Soundsmith Strain Gauge - Thank You!

Well the SG came and Holy Smokes what a beast! There are so many cool things about this I am gonna have to devote a whole monster review to it. For now, even right out of the box it sounded quite good. Which is always impressive. Going up against highly tweaked Koetsu/Herron is no small task. I mean, just the power cord on the Herron cost more than the whole Strain Gauge! It is on Townshend Pods, and plastered with so much Krissy magic you can't believe. Even the Koetsu was painted in TC and more. 

So we did the acid test, SG right out of the box on its own feet no Pods no nothing. Even so it was awfully good. Not there in all ways but awfully good. 

SG is a completely different thing than any other. The cartridge does not generate a signal. It modulates input current supplied by a phono stage that is not a phono stage. No RIAA EQ. Consequently the thing can be left on and this seems to pretty much keep the cartridge and everything ready to go. So many great things about this rig! Anyway after last night, got it dialed in VTA and side bias (surprisingly sensitive, just like Peter says!) with it on Pods and TC, OMG I never heard technical accuracy be so draw you in enchanting!

Thanks, that is what I'm hoping for. Comparing moving mass between SG and MC (or even MI) are compelling. So is the timing, and not having to amplify 40+ dB for RIAA. It all makes perfect sense, and when technology aligns with actual listener results this usually is the mark of a winner. Last night listening to my Koetsu/Herron all tweaked to the max it is easy to imagine yet hard to believe. Soon we will know. 

Yes waiting for spiritofmusic to chime in. His comments came up repeatedly as I was researching and always excellent useful information. What you said is exactly what I have been going for, hangs with the top-end but on a more limited budget. 

Never done this before, but one of the first things I will do is check the 2 styluses under the microscope. Since they are identical, except for one having a couple hundred hours, it will be a great opportunity to compare and then as time goes by have the new one as reference. But yeah I am thinking they last a very long time. Which is good, as I have in mind this will probably be as Seinfeld would say a dead mans cartridge.

Thanks guys. When people reading my posts get triggered, I sometimes wonder if it would make any difference if they knew the research that goes into one of these decisions. Probably not, but I’m gonna tell you anyway.

I only really started looking into Soundsmith and reading about the Strain Gauge after upgrading my Benz Ruby H to Koetsu Black Goldline. I always wanted a Koetsu and so honestly confined my search to which Koetsu.

Experience has taught me to pay scant attention to specs and focus almost entirely on user listening evaluations. When I see a good one it registers, regardless of how often or popular, because so often many of the very best components are small and virtually unknown to the vast majority. But while I don’t put tremendous stock in specs and design I do have a very keen in depth understanding of how all this stuff works. So when I read about something like Strain Gauge it is easy enough for me to understand how the listening impressions bolster and corroborate the technology.

What listening impressions? Over the course of the last couple years I read countless reviews, many of them from Europe, including some really detailed ones comparing some very expensive cartridges and phono stages. The results pretty much always being the SG is right up there with carts in the $10k and up range- which also means up there with phono stages in the $10k and up range. Sometimes two and three times $10k. There are some crazy expensive carts out there, and guys with the jack to have two arms to play them side by side say they are close enough its a judgment call. Butter brickle, or chocolate fudge? Who cares it’s ice cream just give me two scoops!

Oh and yes, I did search and read pretty much every single post with the words strain gauge in it. This is why I don't come around asking people what should I get. They've already answered. I go look for the answers. Much more efficient.

As much as I’m looking forward to this, almost as eager to have a look inside. I’ve been tweaking and modding enough now to have a whole list of things I know will get me even more performance. Then there’s the power supply. Multiple reliable sources saying as good as it is stock there are big gains to be had. Music to my ears.

Know just what you mean. Herron VTPH2A. Koetsu Black Goldline. SG is really gonna be so much better?? Yeah, I think so. Or else why bother? I got the table, got the arm, nice rack and all, but I never heard me one of them primo top shelf carts. So looking forward to it.

As you probably know the cartridge and electronics are all the same, only the stylus and preamp features changes. Mine's the SGS200 with wood cabinet and SGS6 stylus, one with I'm told about 200 hours the other one brand new 0 hours. 

While waiting for the guy who tipped me off to this one to chime in I want to thank long term Strain Gauge user spiritofmusic for his many informative posts. One of the many things I like about the SG is the way it seems so eminently suited to a modder like me. The power supply upgrade is right up my alley. Spiritofmusic has a lot of experience with that and so I have a lot of cool mods to look forward to as well.