Man 'O man, the AT guys are coming out of the woodwork. That's great!
While I listen to a lot of classical, I'm not centered in on any particular type of music. Jazz and blues was always my favorites when I was a kid ... but the beauty of this hobby is ... if you truly are a music lover, is the way the hobby expands your musical taste. I can listen to Charlie McCoy blast away on his country & western harmonica all day. He's amazing. But, then there is Mr. Perfection on the classical guitar .. John Williams. Tonight, I was listening to a Cannonball Adderley/Bill Evans album ... georgous. Oh ... and living in SoCal, I love really soulful Mexican music too.
So far, the ART-9 is fitting the bill even though its not nearly broken in. The other AT cartridges such as the 7 and the Anniversary are too low of an output for my phono stage ... the ARC-PH8. Ideally, the PH8 needs a cartridge with an output between .4mv and .8mv.
Pani ...
I never used to be a ballet fan but two things changed me on that issue. First the audio hobby introduced me to ballet music ... so I bought a few DVDs of certain Ballets. I couldn't believe the grace, strength and beauty created by these human beings through dance. Secondly, I have two daughters and a granddaughter and three grandsons who are very athletic ... even competing at the collegiate level. Same for myself as a younger man. So ... I've grown to really appreciate what it takes to perform at the level of ballet. Just a side note and for the football fans out there ... The great end, Jerry Rice, who played for the 49ers, was avid about his ballet training using it to enhance his football prowess. Anyone who remembers Jerry Rice and his playing can relate. He performed ballet in the end zone ... except the sportscasters called pulling down passes. *lol*
Thanks for all of the input. Its really enjoyable to compare all of your experiences with the same cartridge I'm using. More updates to follow.
Happy listening, guys ... and maybe a gal or two. |
Again, the cartridge is brand new. It has about 10 hours on it at this point ... so it IS a little tizzy on the top end just like my previous OC-9 MK-III's were. The OC-9's took about 40 hours before they started to calm down. I expect the same from the ART-9.
Robert, my friend with the "Golden Ears," who hears like a friggin' bat, is very familiar with my system. We are both avid record collectors with VERY wide tastes in music. We both agree that this new cartridge is at least as good as the Lyra Clavis that was in the system a few years ago ... and that is saying something.
I love the work that Abie is doing at Impex records. Impex is reissuing some of the great recordings of the past, both in stereo and in mono. Their efforts formulate into really natural sounding recordings. They shun the audiophile artifacts (like excessive reverb) that so many audiophile recordings are guilty of. Impex is the firm that reissued the June Christy "Something Cool" and the Julie London "Julie is Her Name" albums ... both in mono.
Last night I put the Impex reissue of the "Beethoven: Concerto NO.4 in G Major" with Glenn Gould (piano) and Leonard Bernstein conducting the New York Philharmonic. Wow ... that piano was in the room! Dynamic from top to bottom. The lower registers were right on. It takes a really good cartridge to get the piano right like this.
Reproducing the piano is where the Lyra Clavis never failed to impress. The ART-9 is right there with it ... and seems to be overall even more tonally correct to boot. Do you like cellos? Me too. Granted, the Clavis was built back in the 80's, but even so, for the ART-9 to surpass it is really saying something.
Here are the recordings I alluded to above:
Julie London:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/JULIE-LONDON-JULIE-IS-HER-NAME-PREMIUM-USED-LP-NM-EX-/311400408346?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4880e9251a
June Christy: "Something Cool."
http://www.ebay.com/itm/June-Christy-Something-Cool-with-Pete-Rugolo-and-his-orchestra-LP-VG-/271920566268?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3f4fba8ffc
Glenn Gould/Leonard Bernstein:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Beethoven-Concerto-No-4-In-VINYL-Glenn-Gould-Leonard-Bernstein-Vinyl-/371383871862?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_15&hash=item5678342976
The originals are astounding with a "you are there" presence. If you can find really clean copies go for the mono versions of the first two. If you can afford it, buy the Impex versions ... they are mastered better than the originals (Kevin Gray) with much better and quieter vinyl. Impex reissued the Julie London recording in a 45 rpm version. Its worth the entry price just for the cover. Wow!
