Synergy

Thank you.

Since the Clearaudio cartridge broke in I’ve been listening to nothing but records. My system never sounded so good.

I’m glad you ended up in a good spot again! Since the Virtuoso is MM and Hana ML is MC, I posit the fault here is just as likely attributed to your phono’s MC stage as the cartridge itself. As always our personal preferences weigh heavily on these choices. If you’re an audio subjectivist (like I am), synergy is a real thing. If you’re more of an objectivist, it’s not so much.

I buy & try a lot of cartridges, new and used. Can’t help myself. But whenever I see a newly rebuilt cartridge (usually SoundSmith or VAS) with "just 0 - 20 hours since rebuild", I automatically pass. It’s hard to get your money back from these rebuilds. One should leave it to potential buyers to choose how & where to rebuild. Ideally, you would send it in just for *assessment*, then accurately disclose condition in the sale - e.g. if original coils, suspension, and/or cantilever are intact, that helps a lot. That you kept the rebuilt Virtuoso and love it is an ideal result here :)

I’ve finally got the instrument (cartridge) to tackle my huge collection of LP’s.