Phono cartridges

Now I have 4 cartridges:

1) Rega Bias MM cartridge

2) Benz Micro MC20E2L MC cartridge

3) Denon DL103R MC cartridge

4) Lyra Dorian MC cartridge

Three of them shown below:

Comparing the cantilever, the Benz Micro (red body) is no different from the Rega (green) which is an MM cartridge. The Lyra's solid boron cantilever is only about half the diameter.

With only one tonearm in use and the difficulty to rotate them, not to mention the risks involved in switching cartridges often, I decide to sell the first two. Since I have a Linn Itok LVII lying around, I will mount the Denon on it and add this second tonearm to my AS turntable. Suitable components are ordered or in the process of fabrication.

Lyra Dorian

Finally received my Lyra Dorian, bought used via Echoloft Singapore. My most expensive cartridge so far, it costs RM1,350 used and it is an entry level Lyra, in fact the cheapest LYRA and the stylus is from Namiki, not the usual Ogura. Talk about the embarrasing purchasing power of Malaysians using the Ringgit. Condition when received is good, and tested well on my AS turntable and Kuzma arm. The frequency response at both ends seems to be better than the Denon 103R and more detailed. The only setback is it sensitivity to groove noise making it unsuitable to play older/noisy records and the output is rather high - in fact too high such that I have to figure out how to reduce the MC step up gain without degrading the sound. The pictures below tell a thousand words.......

Tale of 2 cartridges

The renowned Denon DL103R has been around for 20 years and still in production. I have a brand new one fitted to Linn Ittok LVII.

And later I bought a lightly used Benz Micro MC20E2L (low output) moving coil cartridge from a friend in the US. The MC20E2L was fitted to the Kuzma arm.

Which do you think sounds better? They say the Benz is lacking low bass but not in my system. I find the bass wonderful and treble clear and airy. They both cost about RM600 to RM800 each.

Dynavector Karat 23RS MC cartridge (SOLD)

MC cartridge in good condition. Hardly used. Rated 7/10 due to age only.

Sold in 2008 on eBay for USD180. Now I misses it and new Dynavectors like 17D3 is so expensive, even used.