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Pani ... New ART-9 up and running ...

The Cartridge arrived and I took it down to Studio City to Acoustic Image to have Eliot Midwood set it up properly. Eliot is the bomb when it comes to setting up the Well Tempered turn tables correctly.

http://www.acousticimage.com/

So, last night I had Mr. Golden Ears over to get his assessment as well. For a brand new cartridge that had zero hours on it ... all I can say is WOW! This is one naturally musical cartridge that doesn't break the bank. Its everything I liked about the OC9-mk III, but it goes far beyond the OC-9 in every respect.

In a previous post, I talked about the many mono records I own and how good the OC-9 was with the monos. Well, the ART-9 is on steroids. Just amazing on mono recordings.

At under $1100.00 from LP Tunes, its a bargain. The ART-9 surpasses all cartridges I've had in the system before. That would include Dynavectors, Benz, Grado Signatures and a Lyra Clavis that I dearly loved. In fact, its more musically correct than the Clavis. The Clavis was the champ at reproducing the piano correctly ... the ART-9 is equally as good in this area.

Sound stage, depth of image, left to right all there. Highs ... crystalline. Mids ... female and male voices are dead on. Transparency ... see through. Dynamics ... Wow! Low noise floor ... black. Mono records ... who needs stereo?

Your assessment that the ART-9 doesn't draw attention to itself is dead on. You just don't think about the cartridge at all. Not what its doing, or what its not doing ... its just beautiful music filling the room.

Thanks again Pani for the recommendation. I'll keep posting here as the cartridge continues to break in.
oregonpapa
tablejockey
4,025 posts
 
Month old ART 9 here.
I replaced an OC 9III, which replaced a couple of 1K carts.
The OC9III was a good enough compromise especially for half the price.
Unfortunately, the shortcomings eventually wore me down, and I bit the bullet and opened my wallet once again.
No regrets, I hear a very convincing presentation.Deep,taut bass and clear,articulate mids/highs with no mush or etch.
The ART 9 is the "sleeper" budget super cart. Why there isn't more reviews
on it is a mystery.
oregonpapa's avatar
oregonpapa OP
4,867 posts
 
tablejockey...

It says volumes about this obsessive hobby when a cartridge costing almost $1100.00 is considered to be a budget cartridge. I remember the days when a $49.00 Grado was really good ... especially when mounted on an AR turntable that cost $69.00 new. And that included the arm.

I'm of the belief that the price of the products didn't go up. On the contrary, I believe the value of the money went down.

Glad to hear that you are enjoying your ART-9. Between you and Pani's assessments, it looks like I have a lot to look forward to as the unit breaks in.

By the way, I was listening to some orchestral ballet music this morning on a London two box stereo set. Its a tribute to the great Diva from the past, Anna Pavlova. The massed strings were to die for with the ART-9.

Sorry, I tried to find the box set on eBay and Amazon to no avail. I bought mine at a garage sale years ago for a couple of bucks.

For your enjoyment, here she is on Youtube Be sure to put your headphones on

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMEBFhVMZpU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cn_K41P0B1w

And here is the great diva Maya Plisetskay performing The Swan at the age of 61. Incredible.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Luz5g-doa34

Happy listening ...
pani
1,220 posts
 
Thats a nice video Oregonpapa.

The ART9 in my case took about 150 hours to fully settle down and lose all artefacts. I dont know why it is even considered as a budget cartridge (just because it retails for $1k ?). I currently use a top tier phonostage (Naim SuperLine with Supercap) and this cartridge really makes me feel that my Naim phonostage is one of the best investment of my system. I use the ART9 with an SME M2-12 tonearm which is actually not suppose to be a great match because the big SME is used with lower compliance carts. But the ART9 is sounding wonderful on it. In the past I have tried some very expensive tonearms too but this SME + ART9 combo remains unbeatable by a wide margin. However as Tablejockey mentioned, there is hardly any reviews about these products. At least I know that in Japan the ART9 has receieved many accolades and is highly respected.
tablejockey
4,025 posts
 
Yes OP,the value of everything is skewed beyond humanity.
Not that it matters at this point, but did you consider the ART 7 before getting the 9?
You seem to be a classical fan, and when I picked up the 9, the dealer mentioned the 7 as the choice between the 2. The 7 is completely different(non magnetic core vs magnetic) and supposedly more capable of nuance, required for classical/ acoustic jazz. The 9 has more punch, for rock and such. Choosing either one isn't a wrong decision IMO.
The limiting factor for the 7 is very low output, so if your phono stage isn't up to the task, it won't perform as expected. It's also a couple of bucks cheaper, which makes it VERY ATTRACTIVE.
My collection of Living Stereo/lLiving Prescence, period pressings sound fantastic. I can't imagine what I'm "missing?" The 9 does need to be played thru an equally competent phono stage to be appreciated.
scm
314 posts
 
I`m wondering about the ART 7 and whether it might actually a better cartridge than the 9.
I know that companies will many times price according to demand and logically there would be more buyers for that cartridge as opposed to buyers of a low output cartridge like the ART 7 at only .12mV ??

I`m using a Dyna 17D3 and really like it but I`m seriously considering an ART 7 OR 9 if I`m convinced that`s the way to go.
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