My personal Koetsu experience started in the time of being a student and working in a Hifi shop to get the money for the University.
Every thursday I had the turntable day and my boss gave me all turntables the shop had sold during the week to install them. I have not counted the number of Audio Technica AT OC 7 & 9 or Ortofon MC 10 & 30 I fitted to various tonearms. But sometimes a Koetsu system happens. And my boss always wanted to do the final listening himself. after a while, I understood, it was always a little bit special and rare to listen to a Koetsu in our shop listening room. But I was that time more interested in the Clearaudio cartridges, may be because I was younger. The most of the Koetsu customers were in the age of my dad that time, more relaxed and laid back connoisseur type of persons. My boss always did the Koetsu listening check after the shop closing with a glass of red wine....
Now I am in the age of my dad that time and I start to love Koetsu as well, as I prefer now red wine over vodka/redbull
So I tried to get my Koetsu experience completed and over the last months my collection of Koetsu systems grow up.
Now I like to share some of my newer point of views to Koetsu.
The start is always the Koetsu classic:
- Koetsu Rosewood Signature
The most turntable enthusiasts see a Rosewood Signature as the base to understand the sonic world of Sugano, the founder of Koetsu.
It has already all of the sonic benefits you like to expect from a Koetsu. Means, it already "sings" , you immediately start to love the voices, but you also have to compromise the resolution give. Still , this system is for the given price point the entry cartridge into the real Koetsu experience .
- Koetsu Black Goldline
The Black Goldline is even cheaper, than the rosewood, but it has a metal housing. And the cartridge chassis is very! important to the sound of a Koetsu.
The Black has more dynamic and resolution than the Rosewood signature, but is has also a lot less of the magic in the midrange. Coming from ortofon, Lyra, Audio technica and other more neutral carts, the Black Goldline might be a good start into the world of Koetsu, as it sounds more like other carts too. You can compare is to other Japanese entry level carts as the Ikeda 9TS
The founder Sugano loved the rosewood chassis for making his carts, so he did some experiments with lacquer. Finally he decided to do the classical japanese Urushi way of treating the wood.
The lacquer comes from the Urushi tree and will get natural colored pigments for the final appearance.
Due to the different pigments, the Urushi carts differ slightly in performance. All Urushi do cost the same (at least in germany)
- Koetsu Urushi Sky Blue
The Urushi Sky Blue is one of my favorites carts, as I love the blue color so much. The performance is a big step ahead from the plain Rosewood body.
The performance is much more structured, you get more contour and a more precise 3 dimensional staging compared to the Rosewood Signature
- Koetsu Urushi Wajima Gold
The Urushi Wajima Gold is one of my favorites, it seems, that the golden pigments are adding weight to the body, so the stiffness increases. Even more precise and with a deeper soundstage than the Blue Sky. But you have to like the look....
- Koetsu Urushi Vermillion
The Vermillion was the favorite cart from the old Sugano!, He changed to coils of the Vermillion, so the cart has only the half of the output and a lower impedance than the other Urushi. The sonic difference is huge. The Vermillion has more resolution , the performance is more light , inner dynamics has increased. I love female voices with the Vermillion!
Coming to the stone bodies!, Due to the availability of the stones, they differ huge in price. As the stones are different , the sound is different. I would also expect, that different carts of the same stone are different (similar to wood as well) as the stones are a natural product with differences.
- Koetsu Onyx Platinum
Coming from the Urushi the first stone body is a shock!, I would never had expected such a big difference in performance. The stone bodies do give to the Koetsu carts the dynamic back, you might have missed before. Compared to a Rosewood body the Onyx is like a dynamic explosion, specially if the platinum magnet comes on top. I have two different Onyx Platinum, as I was interested , if they differ. They do!, But it is also possible, that the carts have a different age, so the age of the rubber will change the performance as well. The Onyx Platinum has resolution, contour and the integrated performance I like. Could be the best! But there was something special listening to the Urushi , which I was missing. The Urushi have a slightly more involving midrange, specially the Vermillion.
