Great subject @skyscraper . I find it hard to get conclusions on the sonic signature of carts, making shopping all the more difficult.
Hana Umami Red or Lyra Kleos?
I’ve found out about two or three cartridges in my price range of $3000 -$4000 that should work well within the limitations of my Luxman 505uX Mk II’s built in phono stage. The other cartridge is the Soundsmith "The Voice" MI cartridge. Next I’ve had to figure out which are also compatible with my VPI Classic 2’s JMW 10.5i tonearm (with or without the VPI two pivot mod).
I’ve been informed off my short list, the Hana Umani Red and the Lyra Kleos both appear to have the right specs to be appropriate candidates for use with the VPI JMW 10.5i, However the Soundsmith "The Voice" would have weight and/or compliance issues.
Have any of you advice as to which of either the Hana Umami Red or Lyra Kleos MC cartridges you might prefer? I’m pretty sure these are both excellent choices, but may have some differences you might be able to point out, I’m a bit disappointed the Soundsmith "The Voice" might not match up well with the VPI JMW 10.5i tonearm, but so it goes. Thanks for any advice and sharing your experience with either of these cartridges.
Mike
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I thought this cartridge might be my final upgrade" syscraper, You're in the walltet opening zone. VPI Classic is a price point table. Putting a cart above $1-21K is questionable,IMO. Weakness of the arm design has been stated. Also, if you don't have the SDS or Phoenix RR speed control(better) you may not be aware what you're missing. Upgrading the arm on the Classic with the gimbal or an aftermarket is subject for a different thread. Subjective and personal choice. Using the same table and familiar with what it can do, I believe the carts your looking at may be underserved both by the standard arm and using the Luxman's internal phono stage? Does it have the performance of a standalone $3K+ unit? That's what I would be considering for them. Reason I suggested the AT ART9. It has fans who own pricier carts. For that reason, I wouldn't consider higher than a Lyra Delos. VPI long haulers seem to have upper level models using such carts. Just my opinion. If I were to go up the VPI food chain, I'd have theHW40 DD, put a REALLY nice aftermarket arm for a 2nd choice(if that's possible) |
Agree with tablejockey. A Hana ML would be a good match for the listed system. A Lyra Delos would be more clinical tonally, with more apparent detail and dynamics. The Delos is a little more "hi fi" sounding, to my ears.
The Kleos and Unami Red are better (similar differences) but 2 or 3 times the cost. For you TT, not worth it IMO. Good luck! |
bears repeating VPI pivot upgrade + Delos or similar will outperform a $4k cartridge on your current arm. Especially given the integral phono stage you have, Additionly, if i had a jones to spend $4k in your system it would be: VPI pivot mod, Delos, HRS turntable base ( specific to your VPI TT mass ) just my two cents…. @tablejockey has sage wisdom imo
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Gsai, the Soundsmith Paua is one of the first cartridges I looked into for the reasons you mention. Unfortunately its specs indicate it is not compatible with the built in phono stage on my Luxman 507uX MkII integrated amp. I even sent an email to Soundsmith a week or so ago to verify that just in case, but have yet to hear back from them. Mijostyn, thanks for the follow up reply. I did read some posts by Mr. Carr in a related thread on a different forum that were quite interesting. I believe Raul did mention the Hana Umami Red as a possible choice in my more general thread on this topic last week. I did ask him for his thoughts on Lyra vs the Umami above, but haven’t head back here yet. That might be interesting. Your comments on the Lyra Kleos attributes are in keeping with reviews i’ve been reading recently on the Kleos. .I’ll have to call and check on its’ availability and price soon as I finish responding to folks replies here. Thanks again Phantom_av, you’ve spelled out some of the descriptions I’ve I’ve been running across on reviews of the Umami, musicality and warmth. I’ve never quite understood what constitutes warmth, other than in general analog might be warmer that digital. It’s something I need to learn more about because I normally am drawn to clarity and detailed presentation, like my Magico A3’s are known for. Jbhiller- thank you Tablejockey- "you’re absolutely right about being in the "wallet opening zone". That’s funny.. Then you go ahead and pour salt into that wound by suggesting I get a speed control, on top of the tonearm, and phono stage upgrades everyone’s suggesting in addition to an already expensive cartridge I’m chasing after. So cruel. I am not quite up there with the high rollers, And just when I thought I’d hit the big time with the VPI Classic 2 and Magico A3’s. You’re likely correct $3-4000 might be a bit much to spend on a cartridge for a VPI Classic 2, but it does leave room for the tonearm upgrade some of the well heeled rascals here are convincing me should be in my future along with filing for bankruptcy. Bobbydd, please don’t be agreeing with the nefarious tablejockey. A Hana ML might be a better match for my system, as so is my current Ortofon 2M Black. But I’m trying to do what it takes to make a significant enough cartridge upgrade to push through to a significant performance improvement. I asked about this suitability issue on my previous thread and Raul for one didn’t think that $3-000 or more for a cartridge was overkill for my VPI Classic 2, but a bottom figure to achieve this type of improvement. He did bust me on the unipivot tonearm the Classic 2 has though, so future improvement could be needed in that department. Tomic601, I am planning on the dual pivot mod as a stopgap. That sounds like a good suggestion. I’ll have to look up what a HRS turntable base is. Thanks again all for your input, Mike |
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