Happy listening ... |
tablejockey...
It says volumes about this obsessive hobby when a cartridge costing almost $1100.00 is considered to be a budget cartridge. I remember the days when a $49.00 Grado was really good ... especially when mounted on an AR turntable that cost $69.00 new. And that included the arm.
I'm of the belief that the price of the products didn't go up. On the contrary, I believe the value of the money went down.
Glad to hear that you are enjoying your ART-9. Between you and Pani's assessments, it looks like I have a lot to look forward to as the unit breaks in.
By the way, I was listening to some orchestral ballet music this morning on a London two box stereo set. Its a tribute to the great Diva from the past, Anna Pavlova. The massed strings were to die for with the ART-9.
Sorry, I tried to find the box set on eBay and Amazon to no avail. I bought mine at a garage sale years ago for a couple of bucks.
For your enjoyment, here she is on Youtube Be sure to put your headphones on
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMEBFhVMZpU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cn_K41P0B1w
And here is the great diva Maya Plisetskay performing The Swan at the age of 61. Incredible.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Luz5g-doa34
Happy listening ... |
Okay, here we are at about 30-40 hours on the new ART-9. At this point, readers of all of my previous posts on this cartridge can forget everything I said. Why? Because the cartridge at this point has far surpassed all I said before.
This cartridge plays HUGE. With the combination of the ARC-REF-75se and the ART-9, the music just seems to wrap around the room.
The three dimensionality of this cartridge really adds to the realism. The super clear midrange reproduces voices particularly well. Coral music is just great with all the singers right there in their own place in space.
With the improved clarity in the midrange, the midbass is more tuneful and realistic as well. Acoustic stand-up bass on jazz recordings is much improved over the old OC-9 MKIII.
Orchestral music is way more defined now. This is a very dynamic cartridge. Last night I was listening to Bizet's Carmen Ballet performed by the Bolshoi Theater Orchestra. This is a Russian recording on the Melodia label. I thought the dynamics on this record was good before, but WOW, it was nothing like this! I've always used this record as a demo for unsuspecting non-audiophile friends. If you can find it, buy it. Whoops ... I just found it for you. Jump on this one, guys:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ROZHDESTVENSKY-BIZET-SHCHEDRIN-THE-CARMEN-BALLET-LP-CLASSICAL-/321817949802?hash=item4aedd8366a
Do any of you like the "Provocative Percussion" recordings or the early "Stereo Demo" recordings of the early 60's? I have a lot of them, and they never fail to knock the socks off of my audiophile friends. They're amazing recordings and a lot of fun to listen to.
Here's some good ones for sale on Ebay:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/STEREO-SPECTACULAR-DEMONSTRATION-SOUND-EFFECTS-DFS7777-RARITIES-/221821166311?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item33a59262e7
http://www.ebay.com/itm/STEREO-IMAGING-DEMONSTRATION-RECORD-OHM-TELDEC-VIRGIN-VINYL-1982-LP-/231636097310?hash=item35ee96591e
http://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-SOUND-IN-THE-ROUND-VOL-2-STEREO-DEMONSTRATION-1956-LP-RECORD-ALBUM-CS-22-/311246594163?hash=item4877be2073
http://www.ebay.com/itm/PROVOCATIVE-PERCUSSION-RECORD-LP-33-SIZE-12-FREE-SHIPPING-/161777522150?hash=item25aab115e6
http://www.ebay.com/itm/PERSUASIVE-PERCUSSION-VOULUME-3-RECORD-LP-33-SIZE-12-FREE-SHIPPING-/161777522146?hash=item25aab115e2
And while I was looking for you guys, I ran across this five record box set and just couldn't pass it up, so I bought it for myself. |
The AT50 is just too low of an output for my phono. The ART-9 is just right.
The other night I put on one of those early stereo demo recordings I spoke about in an earlier post for my cynical, golden-eared friend, Robert. The first cut is a recording of two guys playing ping-pong. Holy crapola! They were in the freakin' room.
From now on, Robert will find a box of adult Pampers at the front door and he will be required to don a triple layer before the listening session begins.
What an amazing cartridge.
Thanks again for the recommendation, Pani. |
Been running my ART-9 at 100 ohms. What are other ART-9 owners doing??
