Hey!
First off this is not an in depth review of this inexpensive cart.
The story started out when I picked up a new old vintage TT of which turn out to be better than the modded Rega Planar 2 with the 1st generation Benz Micro "ACE HO" cart. So, I kept the Benz on the new TT. I put the Rega back together and was thinking of selling it. Than I found a used Rotel RA-931 integ-amp on local Craig's List cheap and it got a phono stage! With that I decided to keep the Rega Planar 2 of which I bought it new back in 1997 to be use in a TV/second system in the living room.
Now the Rega need a cart. I have an old Grado Black from about the same time I bought the Rega. I used it for a while and I'm pretty sure the stylus is wearing down now. But the problems I have with the Grado is that it is a universal mount and it is a pain with the adapter and those pins were small to fit P-mount arm but it dose have sleeves adapters. With that and yes the Grado/Rega hum I decided not to get replacement stylus for it.
OK, the search was on for a new cart. Since it will be a second system of which I not going to use that much I don't feel like spending lots of money for it but still I want to something that would track well and not going to wear my LPs out. I would have bought the Grado Black but now they are $60. With a little search I found the Ortofon Omega cart. Hmmm... looks good for $30 I said. Strangely enough I remembered that my first cart was Ortofon and I think it was about $30 back than also. Anyway, I got it for $29 shipping included on eBay! So, with that price I was willing to give it a try.
And here it is....
So, what do you get for $30? Well, not a fancy wooden or velvet lined box. It does come with mounting nuts and bolts.
But the cart looks great. The cantilever looks good and straight. Mounting it on Rega RB250 arm wasn't difficult thanks to the protective stylus cover. The RB250 have 2mm shims under it and I rewired with Cardas 33ga tonearm wire with 24ga Cardas output wires. The stylus is noticeably different than my Benz ACE HO, the Ortofon Omega use elliptical and the Benz use much finer point stylus. And this clearly show when playing through some imperfect vinyl. The Benz is much quieter and can sail through some scuffs or even scratches while the Ortofon can make a big pop or even skip on some occasion. But still it track pretty good. I used Hi-Fi News test LP and it track fine with lateral resonance starting to show at about 11hz and clearly show at 9hz. So, it seems to be OK with RB250 arm.
So, how does it perform and how is the sound? Keep in mind that I don't have anything around the same price to compare it to beside my old Grado Black mentioned earlier of which I did spent some time with again before I got the Ortofon. that I have some recollection of how is sound. And I haven't heard it in my main system because I'm too lazy to unmount my Benz, install the Ortofon and than I will have to go into my pre unsolder the loading resistors and etc... well you get the idea.
But I've heard it through the Rotel integ-amp driving my main speaker so I got some idea of how it sound with my main speaker.
Well, right out of the box the sound was very bright and splashy in the high for sure. But I gave it sometime playing time but still as of right now it still got less than 40hrs on it. I'm sure the sound will still improve over time.
The bass is full but not as extended or open as my main set up. The sense of speed is very different too compare to my Benz of which have a much faster respond, more dynamic. If I remembered right the Ortonfon dose seem faster than the old Grado Black but the Grado seems to have a much fuller body sound to it overall. Not that the Ortofon is thin sounding in bass but it is just not as round or dimensional as the Benz.
The mid is nice. I think it is pretty natural sounding here, surprisingly so for how much is cost.
The high.... well I think it is a bit splashy overall still. Well, this is where I think it falls short compare to the Grado and the much more expensive Benz. Not as airy as the Benz. It is just a bit sizzling up there. I remembered the Grado midrange much smoother. But I'll see how it will sound after it past the 40hrs mark.
The detail and space.... I feel that the Ortofon seems to be more detailed than the Grado but just can't compete with the Benz of which I didn't expected it to be anyway. The sound doesn't as expansive as the Benz for sure but not bad at all horizontally but not as deep.
The sense of flow.... well very good actually but I think Grado a bit in this regard here maybe due to it fuller sounding overall.
So, how do I feel about this $30 Ortofon Omega cart? Very good actually! For the price I think it is hard to beat. For my own use as a second system I think it is just fine, I don't need much finesses here. It sound fine and track well at recommended at 1.75g. Very enjoyable and yes better than I expected for how much is cost.
Strangely enough I can't find this Omega cart on Ortofon's site or any replacement stylus for it. Is Ortofon still making this cart? Anyway I think the OM series replacement stylus will fit and likely sound better than the one it came with. The bad part is that the OM series stylus comes in black not cream/gray color as the Omega stylus
I think it looks pretty cool on my all black Rega Planar 2
With that and the fact that Grado Black of which used to be my favorite inexpensive cart now cost $60. I will not hesitate at all recommended this $30 cart for anyone looking for inexpensive cart for their second system or for someone tight on budget or maybe even your non audiophile friend who just want to play his/her old record collection again.
If I have time I will let you know how I feel after it got more hours on it and etc.
Take care,
Buddy
PS
Please don't take my non technical review/impression of this cart too seriously. It lacks the fair direct comparison to other carts... sorry too lazy to set up carts over and over again
But, heck! I think you will be impress if you heard it too.