- Koetsu Coralstone platinum
The Coralstone underlines the difference of the stone bodies to the rosewood bodies, but not that hard, as the Onyx is doing. The Coralstone is minimal more close to Urushi in a positive way, the midrange is a little smoother than with Onyx, on the other hands the contour of the instruments is less precise, which is sometimes more nice and involving.
to be continued
Every thursday I had the turntable day and my boss gave me all turntables the shop had sold during the week to install them. I have not counted the number of Audio Technica AT OC 7 & 9 or Ortofon MC 10 & 30 I fitted to various tonearms. But sometimes a Koetsu system happens. And my boss always wanted to do the final listening himself. after a while, I understood, it was always a little bit special and rare to listen to a Koetsu in our shop listening room. But I was that time more interested in the Clearaudio cartridges, may be because I was younger. The most of the Koetsu customers were in the age of my dad that time, more relaxed and laid back connoisseur type of persons. My boss always did the Koetsu listening check after the shop closing with a glass of red wine....
Now I am in the age of my dad that time and I start to love Koetsu as well, as I prefer now red wine over vodka/redbull
So I tried to get my Koetsu experience completed and over the last months my collection of Koetsu systems grow up.
Now I like to share some of my newer point of views to Koetsu.
The start is always the Koetsu classic:
- Koetsu Rosewood Signature
The most turntable enthusiasts see a Rosewood Signature as the base to understand the sonic world of Sugano, the founder of Koetsu.
It has already all of the sonic benefits you like to expect from a Koetsu. Means, it already "sings" , you immediately start to love the voices, but you also have to compromise the resolution give. Still , this system is for the given price point the entry cartridge into the real Koetsu experience .
- Koetsu Black Goldline
The Black Goldline is even cheaper, than the rosewood, but it has a metal housing. And the cartridge chassis is very! important to the sound of a Koetsu.
The Black has more dynamic and resolution than the Rosewood signature, but is has also a lot less of the magic in the midrange. Coming from ortofon, Lyra, Audio technica and other more neutral carts, the Black Goldline might be a good start into the world of Koetsu, as it sounds more like other carts too. You can compare is to other Japanese entry level carts as the Ikeda 9TS
The founder Sugano loved the rosewood chassis for making his carts, so he did some experiments with lacquer. Finally he decided to do the classical japanese Urushi way of treating the wood.
The lacquer comes from the Urushi tree and will get natural colored pigments for the final appearance.
Due to the different pigments, the Urushi carts differ slightly in performance. All Urushi do cost the same (at least in germany)
- Koetsu Urushi Sky Blue
The Urushi Sky Blue is one of my favorites carts, as I love the blue color so much. The performance is a big step ahead from the plain Rosewood body.
The performance is much more structured, you get more contour and a more precise 3 dimensional staging compared to the Rosewood Signature
- Koetsu Urushi Wajima Gold
The Urushi Wajima Gold is one of my favorites, it seems, that the golden pigments are adding weight to the body, so the stiffness increases. Even more precise and with a deeper soundstage than the Blue Sky. But you have to like the look....
- Koetsu Urushi Vermillion
The Vermillion was the favorite cart from the old Sugano!, He changed to coils of the Vermillion, so the cart has only the half of the output and a lower impedance than the other Urushi. The sonic difference is huge. The Vermillion has more resolution , the performance is more light , inner dynamics has increased. I love female voices with the Vermillion!
Coming to the stone bodies!, Due to the availability of the stones, they differ huge in price. As the stones are different , the sound is different. I would also expect, that different carts of the same stone are different (similar to wood as well) as the stones are a natural product with differences.
- Koetsu Onyx Platinum
Coming from the Urushi the first stone body is a shock!, I would never had expected such a big difference in performance. The stone bodies do give to the Koetsu carts the dynamic back, you might have missed before. Compared to a Rosewood body the Onyx is like a dynamic explosion, specially if the platinum magnet comes on top. I have two different Onyx Platinum, as I was interested , if they differ. They do!, But it is also possible, that the carts have a different age, so the age of the rubber will change the performance as well. The Onyx Platinum has resolution, contour and the integrated performance I like. Could be the best! But there was something special listening to the Urushi , which I was missing. The Urushi have a slightly more involving midrange, specially the Vermillion.
- Koetsu Coralstone platinum
The Coralstone underlines the difference of the stone bodies to the rosewood bodies, but not that hard, as the Onyx is doing. The Coralstone is minimal more close to Urushi in a positive way, the midrange is a little smoother than with Onyx, on the other hands the contour of the instruments is less precise, which is sometimes more nice and involving.
to be continued
