Dcarol,
I am happy to hear that you found a cartridge that pleases you more than the Dynavector. I never doubted that your table was more than suitable for bring out a high level of performance from your candidate cartridges. It is clear that, in your system, and for your particular sonic preferences, the Ortofon is more suitable.
My issue is not with your choice, but, the way others will take that information and try to glean a rough "consensus" about the relative merits of particular cartridges. I know it is not easy for anyone to audition a wide range of alternatives, so a rough poll might be better than nothing, but still, one should be open minded about negative views of certain candidates. I would also add that there is often a herd mentality when something new is introduced that may unfairly favor the newer product when it comes to toting up raves on the internet. Examples would be the opinions on Shelter, ZYX, Miyabe. . . the list goes on and on.
From the opinions posted above, I noted that some thought of the Titan as a "classical music cartridge." While I do listen to a lot of classical, I actually listen more to CDs for classical (much wider selection) and use my phono system more for rock and jazz. In my system, the Titan sounds VERY good. If I were forced to make a choice, I would pick the Titan over my other cartridge, the Orpheus L, and I really like the Orpheus L too. In his review of the Orpheus L, Michael Fremer noted that he has made CD-R recordings of the Orpheus L and the A90 for making head-to-head comparisons. He stated that most of the listeners preferred the Orpheus. I don't know how fair such comparisons are, but, it does show that the list of contenders is WIDE. My own short list of contenders would include: the Air Tight PC-1, Lyra Titan, Orpheus L, London Decca, Allaerte Reference, Koetsu Onyx Platinum, and Van Den Hul Colibre, and Ortofon PW (I have not yet heard the A90). These all sound different, but, I've heard them all sound really good in well set up systems.
I am happy to hear that you found a cartridge that pleases you more than the Dynavector. I never doubted that your table was more than suitable for bring out a high level of performance from your candidate cartridges. It is clear that, in your system, and for your particular sonic preferences, the Ortofon is more suitable.
My issue is not with your choice, but, the way others will take that information and try to glean a rough "consensus" about the relative merits of particular cartridges. I know it is not easy for anyone to audition a wide range of alternatives, so a rough poll might be better than nothing, but still, one should be open minded about negative views of certain candidates. I would also add that there is often a herd mentality when something new is introduced that may unfairly favor the newer product when it comes to toting up raves on the internet. Examples would be the opinions on Shelter, ZYX, Miyabe. . . the list goes on and on.
From the opinions posted above, I noted that some thought of the Titan as a "classical music cartridge." While I do listen to a lot of classical, I actually listen more to CDs for classical (much wider selection) and use my phono system more for rock and jazz. In my system, the Titan sounds VERY good. If I were forced to make a choice, I would pick the Titan over my other cartridge, the Orpheus L, and I really like the Orpheus L too. In his review of the Orpheus L, Michael Fremer noted that he has made CD-R recordings of the Orpheus L and the A90 for making head-to-head comparisons. He stated that most of the listeners preferred the Orpheus. I don't know how fair such comparisons are, but, it does show that the list of contenders is WIDE. My own short list of contenders would include: the Air Tight PC-1, Lyra Titan, Orpheus L, London Decca, Allaerte Reference, Koetsu Onyx Platinum, and Van Den Hul Colibre, and Ortofon PW (I have not yet heard the A90). These all sound different, but, I've heard them all sound really good in well set up systems.