My Sonic Lab

[Exlibris]

For those with lots of experience with this brand, I'm wondering if there is a 'sweet spot' in their lineup.

 

[Down Under]

I’d like to know too.......

 

[Anthony Ho]

There are quite many saying the Eminent GL is the best buy for the money, having been using the Hyper Eminent for few years before upgrade to the Signature Platinum. I can only say the SP is way better than the HE.

 

[Tango]

I was just discussing about the MSL Platinum with another friend. I own the Platinum but never heard a lesser model. Its tone is like Opus1 but with more body from mid down. I think Richard Mak said this cart is about dynamic and big swings.

Kind regards,
Tang

 

[Down Under]

Thanks for your replies.

 

[Exlibris]

There are quite many saying the Eminent GL is the best buy for the money, having been using the Hyper Eminent for few years before upgrade to the Signature Platinum. I can only say the SP is way better than the HE.

I too had heard that the Eminent GL is the best buy for the money. I was hoping to stretch for the Signature Gold but will settle for the Eminent GL if that isn't within reach.

 

[JackD201]

My vote goes to the Ultra Eminent Bc (now called the Ex). It is a great all around cart that to these ears set the MSL identity now recognized as that of having a wider and more orderly portrayal of space wherein notes are played with nimbleness and agility rather than breakneck transient speed. The top end is sweet but otherwise the cart can be considered fairly neutral throughout. The higher models were later further refinements and improvements but to me, this is where the magic starts in the line. At anywhere between $4.5k and $6k depending on where you are buying, even lower if you happen to take a trip to Japan, it is not cheap but neither is it in the uber expensive bracket of 5 figure carts. Finally, like its brethren they are not finicky to set up and are not as sensitive to loading as some others might be. The low internal impedances of MSL carts (and those they provide motors for such as Air Tight and TD) are joys with Current Drive phono stages like my P1 but are also very good with the MSL step ups.

 

[Anthony Ho]

I too had heard that the Eminent GL is the best buy for the money. I was hoping to stretch for the Signature Gold but will settle for the Eminent GL if that isn't within reach.

I am not sure the price in the state but you could find it easily in Tokyo Japan when i was in a trip, they usually have full list of models from Eminent GL to Platinum Sig. I think the SG is definitely the way to go without regret if you could stretch it.

 

[howiebrou]

I had a chat with my SL dealer today. He said you really need to use the SL SUT due to the super low impedance (around 1 ohm). Too many people hope that their phono amps can cope but they don’t get the full effect of the cartridge without the SUT.

 

[Andrew Ma]

I had my MSL Platinum go direct into my Phono amp, no matter how I played around with the impedance on my phono, it just did not sound quite correct. Especially on some familiar vocal vinyl, it sound wired and pitch a little higher than normal.
Until I bought and plug into the MSL SUT 1030, it sound much more natural than not using it.

 

[Anthony Ho]

I had my MSL Platinum go direct into my Phono amp, no matter how I played around with the impedance on my phono, it just did not sound quite correct. Especially on some familiar vocal vinyl, it sound wired and pitch a little higher than normal.
Until I bought and plug into the MSL SUT 1030, it sound much more natural than not using it.

I have tried quite many loadings for my MSL Platinum from 100 to 1000ohm, found the most appealing would be between 250 to 350 ohm, capacitance at 100 pf. This could varies according to cables or different phono amp but the sound would become weird if wrong loading/cap have been applied.

 

[Tango]

The 1 ohm impedance is pretty much the same as Opus1. Using the SUT will likely alter the cart's original sound at some extent. My view might be different from others here. I don't find the MSL Plat and Opus1 which very much resemble to MSL Plat to be any more sensitive to loading than other carts. I used to have an Airtight SUT. I even tried it with the Airtight Opus1 and MSL. I found them lost resolution and there was even a change in tonal balance with the SUT. I also tried MSL Plat with three different phonos. It sounded consistent to all three. No problem with loading.

Kind regards,
Tang

 

[bazelio]

I heard the MSL Platinum recently. Out of the box, it sounded very smooth. Too smooth. I wonder if its smoothness reverses over time or if this is the long term signature of this cart. Any thoughts?

 

[howiebrou]

The 1 ohm impedance is pretty much the same as Opus1. Using the SUT will likely alter the cart's original sound at some extent. My view might be different from others here. I don't find the MSL Plat and Opus1 which very much resemble to MSL Plat to be any more sensitive to loading than other carts. I used to have an Airtight SUT. I even tried it with the Airtight Opus1 and MSL. I found them lost resolution and there was even a change in tonal balance with the SUT. I also tried MSL Plat with three different phonos. It sounded consistent to all three. No problem with loading.

Kind regards,
Tang

I wonder if the MSL carts are developed using their own SUT for voicing? Would seem to make sense. My Ikeda 9Gss sounds lovely through the MSL SUT as it does through the Airtight one at the moment.

 

[Exlibris]

I started this thread simply because the MSL range, more than any other cartridge I know of, meets my cartridge requirements in terms of specs:

Output impedance <11 Ohms
Output: >0.3 mV
Loading: ~200 ohms
Mass: <10 grams
Compliance: low (or medium-low)

I've never actually heard any of their offerings.

 

[howiebrou]

I started this thread simply because the MSL range, more than any other cartridge I know of, meets my cartridge requirements in terms of specs:

Output impedance <11 Ohms
Output: >0.3 mV
Loading: ~200 ohms
Mass: <10 grams
Compliance: low (or medium-low)

I've never actually heard any of their offerings.

May i ask why those specific requirements?

 

[Solypsa]

Recently I setup an Airtight PC-1 for a client. In this system I would say it was 'quite finicky' to get dialed in. Most comments suggest the opposite. Thought that a bit interesting...

 

[Exlibris]

May i ask why those specific requirements?

Of course.

My phonostage has a built-in SUT. From the manufacturer:
"The loading is closer to 200 Ohm and it is a transformer load which is a bit different from a purely resistive load.
I usually recommend cartridges with output impedance of 10 Ohms or less and output level of 0.3mV or more."

My tonearm is a linear tracker. From the manufacturer:
"You need a low compliance, light or medium weight cartridge. Less than 10 gr."

 

[howiebrou]

Of course.

My phonostage has a built-in SUT. From the manufacturer:
"The loading is closer to 200 Ohm and it is a transformer load which is a bit different from a purely resistive load.
I usually recommend cartridges with output impedance of 10 Ohms or less and output level of 0.3mV or more."

My tonearm is a linear tracker. From the manufacturer:
"You need a low compliance, light or medium weight cartridge. Less than 10 gr."

Many thanks. Makes perfect sense then.

 

[DeYoung]

I heard the MSL Platinum recently. Out of the box, it sounded very smooth. Too smooth. I wonder if its smoothness reverses over time or if this is the long term signature of this cart. Any thoughts?

My MSL Ultra Eminent EX sounded a bit buttoned-up for the first 50hrs or so and then it really began to come alive and has become quite transparent although with just a bit of "sweetness" in the high frequencies. Not rolled off, mind you ..just a bit "burnished" It's certainly not Clearaudio Goldfinger revealing but is highly musical and enjoyable. Sounds really wonderful direct in to my Accuphase C-37.