Lyra Lambda Atlas/Etna

@rauliruegas , I am aware of the VTF and impedance sensitivity of the F1. I was given 845 ohms as the impedance target, so that is what I used (Vishay metal-foil resistors). Overall I didn't find it unusually sensitive to setup, simply that it had quite specific requirements.

FWIW, the Atlas and Etna are even more sensitive to VTF changes than the F1.

I didn't try to play the F1 nude, as the coil impedance is high enough that taking the shielded case off may be a disadvantage in some urban environments.

Note that the F1 has an unusually wide body, which may cause compatibility issues with headshells that have drop-down sides (which are usually done as reinforcements to increase stiffness).

I like the F1, and had a lot of fun with it (smile).

@loving this thread…. While i have the Kleos - Lambda on my crayon letter to Santa….i am casting a wider ear and eye. I also greatly appreciate @jcarr weighing in on this thread. He has directly helped me achieve better performance of my Delos in Triplaner Mk7.

best to all, love this thread, civil challenge and ideas !

I am a robot with a line contact stylus in a curved groove…

I am listening to the Etna Lamda as we speak. Vastly hot-rodded 301 with Reed 3P 10.5 into a Steelhead to my ARC Ref 6 to an Ampsandsound Nautilus driving Spendor 7.2's via Auditorium 23. 

Chuck Prophet's "No Other Love" has just been re-released on vinyl. As a somewhat overboard fan I have seen him no less that thirty times from Pittsburgh to Chicago to Covington, KY and all points in between. As is true with most under-appreciated musicians he often tours solo with just his acoustic and his trademark two mics and usually in small venues. I think I know his voice like a member of my family's. I have never heard Chuck's voice sound so life-like. I won't go into the typical audio drivel as to why his voice sounds so much more life-like than with my other well regarded Ortofon and VdH cartridges. This is truly a special phono cartridge. 

Steve Dobbins advised me to set tracking at exactly 1.72 grams using a Riverstone VTF, not 1.73 or 1.71. This has proven spot-on. I have read that Mr. Carr recommends 1.69 but.... While I am name dropping I use Brian Walsh for set-up. He has been to my home 4 times now. He installed my Etna and has since fine tuned the set-up. 

Dear @fsonicsmith  :  "  sounds so much more life-like.."

Life-like needs or means, at least, dynamic power and natural tone balanced color. This is for me.

Now and due that you own a Colibri that I don't know its " vintage " production because no two Colibri sounds exactly the same and that's why I owned/own 4 samples.

Even that and that's why I still today give to it a confidence vote on quality level performance is that the black body Colibri ( not the ones with wood top plate. ) with a 0.24mv has the " explosiveness " that helps a lot for that life-like, this Colibri handled the transients as fastest as any other cartridge I experienced in any system I heard it.

About wood I don't like it wood on cartridges other than the Benz-Micro where I owned the Ruby, Ruby 2, Ruby 3, LP and LPS. Even I heard the Cardas one.

T.

@rauliruegas @jcarr , Thanx for the response. The build quality of the Colibri makes me nervous. For a precise piece of equipment wood is not a great choice as it changes dimension with humidity. It's claim to fame is loss of the front pole allowing a shorter cantilever. That means the cantilever has less leverage over the armature. So, there is a trade off that no other manufacturer is willing to make. I would love to hear one in my system but alas, no such operation exists. 

This might be a great opportunity for someone with a little spare cash. Buy all these cartridges and rent them out for a week at a time holding the sales price in escrow in case the renter damages the cartridge or fails to return it. Charge $250/week. 20 Rents will pay most cartridges off then it is all profit.