Goldfinger Statement, Lyra Atlas or Ortofon Anna?

Is there anybody out there who upgraded from Clearaudio Insider Reference Wood to the Clearaudio Goldfingers?

Improvements? Change in tonality?

Regarding the Goldfinger Statement Jonathan Valin wrote in TAS Issue 216, October 2011:

"You’re going to find this hard to fathom—I certainly did—but in tonal balance the cartridge that the Statement most resembles isn’t the Goldfinger v2 or the Ortofon A90, which is what you might expect; it is the Koetsu Blue Lace! Yep, this is a voluptuous-sounding transducer—the polar opposite of the traditional Clearaudio sound.
Now, I don’t know if this gorgeous tonal palette will change with further break-in. But at the moment this is one ravishingly beautiful cartridge to listen to. Let me be more precise here, lest you get the impression that the Statement is a highly colored cartridge. It is not. But it is warmer and sweeter and fuller (i.e., closer to lifelike with a touch of romance) than any Clearaudio I’ve heard—ever."

Can someone agree or is this only "reviewers hyperbole" ??

The Atlas paired with ARC ref2(SE) was the best sound I have made out of my system. I currently have the titan i, vdh xgp ref mk2, dyna xv1t. Previously had the airtight PC1, my sonic lab ultraeminent, koetsu coralstone. Briefly tried PC1 supreme and goldfinger (forget v1 or v2) .

I am also a mostly classical / jazz listener. Before the Atlas, I have 3-4 favorite carts as they have some unique strength and weaknesses. After the Atlas, all the other carts were much less played. The resolution, dymanics, detail, along with the new found tonal naturalness made the Atlas very addicitive.

The airtight line (pc1 and the supreme) are very dynamic and reasonably detailed. They are rich sounding and have a smooth treble. A little laid back. This can complement an overly bright/lean system. Airtights do not track the transients as faithfully as the lyras. The attack, sustain and decay are all there but not very interesting. The lyras will tell you more about how the note builds and disspipate. The VDH, XV1T are great in this respect too.

In my system, Goldfinger was quite similar to the MSL which was a little better than the airtight. A friend of mine found happiness with the new GF statement but I have not had the pleasure to hear.

I have listened to A90 many times but not in my system. I never felt the urge to try one but my experience is limited by systems showcasing the A90. Anna may be a lot better.

The lyra line have excellent QC as well. Excellent channel matching, low crosstalk, near perfect orientation of the stylus The Atlas will not dissappoint.

Audiofreakgeek:

"A friend of mine just got the Atlas and it is very impressive, and easily competes with the Goldfinger for less money, I would say that the Atlas is the most sane choice out of these three, the new Anima is also really good, howerver, the Ortophon cart tend to be a bit on the clean but boring side."

Please tell me where you heard the Ortofon MC-Anna. They have not shipped yet and as far as I know, I had the only
two out.

Also, your description of the Ortofon could not be further from the truth.

Please disclose your commercial affiliations.

Jonathan Tinn
Wave Kinetics

Partnered with the ARC phono ref2 & Ref2SE, the Lyra Atlas was the most satisfying sound I have made in my system I currently have the dynavector XV1t, VDH xgp ref mk2, lyra titan i in my system. Used to have the airtight PC1, Koetsu coralstone, My Sonic Lab ultraeminent. Briefly tried the airtight PC1 supreme and an older goldfinger. I have listened to the A90 in many systems but have never felt the urge to commit.

Before the Atlas, I have 3-4 carts that I like equally as they have different strength and weaknesses. With the Atlas, I can confidently pick a number one. The resolution, dynamics and the new found tonal density and naturalness are something to behold. The entire Lyra line has great quality control with excellent channel matching, channel separation, properly aligned and perpendicular stylus.

My listening taste is similar to yours with mostly classical and jazz. The Atlas is a superb match to the ARC ref2/2SE and will not disappoint. The MSL, Airtight line have a slightly mellow top end and richer timber. This can compensate for a lean system. All very dynamic but slightly behind the lyra (atlas and titan) in their portrayal of transient: not only just the attack but also the sustain and decay. The note still start and stop with the AT/MSL but the lyra tells more on how the notes build and dissipate. Along with the tightly tracked transients, the phase info (when present in the recording) are preserved. This produce a breathe taking sonic landscape.

Before tweaking room acoustics, I prefered the airtight and MSL line for its warmth and bass dynamics. As the reverb time of the room decreased, the system/room became more capable in resolution. I reached a limit with MSL/airtight light. The lyras, VDH, xv1t were pulling more and more from the grooves.

I still can't see my post from yesterday, so we go again.

"My favorites in alphabetical order are:

Clearaudio Goldfinger Statement
Lyra Atlas
Ortofon MC Anna"

I heard the first one in the list. IMO a platinum Koetsu would match your preferences best.