New cartridge - Benz Micro or Ortofon Cadenza?

Just replaced my Benz H2 with a Cadenza Bronze: good move on my part, I love the Benz but the Ortofon Cadenza Bronze is in another league altogether. More dynamic, better bass and exceptionally large expansive sound staging. Plenty of detail, highly musical, just a great great performer.

Well the Benz H2 was your problem. you will get a much better result with the L2 by a long shot. I do not have any experience with the cadenza bronze but judging by its price range, i would say you would be buying a very nice piece.

I've had the Benz Wood M2 and a Ref 3 (low output, copper coils) in my system a few years ago. I've also had an Ortofon Jubilee (predecessor of Cadenza Black), MC Windfeld, and Kontrapunkt c (predecessor of Cadenza Bronze) in my system around that time. And I also had a Cadenza Bronze for a day, a couple years back.

Out of them all, the Kontrapunkt c and Bronze had the best mix of neutrality with a touch of organic, natural warmth. The Jubilee and Windfeld were more analytical and left me kinda cold. The Benzes had a fun sound, but weren't as clean/smooth as the Ortofons (especially on top), not as extended, and had higher noise floor. It also seemed like parts of their response were a bit hyped up to give them this kind of "fun" sound. However, the newer "S" class Benzes are said to be a substantial improvement, and I've not heard those.

I enjoyed all these carts, but the Kontrapunkt c and Bronze were my overall favorites, despite the Windfeld being technically better (also, the Windfeld's bass response is insane; easily the best I've heard). Now I've happily run a Koetsu Jade/Onyx Platinum for a few years. But I really like that Bronze (wish I hadn't sold the Kontra c). Sometimes I wonder if I should just buy a Cadenza Bronze and not worry (as much) about $ cost per hour.

For what it's worth, the Bronze just simply continues to amaze me. I don't pretend to be a cartridge expert by any stretch, but the Bronze caused me to immediately go out and buy about 30 various jazz vintage albums, order 50 new anti-static album liners, and sort through much of my record collection. I've pretty much resigned myself to the fact that spending any more money on CD playback is a fool's game. I've always preferred vinyl to digital playback, but now, even the convenience of CD vs. vinyl isn't enough to cause me to consider digital as anything more than a source for background music. The Ortofon is really really good.