Thanks ... |
Speaking of mono ... I have tons of mono jazz and vocal recordings from the 50s. I was really impressed by how well the AT-OC9 MK III played mono records. It just seemed to get a lot more information out of those mono grooves than other cartridges I've had over the years. The cartridge is available from LP Tunes for $499. While the OC-9 excels on mono recordings, the ART-9 is even better. At over twice the price of the OC-9, it should be better. If I were running two tonearms and wanted a mono cartridge that sounded great, I'd go with the OC-9 MKIII and call it a day.
Want to hear a killer mono record? Are you a Brubeck/Paul Desmond fan? Here you go:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/DAVE-BRUBECK-JAZZ-IMPRESSIONS-OF-USA-LP-VG-VG-White-Label-PROMO-6-Eye-/361359501484?hash=item5422b468ac |
Fleib ...
I only have one tonearm and it doesn't have a headshell. So, swapping cartridges is out of the question for me. My turntable (Well Tempered original model) is difficult to set up properly, so that's another problem. So, if anyone is in the same boat as me, and the OC-9 MK III is affordable, that would be a good way to go. Also, my phono stage (ARC PH-8) has a mono switch, so going between stereo and mono is a breeze. I always use the mono position when listening to mono records. Somehow, the OC-9 and ART-9 seem to get down into the grooves of the mono records to extract the information. Could it be that some of the problems you alluded to are resolved by the higher end AT cartridges? |
As my ART-9 continues to break in, it continues to amaze. Mr. Golden Ears came over for a listening session this past Saturday and was blown away. We've all heard the old saying that "its like a new record collection," right? In this case it's true. |
Pani ...
I have an Audio Research PH-8 set at 100ohms. It seems to be the best setting for my preamp and system. There's about 75 hours on the cartridge now ... and just like you said, it is still improving. We were comparing notes last night on other cartridges I've used over the years. The closest one to the ART-9 was the Lyra Clavis. While the Clavis was a wonderful cartridge, it had a tendency to be analytical and focused on inner detail. It had a wide and deep soundstage as well. I always felt that the strongest attribute of the Clavis was the way it reproduced the piano. Well, at this point, the ART-9 is beating the Clavis by a long shot. Its nothing about inner detail, soundstage, or a "wow" factor ... its just that the darned thing gets with the music and never says: "hey look at me, I'm a high end cartridge." It just puts Sarah Vaughn in the room with you. The highs are so accurate its amazing. Brushed cymbals and high-hats are dead on. Vibes are amazing. I'm hearing Cal Tjader like never before. I could go on, but one more time ... thank you for pushing me over the edge to buy this cartridge. I was saving up for another brand that would have set me back over $3000. I don't think I'm missing anything at all at this point. |
Aigenga ...
Wish I could help you, but I don't have a clue. Why not send an Email to LP Tunes? Here, this will take you right to the spot: http://www.lptunes.com/articles.asp?ID=83 |
Dodgealum
The ART-9 will sound better than your OC-9 right out of the box. With that said, you won't begin to hear what the cartridge is capable of for about 40-50 hours. At that point, you'll be full of Oh's and Ah's ... but that's nothing compared with what you'll hear at 100 hours when the cartridge is fully broken in. Have patients and once you reach full break in, do as I do ... have a box of adult Pampers handy and insist that your friends wear them before they can enter your listening room.
Happy listening ... |
Told ya. And lest we forget ... we have member "Pani" to thank for the original suggestion and pushing us toward the ART-9.
And just as a side note ... if you have a belt driven turntable, go here: www.originlive.com and order one of their custom turntable belts. The improvement is uncanny. It really improves the speed accuracy. You can actually hear the darned thing break in as you play records. Its a wow tweek! |
If you really want to hear what this cartridge is capable of, replace the fuses in your electronics with the Synergetic Research RED Quantum fuses. You'll be amazed, I promise. |
Pani ... I'm running mine at 100 ohms. Sounds best at that setting though the ARC PH-8.
The cartridge is broken in now ... and is simply amazing for the money. It's the best I've had in the system ... and that includes more expensive cartridges. Also, I didn't think the OC-9 MKIII could be topped for reproducing mono recordings at anywhere near it's price, but the ART-9 kills the OC-9 on monos. |
Tablejockey ...
