Linn sondek vs sme

Well,  I auditioned an lp 12 yesterday.  I was quite impressed and pleasantly surprised.  I did bring my Benz ref s.  It did not sound very good on the Linn.  It sounds far better on the scout.  However when the Linn klyde cartridge was installed it sounded great.  I guess my big concerns with this table are obviously setup for one.  If this expert ever left town, the closest one is in Cleveland.  Also,  how dependent is Linn synergy on Linn components.  Cartridges, arms, phonostage, etc.  I was listening to an all Linn system.

The table I listened to was an updated Iinn with the radical power supply and the ekos 1 tonearm.  I also believe after listening that I am really starting to have a problem with Benz.  It did not track well on the Linn, almost the same tracking distortion as on the scout.  We were listening to Linda Ronstadt and nelson riddle.  The benz/ekos combo could not handle the dynamic passages and Linda's voice distorted terribly although tracked perfect with the klyde.  The distortion was similar as on the VPI scout.  We looked at the Benz under the microscope and it did seem to be wearing evenly.  Not sure if this distortion is caused by resonance from the wood body.  

tzh21y, I am fairly certain that the problem is not with the Benz cartridge due to its design. The problem is simply because this particular cartridge is worn out...plain and simple. What you describe has to do with either a) the diamond is worn out, or more likely b) the suspension components have worn out.
Time to replace the cartridge and stop ruining your records.
BTW, I also use a Benz on my LP12..a Ruby 2 and it has no problem with any of the things you describe. Still sounds amazing...although showing its age a tad compared to some of the hyper revealing cartridges of today.

I agree with daveyf, your cartridge is worn.  Had a Grado Ref Sonata that did the same thing.  Sent it off for a re-tip and the problem is gone. 

Actually, the Benz only has about 350 hours on it.  I had similar problems on the Benz cartridge I had before this one so I have been marking the hours.  We looked under a microscope and the klyde cartridge actually had more wear on it.  It appeared as though the Benz was in fact wearing very evenly.  So I am concerned about Benz.  Not good.  It actually sounded distorted from the very beginning.  I was thinking it was the table arm combo, wrong.  Something else.  Not happy with Benz and I will not purchase another.