Transfiguration Phoenix vs Ortofon Cadenza

I haven't compared the two but I do have the Cadenza Bronze mounted on an original 10" VPI arm.  It tracks beautifully.  If it were me I would choose according to whether I wanted the additional warmth of the Bronze or the detail of the Black.  It is worth noting that the Bronze has .4mv output and the Black has .3mv.

Very true, wlutke. Output is a bit of a concern. Ortofon lists the output of the Black at .33mv, but most dealer's sites list it at .3mv. The Winfield seems to be consistently rated at .3mv.

.4-.5mv seems to be optimal for me at the moment, but I have been running a cart at .35mv with good results so I might be ok.

 I am a dealer for all of the above products so take it for what you will. I have the proteus and an Axia currently on the Avenger with 12" 3DR and the proteus is a very neutral yet crazy realistic sounding cartridge. Kinda a pain to mount though without the suggested mirrored finish protractor. The Axia is crazy dynamic and catches some of the realism that the proteus offers. It is also one of the easiest to mount with its different design. I had a Cadenza red and a cadenza bronze on the table last week. The red is a very nice cart for the money, doesn’t keep up with the transfiguration realism but is very pleasing. The bronze I felt was a little dark sounding with the 3D arm. Still sounded very good but just a touch dark. The black I have heard many times on one of my customers HRX’s and while he really liked it he eventually purchase a Proteus. I felt like the black was a better match for the 3D arm than the bronze and offered nice dynamics with a good amount of realism.

Transfiguration Phoenix is more dynamic and more musical. 

Thanks, Guys

I ended up getting a package deal on a Cadenza Black and Bob’s Devices 1131 SUT that I’ll be running into the MM section of my Zesto Andros phono. The VPI will be going head-to-head with a Rega RP10/Apheta 2 combo that I’ve been running for a while. Should be interesting!

I’ve gotten enough good feedback on the Phoenix and Proteus that I may try one down the road.