@lewmĀ , I think what you mean to say is the radius of the arc is shorter so the stylus rotates more in the groove than it would with a longer cantilever. The longer cantilever also has more of a mechanical advantage over the motor assembly for whatever that is worth.
Who needs a Diamond Cantilever...? š
So suddenly, there seems to be a trend for Uber-LOMC cartridges released with Diamond Cantilevers...š±
As if the High-End MC cartridges were not already overpriced....?!
Orofon have released the MC-ANNA-DIAMOND after previously releasing the Limited Edition MC-CENTURY...also with Diamond Cantilever.
Then thereās the KOETSU BLOODSTONE PLATINUM and DYNAVECTOR KARAT 17D2 and ZYX ULTIMATE DIAMOND and probably several more.
But way back in 1980....Sony released a Diamond-Cantilevered version of its fine XL-88 LOMC Cartridge.
Imaginatively....they named this model the XL-88D and, because it was the most expensive phono cartridge in the world (costing 7500DM which was more expensive than a Volkswagen at the time)....Sony, cleverly disguised this rare beast to look EXACTLY like its ācheapā brother with its complex hybrid cantilever of "special light metal held by a carbon-fibre pipe both being held again by a rigid aluminium pipe".
The DIAMOND CANTILEVER on the 88D however......was a thing of BEAUTY and technological achievement, being formed from ONE PIECE OF DIAMOND including the stylus š¤Æšš½
Iāve owned the XL-88 for many years and recently discovered that it was my best (and favourite) cartridge when mounted in the heavy Fidelity Research S-3 Headshell on the SAEC WE-8000/ST 12" Tonearm around my VICTOR TT-101 TURNTABLE.
Without knowing this in advance.....I would not have been prepared to bid the extraordinary prices (at a Japanese Auction Site) that these rare cartridges keep commanding.
To find one in such STUNNING CONDITION with virtually no visible wear was beyond my expectations š
So how does it sound.....?
Is there a difference to the standard XL-88?
Is the Diamond Cantilever worth the huge price differential?
Is the Pope a Catholic....?
This cartridge simply āblows my mindā...which is hard to do when Iāve had over 80 cartridges on 10 different arms mounted on two different turntables š¤Æ
As Syntax said on another Thread:-
But now Iāve bought myself a nightmarish scenario.......
There is no replacement stylus for this cartridge!
There is no replacement cantilever for this cartridge!
Each time I play records with it, I am ākillingā it a bit more š„“š„
If I knew how long I had left to live......I could program my ālistening sessionsā š¤Ŗ
But failing this.....I canāt help but feel slightly uncomfortable listening to this amazing machine.
As if the High-End MC cartridges were not already overpriced....?!
Orofon have released the MC-ANNA-DIAMOND after previously releasing the Limited Edition MC-CENTURY...also with Diamond Cantilever.
Then thereās the KOETSU BLOODSTONE PLATINUM and DYNAVECTOR KARAT 17D2 and ZYX ULTIMATE DIAMOND and probably several more.
But way back in 1980....Sony released a Diamond-Cantilevered version of its fine XL-88 LOMC Cartridge.
Imaginatively....they named this model the XL-88D and, because it was the most expensive phono cartridge in the world (costing 7500DM which was more expensive than a Volkswagen at the time)....Sony, cleverly disguised this rare beast to look EXACTLY like its ācheapā brother with its complex hybrid cantilever of "special light metal held by a carbon-fibre pipe both being held again by a rigid aluminium pipe".
The DIAMOND CANTILEVER on the 88D however......was a thing of BEAUTY and technological achievement, being formed from ONE PIECE OF DIAMOND including the stylus š¤Æšš½
Iāve owned the XL-88 for many years and recently discovered that it was my best (and favourite) cartridge when mounted in the heavy Fidelity Research S-3 Headshell on the SAEC WE-8000/ST 12" Tonearm around my VICTOR TT-101 TURNTABLE.
Without knowing this in advance.....I would not have been prepared to bid the extraordinary prices (at a Japanese Auction Site) that these rare cartridges keep commanding.
To find one in such STUNNING CONDITION with virtually no visible wear was beyond my expectations š
So how does it sound.....?
Is there a difference to the standard XL-88?
Is the Diamond Cantilever worth the huge price differential?
Is the Pope a Catholic....?
