI in my system, which absolutely SMOKES the Temper V (enough said). Thus, I could not envision a scenario where I would return to the Temper V.

Given i) my original liking for the Temper V, ii) the generally positive reviews and thread dicussion regarding the Orpheus and an expectation/ recomendation (A.J Conti and folks at Oveture Audio) for a good system match of Transfig (I have had all of these to some extent on a Basis 2500 TT with a Vector 4 tonearm), I thought I would move on to the Orpheus (via a trade-in of the V). If YHO is correct (Orpheus underperforms relative to the Temper V), I will settle back and continue to enjoy the stellar ZYX. However, I anticipate (hope) the Orpheus will compete favorably with the ZYX.

Jim

"In my rig, there is really no easy way to change loading"

For parallel resistors you need not be that good at math:

1/R1 + 1/R2 = 1/Rsum

1/47000 + 1/1000 = 1/979

Thanks for the great advice about the variation in theresponse of the bass to loading. I have tended to listen to the highs, e.g. avoiding excessive brightness and edginess with high loadings. I have often started with the 20x - 25x priciple for loading relative to the output impedance. To be honest, this has been one of the best predictors for getting fairly close. Also, I rarely fool with resistors in parallel. I have broad selection of resistors (albeit different brands hence different character), mainly in the 40-1000 ohm range that I can usually define a good and fairly narrow window for loading. Sometimes I will use resistors in parallel just to get to a better defined loading. In the end, I have gravitated to ordering Vishay's resistors that appear in the middle of the desired window. These have been the most neutral and transparent from my listening and generally very satifactory.

Great points, Larryi. The VTA/SRA and loading have always presented a vexing challenge since they tend to track/compensate as you indicate. Thus, among the challenges of analog is getting all of the variables (e.g. loading, VTA/SRA, VTF, crosstalk) 'optimized.' I seem to be constantly fiddling with all of these, probably never really getting it exactly right (whatever 'right' is), but gravitating toward a sweet spot, to meet my aesthetic appeal. However, this is also one of the joys of analog - you can personalize via the tweaking.