Denon DL 103 vs DL 103R

Well, if I were going to go with the cartridge, in the process I would make sure that I had the appropriate phono-pre/stup-up for whatever cartridge I chose. It does seem like the step-up transformers are considerably less expensive that full phone stages. Thanks for the clarifications

In any event, based on the other comments, it sounds as if the 103 might be a bit warmer and more natural sounding, and the 103R might be a bit more detailed but clinical - or audiophile - sounding. Does that sound about right? I'd like to gain a little more defined soundstage depth.

Grimace
I will say this,and others can correct me.The 103 is VERY musical,propulsive,weighty,and just plain fun to listen to.I've not heard the "R" but I cannot Imagine it being clinical like say a Clearaudio etc,,

FYI the original 103 was designed and manufactured in 1962,to a set of standards,broadcast industry etc,
The "R" vesion was introduced in 1991 to sort of improve on
those standards which could be termed more Hi-Fidelity.
not analytical I'm sure it still retains that house sound.
hope this clears things up.

braab

I wouldn't worry about the 103R being clinical per se; just a little more in that direction from the 103.

Just to clarify things a bit: output on the 103 is .3 mV while the 103R is lower at .25 mV so ideal gain from an active phono stage is about 60 db with the 103 and 62 with the 103R. The 103 should probably be loaded around 100 ohms while the 103R should be loaded lower, probably in the 30-50 ohm range so this may be a consideration when looking at phono stages and/or transformers.

Paste this into your browser for a review here comparing both:

http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/frr.pl?ranlg&1034089946&read&3&4&

While the standard 103 has its fans, research I did before buying a 103R indicated that the majority of those with experience with both cartridges preferred the R and felt it to be worth the extra money. It is anything but hi-fi-ish or analytical. In any event, I'm sure they are both very good cartridges, but remember that they deserve a very good phono stage as well which is something many people don't consider because of the low price of the Denons. The general concensus at this time is that if you stick one of Uwe's wood bodies on the Denons they are capable of embarassing much more expensive and exotic cartridges. The aluminum bodied Zu 103 at $399 seems to be another interesting alternative.

Grimace, you missed a point when you said "It does seem like the step-up transformers are considerably less expensive that full phone stages." As I tried to explain, a full phono stage includes both RIAA compensation and at least one gain stage. A step up transformer is only a gain stage so it cannot function by itself, it must feed a phone stage with the RIAA compensation. That is why they are (sometimes) less expensive.

Also, thanks Hdm for the correction on the 103R output.