Soundsmith Progression: MIMC Star > Sussurro Mk II

I agree with you that it would be so nice to be able to hear and compare these things.  Soundsmith is active at the audio shows.  Perhaps that would afford the best chance for an audition, although I find it difficult to evaluate anything when everything is different, but that is me.  As you say the other components, not to mention the room itself are all factors that make it difficult to evaluate audio components.  I rely on reviewers, and Anthony Cordesman has been a consistent advocate for Soundsmith for years.  Another credible guy, IMHO, is Mikey Freman and he, too, has consistently spoken highly of Soundsmith. 

I’m right at the 50 hour mark now. I’m so involved in the music There’s no hint of brightness or etch and all the while every part of the frequency spectrum is presented so real and full. If things get better, I’m all for it Otherwise, I’m very, very happy.

For me, it has boosted my confidence regarding the years I've spent building my system and now, finally hearing what it is capable of. So rewarding!

I appreciate all the comments so far. I agree that the Soundsmith cartridges will play up as you improve your system around them--I did not fully appreciate what the MIMC Star could do until I upgraded my speakers and cabling. The MIMC Star stepped right in stride and is really letting me see what the new components are capable of in my system.

I finally installed the cartridge tonight. I first checked its frequency response with the Feickert Adjust+ disk. At 1,000 Ohms loaded on my Pass XP-15, there is a rise in the upper octaves. I lowered it to 250 Ohms and the upper octaves have leveled out nicely. But there is a small trough from about 300Hz to a few KHz. I'm going to assume this is by design. If my cart is representative, going to 1K and beyond will really accentuate the high end at the expense of a more even FR, but YMMV.