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DRT XV1s Vs Orpheus Vs Shelter Harmony Vs 47 Labs

Hello. I am wondering if anyone can provide some recommendations on the cart's listed above, (I know that's a lot)? I currently am running an Ortofon Jubilee on a Graham Phantom with a TW Acustic Raven AC turntable and Tron 7 phono stage.

I can get a relatively reasonable price on the Dynavector, Transfiguration 47 Labs and Shelter but of course, have heard none of them. I suppose my only restriction is it must be low output as my phono stage requires it and I'm not interested in changing it, (about .2 to .7 mV).

I am looking for something that ideally has a full harmonically complete sound, (not overly warm but real sounding), with a good sounstage and very good dynamics.

I mainly listen to Jazz and contemporary music, (British Sea Power, The Mountain Goats, Spoon, Arcade Fire, etc...), with a little bit of Classical.

My system is posted and thank you in advance for your thoughts.

Bryan
bhoage
jtimothya
612 posts
 
No_regrets - yes, three reviews are on-line. The ZYX Artisan is currently in-house for review and I won't comment in detail until publication, which could late May or June. Suffice it to say it lives up to the ZYX name. Pardon my shamelessness, links are below (if this is too much of a tout, tell me and I won't do it again):
ARC PH7 Atma-Sphere MP-1 Artemis Labs PH-1

SirSpeedy - wrt Orpheus break-in I found a corner was turned at ~70 hours and another around 120hrs. From the big Mahler stuff to Fingal's Cave to Mozart Quintets with Grumiaux, the Orpheus is a superb choice. And then there is choral. The Orpheus and the Atma-Sphere MP-1 with some nice '60's Siemens 12AT7s ... no better have I heard on female vocals - from Lucia Popp and Vier Letzte Lieder to Finzi's Intimations of Immortality - from Butterfly to Abbado and Brahm's, the O is It. She drove a Plymouth Sattelite? Faster than the speed of light? She Came From Planet Claire? Yeah, it cooks.

Dougy Dougy Dougy - Air Tight PC-1, Universe, Orpheus ... at this strata, there is no best, just taste and ears. ;-)

Bryan - send me a note offline saying how you like the Stealth Hyperphono. Thanks!

Tim
piedpiper
753 posts
 
Jtim,

beautifully balanced effective writing.
dougdeacon
3,338 posts
 
Timmy,

I didn't understand your comment so I re-read my post, and I still don't understand your comment. Help me out here...

My one use of the word "best" was in a doubly qualified sentence, limited to the OP's particular list of cartridges and also to his stated listening preferences, just as you so wisely recommend.

I didn't say the Orpheus is the abolute "best" - did I? Nor did I compare it to any of the cartridges you listed. Again, help me out. I want to understand your concern.

Bhoage,

Sorry if we rained on the Jubilee, but you knew this somewhere in your heart or you wouldn't have asked. ;-) Each of your other analog components is at or near the top class. The obvious next move is to make your cartridge so. At least you'll have fun doing it, whatever you choose.

Arm/cartridge matching and cartridge/phono stage matching are both critical, but table/cartridge matching is virtually a non-issue IME. The Orpheus and any ZYX are well known to be excellent matches for your Phantom. Their output and impedance requirements are similar enough so that your Tron should have no problems with either.

I believe the Orpheus can be had for ~$3K or a little above, ask some owners if you need a source. (There's a used one listed if you're willing to take that risk.) The Atmos can be had new for $3600 from SORAsound, the US distributor who sells on A'gon. I've had them both in my system but at different times and with notable system improvements in between, so I can't offer a comparison except to say they're both exceptionally good for the sonic preferences you stated. I haven't heard the PC-1.

Doug

P.S. If you're in the UK, I know a great dealer who sells both Transfiguration and ZYX, and also carries Phantom and Tron! You could probably compare in his shop on a setup very much like your own.
no_regrets
549 posts
 
Tim, Thank you so much for sharing your reviews of the various phonostages. I currently own the Artemis Labs Ph-1 and was very curious as to how your felt it worked with the Orpheus. The comparisons of the other stages were of benefit as well.
audiofeil
4,011 posts
 
>>The Orpheus and the Aritight PC1 are my favorite kings of the hill.>>

Ditto. I'd add the Dynavector XV-1s as the third.

In that order.

I've heard all of them along with a couple cartridges mentioned in this thread using 5 tonearms/4 tables here over the past 2 years. The two you mentioned simply suit my tastes better than the others.

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