Same experience with my PH-8. I've tested the settings with my friend Robert (Mr. Golden Ears), and he backs up my conclusions. There is a slight difference in changing settings, but at 100 ohms the highs just seem to be dead on. In fact ... beautiful.
Are you having the same experience as Pani and myself ... that the ART-9 just seems to disappear and never brings attention to itself? The darned thing just plays music ... and does it very well. |
Return it. No excuse for it not being perfectly aligned. |
Pani ...
It looks as though you opened up the floodgates for this wonderful cartridge. Thanks again for leading us to it. Mine is completely broken in now ... and my records have never sounded better ... even with much more expensive cartridges. |
I'm using an original Well Tempered table with the original WT arm ... with modifications of course. *lol* |
^^^ Right on ... and beautifully written as well. |
I have an original Well Tempered TT that I bought new back in the 80's. It's very difficult to set up. Once set up properly, it's one of the best out there for under 50k. I've stopped setting it up myself, and instead, I take it to an expert to do it for me. For the performance difference, its well worth the money. The last time was with the ART-9 and the charge was $190.00. I'm done messing with it., |
Good for you, melm. Its a great cartridge ... it lets you enjoy the music and not listen to the cartridge. |
I've found that the 100 ohm setting is the right setting for my ART-9 as well.
I've not played records for a few weeks, so taken was I by the CD player I installed the two SR Black fuses into the player and they broke in. I just wanted to keep listening to CD's. Hard to tear yourself away when CD's sound THAT good.
I had a couple of friends over last night for a listening session, both of whom knows my system really well. About half way through the session they wanted to switch to the turntable.
The first thing I threw on was an excellent stereo recording of one of Cal Tjader's Latin albums. The percussion was so natural sounding along with Tjader's vibes, it sounded as though Tjader's group was in the room and across the sound stage --- front to back, side to side and floor to ceiling. Simply amazing at the ART-9's price point.
I can say that the ART-9 has stayed right up there with the very significant improvement made in the CD player. Wow! What a good buy (in high-end terms) the ART-9 is. Its a bargain considering what I does (or doesn't do.) One thing it does the best is to stay out of the way of the music.
ps68 ... After around 50 hours of break-in the cartridge really gets going.
Happy listening ... |
|
^^^ Also, are you sure LP Tunes is sold out? I went to their site and see no indication that the ART-9 is sold out. Could it be that they've restocked?? |
^^^ Nice, Pani ...
And once again, thank you for turning us on to the ART-9. What an amazing cartridge it is.
I've recently placed a Synergistic Research Black fuse into my ARC PH-8. Once the fuse is broken in (70 - 150 hours), it gives new meaning as to how good the ART-9 really is. Highly recommended. |
Okay ... its been almost exactly a year since I started this thread on the great AT ART-9 cartridge.
Over this past year, I've made some real significant upgrades to the system including some very outstanding room treatments. Where I thought the ART-9 was a killer in the past, it is now a GIANT KILLER!
If you are thinking about a cartridge in the 3k to 5k price range ... consider the ART-9 and save yourself a ton of money.
Happy listening guys.
PS: Again, thanks to Pani for turning us on to the ART-9 |
Chakster ...
think I heard the ART-2000 in a high-end audio store back in time, but it seems as though it was longer than 15 years. ago. The dealer was bringing them in on the grey market. No warranties. I remember being totally impressed with the pitch black background. Quite a revelation for me. Now, the top of the AT line is the ART-1000 at the price of $5000.00.
Frank |
^^^ I haven't heard the AT150AV, so I really can't comment on it.
I recently had the opportunity to hear an ultra expensive audio system with a retail value of over 300k. It had three turntables, one of which had the Lyra Etna cartridge on it.
I couldn't help making comparisons with my own much more modest system of course. While the more expensive system played MUCH larger than mine (The Big Wilson's), it occurred to me that my system, as far as tonal balance and overall musicality is concerned, gave up nothing.
