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Grado Statement Reference Cartridge
Grado's top model cartridge was mounted in a Basis 2500 turntable and a Basis/Rega tonearm. With a hollow alloy cantilever and an elliptically shaped tip, the Statement Reference is Joe Grado's latest thinking on how to make a great cartridge. And, it is an absolute killer. Read More
London Super Gold Cartridge Reviewed
The latest incarnation of Decca London's classic stereo phono cartridge lives up to its inheritance. With a golden colored computer-machined solid aluminum body body, line contact stylus, the Super Gold melts Ken Kessler's icy heart. Read More
Koetsu Urushi Black Cartridge Reviewed
Ken Kessler examines the mystical and uniquely wonderful qualities that make a Koetsu Urushi Black among a handful of truly great phono cartridges. Finished with the same lacquer used on Loiminchay fountain pens, this cartridge is a work of art. Read More
London Decca Reference Cartridge Reviewed
A worthy successor to the original Decca Gold improves both the ergonomics with colored leads, and performance with a solid metal body and fine-line stylus shape. The results are sure to warm the heart of anyone who's enjoyed Decca's past offerings. Read More
SME M2 Tonearm Reviwed
This tonearm has been made, in various forms, since 1959. This particular version, with its newer design removable headshell is as non-resonant as SME's more expensive offerings. The M2 is available in either ten or twelve inch long versions Read More
Lyra Dorian Mono Cartridge Reviewed
Got mono? Well if you do, this is the cartridge that will reveal more about your mono records than you ever thought possible, with a minimum of extraneous noise that often accompanies mono records played with a stereo cartridge Read More
Shure V15 Phono Cartridge Reviewed
Perhaps the most archetypical moving-magnet cartridge is the Shure V-15 VxMR. It tracks like a hungry tiger during the first moments of an attack and sounds wonderful, clean and open without a trace of mis-tracking nasties or groove noise Read More
SME Series I, II, III Tone Arms Reviewed
A true original that forever revolutionized turntable's sonic quality, the SME tonearm went through successive design changes that allowed it to continue to evolve when most of its competition faded away. Here's a primer on the SME Read More
Transfiguration Temper V Moving Coil Cartridge Reviewed
The Transfiguration Temper V moving coil cartridge uses an ultra-tight magnet coil coupling, which creates a more focused magnetic field for improved efficiency and higher output. Its solid aluminum body and boron cantilever make for a greater immunity to temperature changes Read More
Garrard 301 Turntable Reviewed
Ken Kessler fills you in on the history of the Garrard 301 turntable and fixes its place among other classic tables, such as the AR XA, Linn LP-12, Thorens TD-150, and Ariston RD-11. The Garrard's rim-drive design was among the best implemented of all rim turntables Read More