Anyone compare Ortofon A90 vs Lyra Titan i?

Dre,

I intend on waiting till after RMAF to make a decision.

There are so many interesting carts out there I have not heard yet.

You are right I should stick with the A-90 as I am satisfied with it's performance. It is easy in this hobby to go backwards instead of forwards in performance.

Maybe something at the show will reach out and grab me. Unfortunately it is difficult to know what component is doing what in an unfamiliar system. It will be fun none the less.

I look forward to meeting you at the meet and greet.

Sean

A friend of mine also had his A90 retipped by Ortofon earlier this year. Initially Ortofon said that it could not be done as they would have to build the mechanisim from scratch again they way they built it initially and for some reasons they were not willing to do it. After awhile, they changed their mind and retipped my friend's A90. Unfortunately the result was not very satisfactory for my friend for whatever reason. Now that it is pretty much impossible to find a new A90, he had to start looking for a new cartridge. My friend just said that it did not sound the same as it was before he broke it. I have not heard his setup in a while so I am not in a position to really confirm it one way or another.

Are looking for something that sounds different or something very similar to the A90?

Not knowing someone's preference, system, room acoustics, etc., makes it hard to make a specific recommendation. All I can say is that I've heard both (I own a Titan), and both are really fine cartridges that can deliver terrific sound. There are certainly a lot of other cartridges that would be contenders too. I personally like the Transfiguration Orheus L (I own that one too), and I have heard great sounding systems that use Allaerte cartridges. Of my two cartridges, I really cannot say which I prefer. In my system, the slightly more prominent upper midrange of the Orpheus is a plus, but, I like the beautifully open and extended sound of the Titan too. I suppose that, if I had to pick one, it would be the Titan.

I haven't done much direct comparisons of cartridges myself. In a friend's system, we once did direct comparisons involving two arms (Phantom and Vector IV) on a single table. Two of my friends preferred the Orpheus to the Titan with either arm (I marginally preferred the Orpheus).

In Stereophile magazine, Michael Fremer wrote about making digital copies of the A90 and the Orpheus playing the same tracks which he then played on various systems at shows. He reported that the majority of listeners preferred the Orpheus (for what that is worth).

Suteetat,

That is troubling to hear. I wonder if others that have had it rebuilt feel the same way?

Larryi,

I do not think that a more prominent upper midrange would be a good thing in my system.

I like the tonal balance of the A90. It seems about right to me.

I enjoy classic rock, jazz, some folk, little classical. I prefer music that has vocals. I think that is why I don't dig classical as much.

Sean

Sean,

Since you are having the A90 fixed, it still probably pays to have an alternative that sounds slightly different--just to keep things interesting. The Titan is a slightly cooler sounding cartridge than the Orpheus. I cannot say how it compares to the A90 because I haven't heard a side-by-side comparison.

Any of a number of Lyra cartridges will probably be good alternatives (slightly different, but not extremely different). I have owned a number of Lyra cartridges and all have proven to be very long-lived, great at tracking, and quiet (low amount of ticks and pops).