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LONDON Decca, Tzar DST and similar cartridges

I have always been curious about these phono cartridges and the Stereophile review of the Tzar DST has heightened my interest. When I read about the peculiarities of these cartridges, I am put off from trying them. Can anyone offer persuasive reasons to try them and also provide real practical advice on how to make them work reliably?  Tonearm suggestions? Phono preamp suggestions? Damping recommendations? How badly do they grind out record grooves?  Any other words of advice? Thanks. 
128x128kmccarty
topoxforddoc's avatar
topoxforddoc
353 posts
 
thuchan
926 posts
01-22-2017 5:34pm
Why going for a Zsar when you may enjoy the Neumann DST?

The only Neumann DST I have seen was built into an EMT headshell with the EMT diamond pin outs rather than the standard SME spare pin outs. Therefore difficult to use in anything other than an EMT TT and tonearm
thuchan
1,009 posts
 
You're right topoxforddoc. You may use it with old Ortofon arms too, best on an EMT R80 or 927, also in connection with a Neumann SUT (BV33).
Both, the black and the white DSTs are among the best carts I ever listened to.
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
9,806 posts
 
"a little light grilling" from Warren! Yeah, he won't sell you a London until you pass his test. Regarding resistive loading, I believe 33k ohms is suggested for the Super Gold (the 15k figure is for the Reference), but it doesn't hurt to go down to 20-25k. The lower the impedance, the greater the suppression of the high-frequency peak. All models need about 220 pF capacitance.
exlibris
438 posts
 
After using Kondo, zyx, and dynavector MCs I started.with the Decca super gold courtesy of Warren. It was a revelation even without proper loading. The Reference is more natural and nuanced and that too is without proper loading. I personally wouldn’t worry about the loading straight away. The main thing with these carts is to keep the stylus clean . A Mr clean magic eraser is essential in my opinion
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
9,806 posts
 
exlibris' use of "a revelation" is not hyperbole! The most immediate, present, alive, downright exciting sound I've heard from LP's comes from them being played by a Decca/London. Hearing a direct-to-disc LP played by one provides with as close to a live-feed (the sound of the musicians in a recording studio as heard through the monitors at the mixing desk, live and unrecorded) as I have heard. But I haven't heard the Zsar, nor am I likely to. Who has ten grand for a pickup?!
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