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  #21  
Old 03-12-2018, 04:46 AM
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I thought Ortofon, through their dealers, had an exchange policy for cartridges. If you wish to trade up to Cadenza Blue, how much will they allow for the Red?
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  #22  
Old 03-12-2018, 04:53 AM
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Default Cartridge choice for VPI Prime

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  #23  
Old 03-12-2018, 06:25 AM
Josep Josep is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by John49 View Post
I thought Ortofon, through their dealers, had an exchange policy for cartridges. If you wish to trade up to Cadenza Blue, how much will they allow for the Red?
As the RED is broken they only offer me less than 100 USD.
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  #24  
Old 03-12-2018, 07:27 AM
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If were my $$, would go for options 2 & 3. Always good to have a 2nd cartridge. And, variety is the spice of life (says the guy with 5 cartridges).

BTW - Soundsmith will retip that Ortofon for you. They did my Kontrapunkt-b and a couple of others for me and I've been very pleased with their work.
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  #25  
Old 03-12-2018, 07:50 AM
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The Cadenza Red IMHO is not a stellar performer. I’d argue the Quintet Bronze or Quintet Black S is a better choice.

For my money, I’d spring a bit more for something like Kiseki Blue NS.

I’ve been playing with the Kiseki PurpleHeart NS and its been glorious. I’ve been told the Blue is remarkable too. I’m looking to get a second cart for my old Project RPM10.1
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  #26  
Old 03-13-2018, 01:08 PM
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If i can make some suggestions.

Cant go wrong with Ortofon / Lyra nice carts.

Two other suggestions would be the Sound-Smith Mimic Star (or higher) The fact that the rebuild costs are a fraction of new is a huge benefit. Or take a look at the VAS Nova Gold cart. High praises from Harry Weisfeld as it competes head to head with the Lyra Atlas at a fraction. The gold is a .04mv with boron cantilever compared to their .8mv aluminum signature cart.

Good luck with your quest!
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  #27  
Old 03-13-2018, 01:26 PM
mulveling mulveling is offline
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The trade-in deals for worn cartridges are generally terrible -- not just Ortofon. Benz Micro used to have great trade-in price, but they couldn't keep up with demand and removed most of their line form the USA market. However, the rebuild deals for upper-line Ortofon MC cartridges are VERY good, as long as the USD stays strong against the Euro. You'll generally get your worn cartridge back as new, for around 50-55% off of list price. Ortofon handles rebuilds directly with the customer, hence the good price, and perhaps why a dealer might not mention this excellent option.

A rebuild (not just retip, which can't fix coil or cantilever damage) policy is probably the MOST underrated parameter to examine when choosing a new cartridge. It also allows freedom to consider excellent used-cartridge deals, with a greatly mitigated risk; usually a rebuild does not require proof of purchase other than the cartridge itself. Buying up a level (or two) also yields good long-term rewards this way. I have a Koetsu Coralstone that will probably cost me less to upkeep than most other brand cartridges that list for $3000-$4000 new.

Look at the Cadenza Blue for example. At the current EUR => USD exchange rate, its rebuild lists at $905 USD (730 EUR) on the Ortofon website. That's less than half the advertised price of $1889 for a brand new Blue at needle doctor. Total cost of ownership, over time, stays very reasonable this way. I give many props to manufacturers like Koetsu and Ortofon than offer good rebuild policies.

As far as these cartridges go, the Cadenza Red is a good choice if you absolutely can't afford to move up the Ortofon line, or if your system & preferences work with a cart that is slightly on the lean/aggressive/bright side. However if that works for you, it can be a very nicely punchy and detailed sounding cartridge. I did like the Red when I heard it on a CA Innovation Compact. Like its predecessor the Kontrapunkt "a", these carts lack the bass impact and depth of the upper-line Orotfons. The Cadenza Bronze is better; nice and well-rounded with a good neutral tone and great bass. The Bronze has amazing synergy with my Sonic Frontiers Phono 1 SE+, which makes me think it might also work great with the Manley Chinook (which also uses a JFET step-up into 4x 6922 tubes). For whatever reason, the Bronze didn't seem to gel as well with my Rogue Ares -- maybe it likes an active MC step-up over a SUT. Haven't heard a Blue. I did own a Jubilee (predecessor to the Black), which...really wasn't my thing. More analytical/dry than the Bronze and its predecessor Kontrapunkt "c". If a Kontra "c" ever shows up on the Ortofon Treasure Trove, it's a steal; wish I hadn't sold mine.

Last edited by mulveling; 03-13-2018 at 02:12 PM.
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  #28  
Old 03-14-2018, 11:54 PM
Josep Josep is offline
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Thanks for all your comments.

It seems to me most of people agree (even VPI company) that Lyra Delos is a great match. Unfortunately there is no stock where i live now so i cannot demo

In the meantime someone offered me a second hand ZYX Omega Premium for less than 2,000 USD. I will have it for a couple of days at home. Yesterday I did some listening and yes I see some improvement over the Cadenza Red (more neutral and bass), but considering it is second hand and the difference was not sooooo dramatic.... I will probably just rebuild the Cadenza Red.

I only had the RED for one year and i feel bad to spend more money in a cartridge when the repair cost is so good.

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