What I noticed about the Lyra Etna was a rising top end that was causing a bit of unnatural brightness to the highs. Now, this may have been caused by the setup and not by the cartridge itself, but I couldn't help thinking that the AT ART-9, especially for the difference in cost, really didn't give up much of anything, and actually gained with a more natural sounding treble. Again, this is no slam against the Lyra at all ... it sounded fantastic. But for my money, I'd go with the AT-ART9 and keep eight grand in my pocket.
Frank |
^^^ Chakster ... What's the output of the ART-2000?
Thanks ... |
Thanks. I sent the specs to a friend. |
^^^ Good choice, avanti. Please post your impressions as you get set up and start the break-in process.
|
^^^ avanti ...
I predict that once your new ART-9 is broken in you won't be wondering about new cartridges ever again. Just my opinion of course, but its an opinion resulting from playing the cartridge game myself over the years. |
^^^
At least 50 hours of break-in before you'll be convinced. Then ... Zowie. |
^^^
Give it some time. It really starts to open up at 50 hours and continues to improve from there. Also, have you experimented with VTA? |
^^^ In additon to what Pani said above, if you don't have any, buy some of the classic jazz and classical records in mono. The ART-9 extracts more information from mono records than any other cartridge I've had before, including the AT OC9 MkIII. And that's really saying something. |
sebrof ,,,
Step up to the bar. I'll take a Newcastle on tap. :-) |
Al ...
Thanks for your continued technical advise and opinions. I feel compelled to say that you are very much appreciated and a valued asset here. s
Reporting on equipment and tweaks that work and sharing the good news about same with like-minded fellow hobbyists is a pleasure for me.
Thanks to Pani, there's a bunch of us who are now enjoying the ART-9 and keeping a whole lotta cash in our pockets in the process. |
^^^ You're welcome Al, and quite deserving.
j_damon ...
There is no excuse for the cantilever to be skewed. The distributor has to make it right. and I think they will. I'd refer them to this thread for starters. The ART-9 has a lot of fans here and gaining all the time.
Unlike most high end moving coil cartridges, the ART-9 doesn't seem to have a rising top end built into the design. I believe this is one of the major things that contributes to the natural sound of the cartridge. Maybe someone with more technical knowledge than I would like to comment on this.
Frank |
avanti ...
Glad you're cartridge finally blossomed. I've stopped setting up cartridges on my own. I use a person who knows the Well Tempered Turntable inside and out. Its difficult to set up any cartridge on that table, let alone the ART-9. Over the past couple of years, my hands have been the resident of "The Brothers" ... Arthur and Mister I. Tiss, plus they cramp up easily. Wish I could do the setup myself, but I don't relish the thought of destroying a thousand dollar cartridge because of my own limitations.
j_damon ...
Nice going. You're going to be very happy, I'm sure.
With the ART-9 playing through the ARC PH-8 most records sound best with the ARC REF-3 preamp gain set at 66 ... give or take a few notches. So, that's plenty of gain with still retaining total background silence.
Al ...
I just went to the LP Gear site to see if they had a read-out or a chart on the ART-9 where we could see the specs for the top end. I didn't find the chart, but noticed that LP Gear has reduced the price of the ART-9 down to $929.00 turning it into a real bargain. In fact, a steal.
Frank
|
^^^ I think the rising top end of most high end moving coil cartridges give s false sense of "detail" or "transparency" when in actuality, its more of a slight edgy brightness and not natural. I believe that when reproducing music in our homes with all of our fancy and expensive gear, we should try to emulate a live performance as much as possible. I attend concerts a little less frequently than I used to, but I never recall a time at any concert thinking ... "boy, those strings sound "detailed," or ... oh geeze, what a black background." I believe that one's system has arrived when audiophile and music loving friends come over for a listening session and say ... "Man, those GUYS sound great," instead of, "Hey, your system sounds great." Big difference. So, for last nights listening pleasure I invited Kenny Burrell and Stanley Turrentine into the room along with Gabor Szabo. Both recording are on fine Japanese CD transfers. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kenny-Burrell-Midnight-Blue-Japan-CD-cp32-5229-MEGA-RARE-/201748350397?hash=...http://www.ebay.com/itm/SZABO-SORCERER-CD-NEW-/401166703602?hash=item5d67661bf2:g:-oAAAOSwRGlXpz1sAgain ... these guys sounded great. Frank |
Pani ...
