Thanks for the further info Br.
Even though the gain of the HM3 and Cinemag are pretty close, the turns ratio of the HM3 on low gain setting (1:20) will give a reflected impedance of 117.5ohms vs 183ohms for the Cinemag (1:16).
Its hard to predict how different cartridges will work with differing SUT's and to complicate things further the best setting (turns ratio) for the SUT will vary with the phono amp.
In my setup with the lowish gain Cary ph302 (38dB on MM) the high gain 1:30 setting of my H7 sounds best by far with my modded/retipped 103R - though Hashimoto suggest using the low gain/ratio 1:16 setting based on the 14ohm DCR of the cartridge.
IME the H7 sounds nothing like your description of the H3 - being very transparent, neutral, extended, detailed and fast compared to the standard 'red' Cinemag.
I've not heard Bob's 'blue' version which is apparently a far better device (than the red) - but I'd like to.
Even though the gain of the HM3 and Cinemag are pretty close, the turns ratio of the HM3 on low gain setting (1:20) will give a reflected impedance of 117.5ohms vs 183ohms for the Cinemag (1:16).
Its hard to predict how different cartridges will work with differing SUT's and to complicate things further the best setting (turns ratio) for the SUT will vary with the phono amp.
In my setup with the lowish gain Cary ph302 (38dB on MM) the high gain 1:30 setting of my H7 sounds best by far with my modded/retipped 103R - though Hashimoto suggest using the low gain/ratio 1:16 setting based on the 14ohm DCR of the cartridge.
IME the H7 sounds nothing like your description of the H3 - being very transparent, neutral, extended, detailed and fast compared to the standard 'red' Cinemag.
I've not heard Bob's 'blue' version which is apparently a far better device (than the red) - but I'd like to.