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Transfiguration Proteus

I have owned this low output (.2mc) cart for about 5 months. Previously I had a Benz Ruby, about 5k. at the time of purchase, so in the same league.

Where to begin; the difference is night and day. The Benz has a glorious lushness to it; a rich musicality that, on classical particularly, gives a wonderful glow to the instruments. It is neutral but manages to be soft without undue warmth.

The Proteus is different in that it recreates the event in a characterless but absolutely penetrating way. The musical spectrum sounds real. You can hear that x is playing a flute and there is the bass line in every aspect, and oops, the singer has come in a bit late. Its all there.

With so few windings the cart is lightning quick and I suppose that is what allows it to capture every picosecond of time. It is "real" in an astonishingly lifelike way.

Also present is, by definition, the emotive quality of the music. This device allowed me, perhaps for the first time since I sold my old Sumiko Blue Point to really be moved by what I heard.

The sound is simply "there there". I don't know how to describe it better. For example, I have some yellow parlophones - With the Beatles, Help, etc. that I never listened to because they were kind of boring. Muddy , somewhat low fi; collectible though because they are rare and in great shape.

I put on "With" under the Proteus and, really, for the very first time, was blown away!! John's voice and intonation with the amazing harmony was astonishing. The raw power that popped out of the speakers made me realize - again for the first time since I heard "Help" on my parents breakfast table' Grundig in '65 just why the Beatles were the Beatles.

Realism, detail, musicality, and emotion don't get better than this. It is the top of the pile in my book. Your journey to the ultimate audio experience could very well end here.
pingufreddy
dazzlingmd
71 posts
 
Don,

I've been very pleased with the match of the Orpheus and Amadeus. People universally rave about the Dynavector xx2 with the Amadeus, and that sounds great to my ears too, but the Orpheus is one step up in the ways that I mentioned. I also agree with other observations I've read that the Dynavectors and Transfigurations have a similar house sound. Very detailed, fast and dynamic, neutral presentation of the music. And I've also read people's posts that the Phoenix does almost everything the Orpheus does. I would think you'd be happy with a Phoenix on the Amadeus. I know less about the Axia. I'm still not sure why you don't hear more about the Transfiguration line on these forums and in the press.
fjn04
1,561 posts
 
Thanks- The Amadeus powers that be say almost any cartridge works well. This may be true, but I'm sure certain ones are better. The ones I have heard of
owners or dealers using: DV20X @ XX-2, Emt tsd-15, Lyra Delos, Benz L2 wood, Cartridge Man. I have also heard of Denon 103, but am skeptical of that one. I own a GTA, and use the tsd-15, and a standard Amadeus w/ a 20X/L. As good as the 20 is, that's where i want to explore an upgrade. Perhaps a at one point, an Axia or PheonixÂ….. Cheers -Don
jmcgrogan2's avatar
jmcgrogan2
6,346 posts
 
I have been told that the newer Phoenix, the Phoenix S, is the reason behind the dropping of the Orpheus L and the release of the Proteus. Supposedly the new Phoenix S was outperforming the Orpheus L, so Transfiguration dropped it and released the Proteus as their new top of the line.
larryi
3,992 posts
 
I know Bob Clark, the US distributor of Transfiguration cartridges. He told me that the Orpheus was discontinued because the one employee who could correctly align the coils in Transfiguration's unique arrangement of magnets could no longer do the job. For the Proteus, Transfiguration had to return to a more conventional design. Bob claims that in the trying to design something as a worthy alternative to the Orpheus L, Transfiguration actually managed to make something that is, in his opinion, actually better than the Orpheus L (makes one wonder if similar refinement would have made the Orpheus even better).
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