Even though I loved my Clavis, I agree with the rising top ends of the Lyras.
I recently spent an evening listening to a VERY high end system that most likely retailed for 350-450k. Three turntables, one of which was sporting the Lyra Etna. Everything about that system was HUGE, including the sound. It was spectacular in every way. However, the slight brightness on the top end was still there. While listening, I attributed the slight brightness to perhaps cartridge setup. I could be dead wrong here, but it sounded like that rising top end again. Personally, I think most audiophiles would really love it. In fact, most do. Its perceived as "transparency," or "detail" in the upper registers. To me, it just doesn't sound correct.
And by the way ... Robert (Mister Record) was over the other night and made a good point. He said ... Instead of talking about transparency, inner detail, sound stage, black backgrounds, or any of the other descriptive words in the audiophile lexicon, how about we just start using two words: "correct" or "incorrect." Made sense to me.
Frank
|
^^^ Don ... I have the original turntable and arm that they were selling when Well Tempered first hit the market back in the '80's. In fact, the table has one of Bill Firebaugh's very first arms on it. I bought the arm from an aerospace engineer who bought it directly from Bill Firebaugh after attending a demo at the engineer's audio society meeting. When I bought it, it was still new in the box. Then, I subsequently bought just the table from an audio dealer who was selling the tables at the time. I guess you could call the table I have "The Classic Well Tempered Turntable." Over the years I've modified it some what: 1. The tone arm has been rewired with Cardas pure copper wire. 2. A heavy brass clamp is bolted around the arm's dampening fluid well. The well is made of thin metal and rings like hell without the brass clamp. Adding the clamp was like installing a huge Herbie's tube dampener on it with the same results. 3. I had a specially machined brass counter-weight made to replace the aluminum one that was on the stock arm. 4. When I had the brass counter-weight machined, I also had a new brass bolt and nut machined as well. Its what holds the tone arm in place and fits from underneath the table. 5. I put one layer of heat shrink along the entire length of the arm to reduce any micro vibrations there. I tried two layers but it over-damped the arm and dulled the sound. 6. The stock belts have been replaced with a custom belt built by originlive in England. Amazing what their belt did to improve the sound. I highly recommend an originlive custom belt to any owner of a belt drive turntable. http://www.originlive.com/turntable-belts-replacement-new.html7. I'm using a Von Gaylord "Legend" IC between the turntable's Cardas junction box and the ARC PH8. http://vongaylordaudio.com/beta/cabling/Ray Leung is the engineer behind all of the Von Gaylord products. He's a genius and his electronics, speakers and cabling reproduce tonally correct reproductions of the actual musical events. I'm a big fan of his cabling. In fact, I'm a big fan of Ray. He's an exceptional gentleman and knows his music and sound. So, with all of these mods, some which were inexpensive, and some that were expensive, I think I'm getting the best out of my turntable at this point. I'd sure like to try one of ARC's Reference phono stages though. And just one more point ... I have tried a variety of after market platter mats. So far, just the bare acrylic platter sounds best. I'm tempted to try one of Herbie's platter mats though. I think he has a generous return policy if you don't care for the results. http://herbiesaudiolab.net/ttmat.htmIf you take the time to wade through Herbie's customer reviews, there are a couple of guys using Herbie's mat on their WTT and claim its a major improvement. I may pop for one soon. Take care ... Frank |
^^^ I'm curious to see if you end up liking the ART-9 better than any of the others. |
^^^ Now that's interesting, avanti. I believe your experience is due to the fact that you admittedly do not have the patients/confidence (what ever that means) to wait until the cartridge is fully broken in. 20 hours is not even breaking the surface on what the ART-9 will do when fully broken in.
You're passing judgement way too soon. I don't believe you are experiencing a "system synergy" problem either. What you are hearing on your "best recordings" is the promise the ART-9 holds once broken in.
In all of the years in this hobby, I have yet to hear a cartridge that does everything to my satisfaction with less than 50 hours of break-in time ... the ART-9 included. Most new cartridges I've had take all of those 50 hours and some much more.
I'd say put the ART-9 back into the system, run it for 100 hours, then take out some of the recordings that you are really familiar with and play them again. You may be surprised.
|
^^^ rantzmar ...
