Lyra Cartridges

@rauliruegas , where have you been? I was starting to get worried about you!

I got the Seta yesterday! The only cartridge that has arrived so far is the Platinum Signature. The MC Diamond and Atlas SL are still in limbo somewhere.

@mijostyn is the Platinum Signature from MSL? If so what are your initial thoughts? 

It took about 6 months to get my Lyra Atlas SL from Japan after I ordered it from Audioquest. They are all back ordered.

I know that if you have a non Lamda cartridge, Lyra will upgrade it to a Lamda for no charge.

@mijostyn 

Why did you opt to order to Lyra Atlas Lamba SL, instead of the regular Lyra Atlas Lambda?  

Here is what Lyra says about the SL model:

This is a special, built-to-order, version of Atlas for expert users with very high-gain, extra low noise phono stages, or alternatively a step-up transformer designed for phono cartridges of 2 - 3 ohms or less.
Most users (and phono stages) will benefit from the regular Atlas with much higher output and considerably more energy; resulting in a much better signal-to-noise ratio. If you are in doubt about which version of Atlas that will work best in your system, please go with the regular Atlas.
The Atlas SL may provide extra pure and pristine sound from an audio system that is optimized for a low-impedance, low-output cartridge. However, this may be accompanied with a lesser level of energy and power.
Lyra nevertheless has decided to offer SL models, as built-to-order at a 10% surcharge, for those who are confident that they can extract the benefits from such a low-output MC phono cartridge.

@rsf507 yes, it is the MSL. Since I also got a new phono stage at the same time it is difficult for me to determine what is due only to the cartridge. I can say that tracking is not an issue and construction quality is up there with the best I have seen. It's stylus has the highest level of polish I have ever seen. It glows under the microscope.

@mglik , I am probably looking at the same timeline. I was told I would get one whenever Japan decided to make another run of them.

@drbond , Simple, I have a phono stage that has both current and voltage mode inputs. Current mode, which has certain advantages over the more common voltage mode, requires a cartridges impedance less than 10 ohms. The lower the impedance the higher the gain. The Atlas SL has an impedance of around 1.5 ohms. The regular Atlas is 4.2 ohms. Lower is better.