This cartridge simply āblows my mindā...which is hard to do when Iāve had over 80 cartridges on 10 different arms mounted on two different turntables š¤Æ
As Syntax said on another Thread:-
When you have 2 identical carts, one regular cantilever and the other one with diamond cantilever (Koetsu Stones for example), the one with diamond cantilever shows more details, is a bit sharper in focus and the soundstage is a bit deeper and wider. They can sound a bit more detailed overall with improved dynamicsIāll leave it at that for the time being. I will soon upload to YouTube, the sound comparisons between the two Sony versions on my HEAR MY CARTRIDGES THREAD.
But now Iāve bought myself a nightmarish scenario.......
There is no replacement stylus for this cartridge!
There is no replacement cantilever for this cartridge!
Each time I play records with it, I am ākillingā it a bit more š„“š„
If I knew how long I had left to live......I could program my ālistening sessionsā š¤Ŗ
But failing this.....I canāt help but feel slightly uncomfortable listening to this amazing machine.
- ...
- 358 posts total
I will google translate it for you:) Original article about Bluelectric cartridges is here: āCantilevers by Reto Adreoli are a different story altogether. He experimented with different materials, including exotic things like cactus needles, Belgian Shepherdās whiskers, wood and epoxies with silk microfibers. The Shake Streamliner is a bionic-based cantilever made of synthetic material that has the beneficial properties of natural structures. It combines lightness, durability, rigidity and resistance to mechanical resonances. The silicone damper does not have an expiration date, the needle is nude diamond with advanced profile. The coils are wound by hand, this is also important.ā Shake Streamliner MM cartridge is custom made by Bluelectric for 9920 CHF which is more than $10k Japanese canāt offer this type of unique SYNTHOBIONIC CANTILEVER cantilever anyway :) Iām proud for Europe, Swiss made! So some of you who blame me for collecting The best Vintage MM should know that Diamond, Boron, Ruby whatever you name it Ā ... is technology from the 70ās.Ā If you are about innovative know-how design of the 21st century then try Synthobionic Cantilever :)Ā |
@mijostyn Pretty good amateur opinion Raul. This is what I came up with. The specific gravity of Boron is 2.34. This means that Boron is 2.34 times heavier than an equal volume of water. The specific gravity of diamond is 3.52! Diamond is significantly heavier than Boron. A Boron cantilever will have a lower effective mass and theoretically track better. This does not take into account the stiffness of the two materials. Both are very stiff but I believe diamond is stiffer. The stiffer material would provide more accurate transmission. In order to know which is superior in any given design I think you would have to build the cartridge both ways and subject it to testing. I have this itch that tells me the diamond is more of a marketing strategy than anything else.ĀOn my Dynavector Nova 13D the diamond cantilever is only 1.3mm long, Ā therefore it is almost certainly lighter than most boron cantilevers of conventional length. Regards to use of diamond, my understanding with the Dynavector Nova 13D is that the stiffness pushes resonances further up out of the audio band improving high frequency extension. As an aside are your specific gravity numbers germaine to synthetic diamonds/rubies versus the natural material ?? With regard to short cantilevers look at the van den hul colibri - van den hul has certianly gone down a path of shorter cantilevers and medium compliance with his current generation. |
@chaksterĀ So some of you who blame me for collecting The best Vintage MM should know that Diamond, Boron, Ruby whatever you name it Ā ... is technology from the 70ās.Funny how you eschew the use of materials from the 70's as outdated, but still fantasise that the suspension systems of the clapped out vintage cartridges from the 70's that you resell are in perfect shape after 50 years. There are many superior vintage materials no longer available simply because of cost to manufacture, health and safety laws, not enough demand - high end audio is generally too small a market to produce specific materials. Examples are SPZ material used in the Final Audio VTT1 turntable that I own - a cast material that has superplasticity at room temperature and resonances between 10hz and 100hz are dissipated internally at a molecular level. The material was original invented in Japan for earthquake proofing build foundations, but was too expensive to manufacture and discontinued. The original Final Audio VTT1 with the SPZ base leaves the big micros and most every other TT that I have heard, including your direct drives sounding coloured and vague. The Kondo Ginga is a cheap dumbed down copy of the original Final Audio Research VTT1 with none of the superior 1970's materials engineering. Toxicity issues in the manufacture of hollow boron and beryllium cantilevers. There are numerous other examples. |
- 358 posts total