Best overall cartridge
- Thread starter XV-1
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I have the same cartridge, option SHB, the sound depends of your arm and your turntable.
For me and in my system, the Lyra Atlas Lambda SL on the Primary Control FCL tonearm is the best of the bunch I tested.
That bunch included the Lyra Atlas Lambda, Phasemation PP-2000, Opus One (Airtight), the Lyra Etna, Dava Reference and Dava FC-A1
The Opus One was excellent as well, more of a sideway movement but a touch less transparent, i.e. a tiny bit more forgiving (to rest of the system).
The DAVA goes a very long way on the FCL tonearm, but the Atlas, being much lighter and having more compliance, extracts more benefits from the combination with that tonearm. The Atlas SL adds dynamic range, incredibly low, yet tight bass, even better layering, more detail but also less buttery, so more transparent to the rest of the system.
By the way, i still have both DAVA, they are in excellent condition, ready to sell them. If anyone interested, let me know!
That bunch included the Lyra Atlas Lambda, Phasemation PP-2000, Opus One (Airtight), the Lyra Etna, Dava Reference and Dava FC-A1
The Opus One was excellent as well, more of a sideway movement but a touch less transparent, i.e. a tiny bit more forgiving (to rest of the system).
The DAVA goes a very long way on the FCL tonearm, but the Atlas, being much lighter and having more compliance, extracts more benefits from the combination with that tonearm. The Atlas SL adds dynamic range, incredibly low, yet tight bass, even better layering, more detail but also less buttery, so more transparent to the rest of the system.
By the way, i still have both DAVA, they are in excellent condition, ready to sell them. If anyone interested, let me know!
i expect that my special version of the Etsuro Gold will turn out to be superior to the DaVa on my 12" FCL arm for the some of the same reasons. but not yet tried the DaVa in that place. not tried any Lyra's in my system since the Olympos SL a decade ago.
this Etsuro Gold/FCL/NVS combo is simply amazing. the FCL does not suck. might be the best tonearm i have heard.
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Thank you for sharing these comparisons using the same arm in the same system. I also like the Opus One very much. Could you be a bit more specific about what the DaVa was missing when compared to the Opus One and Atlas Lambda, both of which I have heard? One reads a lot about the DaVa these days but no so much anything critical. I suspect you will have no difficulty selling it.
I thought the DAVA Reference had a lot of details and sounding organic and dynamic at the same time, until i heard the Atlas Lambda (and Opus One)... So, I got the Atlas SL because i wanted to be able to keep on using my +18dB SUT.
Again, i attribute a lot to them being able to extract more of the virtues of the FCL. The DAVA being very weighty (27grams the cartridge alone) and need for a good damping in the arm, reason why i had to add another 15 (!) grams of weight on the headshell, was just not the best fit for the arm, simple! It was a very good one though and it does show the craftmanship of Bernd from Primary Control that his arms do well also with such cartridge!
On my request, Bernd equipped the arm with two extra wires for the cartridge's field coil power supply. You can see them idle, stuck to the bottom of the headshell on the picture i posted yesterday. I could cut the wires but prefer to keep them there, who knows another FC cartridge comes along one day with more 'modern' specs that marries the virtues of lower weight (or at least higher compliance needing less damping of the arm) with a field coil
.Anyway, have always been happy with services from Darnius and Bernd in either set-up.
Based on Mike's comment, I wish I listened to the Etsuro as well, but hey, can't have it all!
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