What is the “World’s Best Cartridge”?

Dear @mglik  : Yes, it's obvious that with a 20cu compliance it has to track very well. Maybe not better " than any cartridge " but at the ends a good tracker.

 

I own and owned several cartridges with different compliance spec and no one high compliance ( this is 20cu and up ) disappointed on that specific issue but certainly are better tracking cartridges but " unfortunatelly " not with the great cartridge motor of your sample.

I need to experience it and compare with the vintage signature Z series.

 

R.

 

Dear @lewm  : I just seen/aware of what you posted time before.

 

" Raul, in your own experience, what is the best sounding cartridge? . "

 

I already posted what has a close relationship with your question.

There is no best cartridge at all  because the quality level performance of any cartridge have several playing desired characteristics where you can't diminish any one of them and unfortunatelly no single cartridge model achieves all at the top:

you have to ask your self: the best tracking, the best HF/MF/LF, the best low noise, the best transient response, the best natural color, the best natural agresiveness or brigthness, the best rythm,...etc.

 

And that's why the best cartridges overall sounds alike and between that " sounds alike " we make our choices with the cartridges that are nearer to each one of us targets.

If $$$ is no issue then the best choice is to own 3-4 of those " alike " performers and stay away to married with one cartridge model. You can be sure that those cartridge choices will fulfill your targets.

 

lewm, we are talking of transducers where each one has a similar but " unique/signature " voice exactly as a speaker but obviously and normally we don't own 4 different speakers but 3-4 cartridges do not needs the speaker space to listen it.

R.

 

 

I agree. 

Some ''philosophical'' remarks about this '''theme''. 

The general quantification theory looks like this

''all x are Fg&Gx''

If there is one x which does not satisfy conditions F&G the(general)

statement is not true.

Hower why should wahtever object satsfy only two conditios?

We can use as variables ,say,: a,b,c...n  conditions. Aka there are

no limits to one or two.

Think of Popper with his ''critical rationalism''. According to him proving

an theory is not possible but well REFUTATION. His ''grow of knowledge''

get curious consequence: the more theories are refuted the more knowledge

we get???

But what kinds of ''theory'' he has in mind? Well one with one variable.

His own example is:

''all swans are white''

but the one he discovered in Australia which

was ''black'' REFUTED THE THEORY THAT ''all are white''.

This seems to me to be  ''very poor theory''. 

There is also an ''truth theory'' ascribed to Tarski:

''truth by satisfaction'' . That is to say  by satisfaction but of how many

conditions? The ''picture obove'' is misleading in the sense of suggestion

of ONLY TWO: F and G.

I don't  believe that the members in this thread realized what they are

talking about.

 

Dear @mikelavigne : With all respect and re-reading your posts in this thread shows me that your mental attitude changed a little in the last months or years ( no issue with because averything is changing always. ) and I don’t know if is because the " pressure " over your system and way of thinking in the thread or because you really changed. Let me explain about:

first I can read that you bougth the Dava by the " be spoke " in the forum and that I remember that was not " normal " in you on personal audio issues. The Dava stampede strated around 2020 by " be spoke " gentlemans mainly in your forum and exactly as today ( 2 years latter. ) with no web site by the manufacturer and not only neither cartridge measurements but not even ( till today ) specs . Yes, all of you Dava owners can say: who cares, we like what we listen with.

Obviously you are a part of that stampede and obviously a follower and I never knew this " follower " new attitude in you.

 

Next two statements by your part that speaks of other change:

 

" why do i even come to Audiogon? sillyness. "

" i simply do not see the value to me in this thread. "

 

It looks as something way " presumptuous " and I can’t remmeber you that way. Fine with me, no problem.

 

" ultimate performance does not involve digital.....in any step. "

 

that’s your today subjective " absolutism ".

 

I read the 2020 thread  and after around 500 posts ( including yours. ) no one of those gentlemans writed any single word about cantilever-less heavy tracking and developed distortions issues, no one and no one mentioned any single word about cartridge specs .

You already had and still have noise " problems " with that cartridge, with out mention what a gentleman posted here about those 2 extra wires for the cartridge power supply that goes against the " free " movements on your tonearm, not a good notice and you accepted ( ? ? ? ).

I think that in the last 2-3 years you made a come back to the audio past when you bougth a phono stage tube design and along that you find out that the external SUTs performs better than the one inside the phono stage ( you posted those in Agon threads ). Tubes is an electronic alternative and the worst place to use it is to handled cartridges and specially LOMC ones. In the other side, SUTs are named as " passive " devices and almost every one ( mainly tube lovers. ) says makes less degradation to the cartridge signal vs a couple of active bipolar devices ( really small and " ridiculous " devices. ) but things are that SUTs are far aways to be passive but are really " active " with the cartridge signal because this signal travels a huge number of m. through the transformers, cables and connectors and that signal it’s almost coupled relationship degrading at each mm. the cartridge signal way higher that those couple bipolar devices and not only that because the SUT has limited frequency response at both frequency extremes where your Dartzeel has not. Btw, you have good relationship with Dartzeel designer and can ask him why in the design the designers always are looking for the shortest path for where the audio signal must pass through.

 

Next link speaks of the cartridge importance tracking issue and I know that some audiophiles already read it somewhere and know the issue very well. We don’t need to be a technical oriented audiophile because it’s asy to understand the tracking information overall issue explained there. As me you only need to read carefully/slow. I’m posting the link because @mijostyn and I posted that cartridge tracking abilities is the main cartridge design characterisitc ( I have no less than 15 years posting the same. ) that even with out the link is just " common sense ":

 

http://pspatialaudio.com/analogy.htm

 

""  A rigid cantilever will offer no relief from this inevitable resonance on the tracking ability of the stylus. And tracking is king: an unyielding cantilever could introduce high frequency mistracking with its insiduous ability to damage records without betraying the damage it is doing. "

 

Everything here is posted in good shape, no other kind of attitude/agenda.

 

R.