Showdown: Your Favorite Cart for Classical?

Keotsu Onyx Platinum produces wonderful music across all possible classical selections from vocals to the biggest classical orchestra/choir compositions Opera or Symphonic.

My Second choice would be the Audio Note Io in an Audio Note System.

I'm just wondering why there should be a "classical" music preference for a cartridge. It seems to me that all the same issues are in play to reproduce any kind of music...wide dynamic range, full frequency response, clarity, etc., etc. A cartridge that colors "rock" music will color all music. I want a cartridge that does it all - and is faithful to the recording. If highs are smoothed over so that one might find violins less wirey, I would look elsewhere in the system to find out where that wirey-ness is coming from and correct/replace that component.

Stringreen asked what I was hesitant to ask! I totally agree with his assessment.

Headsnappin, about the only thing I can come up with to answer that is that classical likely has the widest dynamic range of most recordings. Plus with natural sounds its a bit harder to fool the ear with regard to colorations. So the cartridge should be able to track that dynamic range, be uncolored and otherwise have the combination of output level bandwidth and detail such that the full dynamic range can be succesfully transduced.

But, as I mentioned above, any such cartridge that does classical justice will do the same for any other kind of music as well. Some of the ambient/trance/techno recordings in the last 10-15 years can challenge the best systems out there, so by **no means** is this something that is truly the purview of classical music only. Its just that its a good yardstick.

From my experience,my favorites..in no particular order(and Stingreen is absolutely correct)---

Transfiguration Orpheus(I own it....it is fabulous)...I'm basing my enthusiasm on vast experience with my friend's Orpheus(which I set up),because my analog rig is "down' until I iron out some damn gremlins.It does not seem to have any deficiency that I can "pick at"!

Lyra Titan i..my friend has it,and "HE" is a huge classical lover.Great cartridge!Does it all!!One particular aspect is stunning tonal color,where appropriate.

Air Tight PC-1...I have a few pals going "ape" over this,as of now.I have not heard it,but will eventually.

XV-1s..very dynamic,and superb(loved it).This "did" jazz to the max!Real bounce and swing to the presentation.The system it was in sure didn't hurt it.

Myabi..liked it alot,but it was a bit mopre restrained than the XV-1s,where I was able to A/B it on the same table.A tiny bit on the warm side,in direct comparison to the Dynavector,I felt(just opinion).

ZYX Uni...very detailed,but a tad light in bass.Superb though.Really great with stuff like "fingers on guitar strings",and incremental shadings.This was the cartridge that made me start to think about how I might "not" have done such a good job in my own arm/table's set up.

Allaerts,I did not hear the top model,but felt it to be a little too polite,for my tastes.

I've owned various Koetsus(four in all..Koetsu Black,Onyx,Onyx Sapphire,Urushi) and really enjoyed them.A bit pricey for what one can get elsewhere,but I have a friend who owns the Coral Stone,and both the Lyra Olympos and Titan i......He claims the Coral Stone "rules" on vocal music.He also is a huge classical LP collector.I trust his ears.

**** A VERY good cartridge,for not too much money(though far from cheap)is the "NEW Shelter 9000"....A classical loving,super critical) friend of mine has just gotten this,and is currently going "nuts" over it.I would not go on so much about it,but I know how "rediculously critical" the guy has been in the past.To the point of being almost arrogant,if he does not like something about your rig(and you thought "I" was too raw,two years ago?).So it kind of shocked me,that he likes this design SO much!Which he does.

ALL just opinion,so good luck