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Just want to follow-up a bit with this thread. I've had the fortune of having a few local friends with a couple of cartridges that I did get to listen to in my system. The time spent doing this was very educational. That time spent being listening to the cartridges in my system. I've setup and listen to a good number of well regarded cartridges in other very nice systems as well. So, the combination of settings helps me to see more of the strengths of the cartridges in different setup and system combinations.
As such, I purchased a Lyra Titan i back in September of 2008. The cartridge decision came from the number of my listening experiences combined with my continued favor for the Skala overall when in my system. Some of the cartridges did some things better but it was always at the expense of another characteristic I was not willing to give up. After much consideration, I went ahead and purchased the Titan i. In this case, I gained exactly what I was looking for without any loss of what the Skala brings to the table.
I've been very happy with the decision as I continue to squeeze more performance out of my setup than anyone I know would have ever expected. The lesson for me is that setup of the entire system is very important in trying to achieve the most out of any system. I know it has helped me to have a good set of ears and have friends with even better ears to achieve good sound. For me, being engaged with the music and the system is part of the fun.
Dre