And this is something that is true of not just cartridges, but other electronics as well. My last two ARC amps, both the REF-75 and the REF-75se took over 500 hours to sound their best. And just like you said, it changes from listening session to listening session. One time you think its broken in a little bit and the next time its taken a backward step. Power cord and IC's do the same thing. Even the turntable belt that I ordered from originlive had a break-in period. In the belt's case I could actually hear it break in over about a one hour period. Slightly improved over the stock belt initially, but an hour later? ... Zowie! |
New: Pinched sound stage, aggressive highs, bloated bass, recessed mid-range and non-involving emotionally.
Broken in: Sound stage wide open with amazing 3-D imaging, soaring highs, tunefully correct bass lines, super present mid-range and great music like Bach's "Air on a G string" just makes you want to cry.
^^^ This applies to most electronics, cables, fuses, new turntable belts (yes, turntable belts) in need of a break-in period, including cartridges. This, you can measure with your ears. |
dodgealum ...
I have to respectively disagree with you.
I've had a number of good to high end cartridges over the years. Every one of them needed time to break in ... the ART-9 included. The ART-9 was the first cartridge where I relied on a person with expert knowledge on my turntable and cartridge setup to set up the ART-9 for me. It was well worth the extra expense.
Prior to using the ART-9, I had been using AT's OC-9 MKIII's which I considered to be one of the major bargains in cartridges based upon what it does and doesn't do.
Upon initial listening to the ART-9, compared to a fully broken in OC-9 MKIII, the sound wasn't "terrible" at all. It was grainy on top and bloated on the bottom. Also, in comparison to the OC9 MKIII, it had a somewhat pinched sound stage, lacked depth and the 3-D imaging was reduced as well. As time went on, the ART-9 opened up and all of the artificial artifacts were gone. It just killed the OC-9 MK-III.
In the area of suspending disbelief, in my experience, which granted, does not include the megabucks $10,000+ cartridges, only the Lyra Clavis that I purchased new and owned for several years could compete with the ART-9. Here's the rub ... The Clavis only did this on "special" nights when the power coming into the house was purer, like at 2 in the morning. The rest of the time, the Clavis called attention to itself in one way or another. The OC-9 doesn't call attention to itself at all. Its just music ...accurate music emanating from the speakers that are no longer there. As far as the musical presentation, there is a lot more "there there."
Not taking anything away from Lyra in general or the Lyra Clavis here at all. The only cartridge I've had that can compete with the Clavis on correct piano tones is the ART-9. The Clavis was truly great at this. My philosophy has always been ... get the piano right and the system will be right. Tonally, the ART-9 would be the overall tonal balance champ. Again, I have not had experience IN MY SYSTEM with the 10k+ cartridges.
Is a new ART-9 night and day better than a fully broken in OC-9MK III? If I had the choice of living with a fully broken in OC-9-MKIII or a brand new ART-9 ... I'd take the OC-9 MKIII. Would I take a fully broken in ART-9 over a fully broken in OC-9 MK-III? Yes, in a nano-second. It really is night and day.
Just as a side note ... Both the OC-9 MKIII and the ART-9 are killers on mono records. I look at that a a major bonus as I own hundreds of mono early released jazz records from the 1950's that were never produced in stereo.
As a final caveat ... the system has been greatly improved over the years since the Clavis was being used as my go-to cartridge. In all fairness, who knows what the Clavis would sound like today? A bit mind blowing I would suspect.
Frank |
^^^ Good for you, j_damon. Looking forward to your assessment of the ART-9. |
^^^ Nice report Jollytinker .... I've had Keith Jarrett's Koln concert in the collection a few times. The album has really good sound and the vinyl is usually silent too. BUT, Jarrett's humming and moaning throughout the recording is way too intrusive and distracting for me. His playing is great of course, but as a friend said one evening ... "if only they would stuff a rag in his mouth!" I was wondering ... have you, or anyone else posting to this thread ever picked up on a pianist named Claude Williamson? I've loved his playing since I was a kid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSJl3VtXxJA&list=PLxsLOAF2UJILZdcPLyBInhQDhvx58xF15 |
