Rerurn to Romy the Cat's Site


In the Forum: Analog Playback
In the Thread: Buying a last cartridge.
Post Subject: How about the SPU 901?Posted by Romy the Cat on: 9/7/2008

Thanks, starboy.

It is educational. Your Mantis might be an interesting cartridge and it is too bad that there is no way getting any frame of its performance besides buying it. Among the people I know, in whose listening rooms I was and why were and my room, who have a certain common denominator in semantics about audio, no one had Mantis cartridges. Perhaps I might give him a phone call to see how it goes, do they speak English in there?

I also very reluctant to move up to Shelter line. I would rebuild my 901 instead; I might talk to that Peter Ledermann that JJ mentioned.  However, I would give to the Shelter guy a chance, who know, will see how that goes as well. Shelters are on a cool side of tone, almost at no-tone side. It is a minus form point of view of absolute Reference cartridge but it is in a way a benefit in my case, where Shelter is used as a cartridge that compliment the tonal-frenzy and in a way colored SPU.

Taking about cartridge and comparing notes I come across to a very interesting option that I am very much considering. The Ortofon Jubilee was presented to me as anti-SPU type of sound still with SPU’s tonal capacity. THAT is very interesting. If I would be able to get the SPU’s color scale and combined it with Shelter’s neutrality, frequency extremes, dynamic capacity and certain viciousness then I might commit adultery to Shelter. There is one thing that very much annoys me in Shelter, even if I love it’s sound. The “complex” profile of the 901 tip makes the needle to pick a LOT of dirt from record. I needed to be clean after each side. In contrary the conical and elliptical profile can play for a long time with no dirt attached to them. I do not know it is it because the profile but something in 901 makes it a magnet to dirt…

Rgs, the Cat

Rerurn to Romy the Cat's Site