Equipment => Cartridges => Topic started by: susan on May 03, 2012, 02:14:36 PM
Title: vpi turntable with ortofon cartridge
Post by: susan on May 03, 2012, 02:14:36 PM
Hi my name is Susan and I'm new here, so here's my first question. I have a vpi scoutmaster turntable with the 9in tonearm. Right now I'm using a Shelter 501MKII on it and it works fairly well, but the Shelter is a bit flat for my taste. I'm thinking about getting some sort of ortofon cart for it. Does anyone have any experience using the ortofon on the scoutmaster's arm, also out of the ortofon carts which ones would you recommend? Right now i have my eye on either the Kontrapunkt B for around $1050 new, the rondo bronze for around $850 or the cadenza bronze price ? any input will be greatly appreciated. Here's some info about my system . I have a audible illusions modules 3b preamp, Cary cad 120 Mk2 amp, Sony es 5400 CD player, interconnects are a mix of transparent and morrow, speaker cables are kabula sosna and speakers are martin Logan aerius's. I listen to almost any kind of music, but mostly to classical, jazz and classic rock. I'm looking forward to hearing from you'll
Title: Re: vpi turntable with ortofon cartridge
Post by: BSD2000 on May 04, 2012, 06:22:31 PM
Hi my name is Susan and I'm new here, so here's my first question. I have a vpi scoutmaster turntable with the 9in tonearm. Right now I'm using a Shelter 501MKII on it and it works fairly well, but the Shelter is a bit flat for my taste. I'm thinking about getting some sort of ortofon cart for it. Does anyone have any experience using the ortofon on the scoutmaster's arm, also out of the ortofon carts which ones would you recommend? Right now i have my eye on either the Kontrapunkt B for around $1050 new, the rondo bronze for around $850 or the cadenza bronze price ? any input will be greatly appreciated. Here's some info about my system . I have a audible illusions modules 3b preamp, Cary cad 120 Mk2 amp, Sony es 5400 CD player, interconnects are a mix of transparent and morrow, speaker cables are kabula sosna and speakers are martin Logan aerius's. I listen to almost any kind of music, but mostly to classical, jazz and classic rock. I'm looking forward to hearing from you'll
Hi Susan, welcome to the forum!
I owned a Scoutmaster and a Kontrapunkt B cartidge, but at different times, so I never got to hear how the two sound together. I can say that the Kontrapunkt B is a fantastic cartridge with a nice, vibrant, 'analog' sound to it. I haven't had a chance to hear a Shelter cartridge yet, so I can't comment on how it would compare to your 501MKII. Your system components are beyond reproach - especially the preamp (I assume you are using it as your phono preamp, which was designed by John Curl), so I doubt the 'flatness' you're experiencing is from the preamp or amp.
I hate to say, but I experienced the same 'flat' sound from my Scoutmaster when I tried my Zyx R100H on it and it's one of the main reasons why I sold the Scoutmaster and kept the Rega. You can hear the effect in my Youtube video of the Scoutmaster/Zyx combo playing Thelma Houston's 'To Know You is to Love You':
The Scoutmaster's platter speed is dead-on accurate, the best I ever measured.
Platter bearing noise is non-existent, creating a pitch black background which helps bring out subtle, low level details.
The uni-pivot arm design has a taming/dulling effect on lighter, delicate, low output, moving coil cartridges.
The Scoutmaster seems to like heavy, higher output cartridges (>1.5mv.)
The VPI mini-feet really improved the bass and mid-bass of the table, giving the sound more weight and fullness.
As for Ortofon, The Ortofon Kontrapunkt B was one of my first 'real' cartridges; meaning it was one of the first cartridges that when I heard it for the first time, struck me as a 'whoa, now I'm getting somewhere!' kind of sound. It was the first cartridge I heard (I owned it before getting a Zyx R100H) that had more of what I was looking for from vinyl - more air, presence, PRAT, more separation between the instruments and a tight, focused sound stage. IMHO, the Kontrapunkt B is much better than the Dynavector DV-20X, but they both are similar in some respects - mostly in the deep bass department. The Kontrapunkt B is quite heavy (10g), which will most like be a good match with the Scoutmaster arm. The Cadenza Blue looks like the replacement for the Kontrapunkt B (same ruby cantilever), with the Bronze above it. The main difference between them is the cut of the stylus, with the Cadenza Black using the Shibata tip design. I always liked the higher end, moving coil cartridges from Ortofon and I imagine any of them would be a good match with your Scoutmaster.
Here's a sample of the Ortofon Kontrapunkt B on my Rega P25: