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Well... it's only my second morning waking up with the new ZYX R100H Yatra cartridge. I'm in the process of putting only my third hour on the illustrious cart. Initially, I am struck by the speed and immediacy of this cartridge. As I mentioned earlier, I can hear that it sounds a little "tight" in the lower mids and the low end. I was kinda expecting that until the cartridge loosened up after putting some real play time on it. Nonetheless, this little, red guy sounds astonishing well (in my system) right out of the box. Sparkle, Punch, PRAT. It is not dry. Fairly neutral with a touch of warmth. It's a helluva lot of fun! I am comparing to: Transfiguration Axis, Transfiguration Phoenix, Clearaudio Virtuoso Wood, Clearaudio Maestro Wood and Sumiko Blackbird... all of which I've used in the last three years. Even from the get-go, this ZYX is starting out as a serious contender for my fav so far. In the ZYX choice, I tried to pick a cart with a lot of bang for the buck without breaking the bank. Those Transfiguration cartridges are quite a bit more expensive than the the R100 Yatra, but this just might, actually, maybe, perhaps be more of the sound I am fantasizing for...
Well, I think and I only had the Airy for only about 30 hours on it, it was used an had another 50 or so...but I remembered that my 901 had a larger more precise soundstage and more depth! The ZYX has more micro dynamics and was definitely more extended...and punchier. I guess I am hoping the new crop of Shelter cartridge will give me some of the warmth I seek as I loved the 501 and the 901, it was just a tad too hot for my set up. We'll see...
Great stuff here, at least as far as the audio aspect. I was thinking the arm might favor ZYX, but these comments seem sort of "universal" about sound characteristics of these two brands. The soundstage depth of Shelter is to be expected in light of perceived amplitude response differences, but a larger more precise stage? That's interesting. I would guess that would be due to differences in compliance, tip contact area and effective tip mass. Shelter is more Koetsu-like with a stiffer suspension. The elliptical tip has the most limited vertical contact of any shape and the microridge has the most, or close to it. The look of a component is very important to some people, and can be a big factor even with those who say they don't really care. Does it look elegant or industrial or cool, when we gaze upon the machine that gives us so much listening pleasure? I'll shut up now before I start writing bad poetry.neo
Here are a couple of pictures taken this morning. I will also include a link to a youtube to hear how the ZYX sounds then hopefully in this coming week, do the same with the Shelter. More to come but associated equipment is as follows:VPI 12.7i tonearmVahalla tonearm wiresSweet Spot Reveal Silver hybrid from tonearm to Pass Labs DIY XONO Phono Preamp loaded at 50 ohmsVPI Rim Drive with after market RIM Drive BeltVPI SDSCustom (Bill Berndt) Steel plinth (125lbs) and Stainless Steel tonearm pod (30lbs)Pass X1 preampPass X250 AmpDIY GeerS eVe II SpeakersDid I leave anything out?
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBI9DNITEzY&feature=youtu.be]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBI9DNITEzY&feature=youtu.be][url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBI9DNITEzY&feature=youtu.be[/url]
Link isn't working.
Some interesting tidbits on ZYX/Shelter tonearm matching:Even with the ZYX's somewhat higher compliance, Moerch recommends using their heaviest arm wand (Blue Dot, effective mass of 14g) with the ZYX carts. While for the Shelter carts, they recommend the considerably lighter effective mass red armwand (6 g effective mass). Armwand-cart matching list for Moerch arms here: http://www.moerch.dk/files/Cartridge%20Armtube%20Combination%20List.pdfAnd the effective masses of the various Moerch armwands: Green dot: Effective mass 4 g.Red dot: Effective mass 6 g.Yellow dot: Effective mass 8 g.Blue dot: Effective mass 14 g.As for what differences this will make, I can't say. Maybe someone with direct experience can say, or maybe a well-informed vinyl guru can speculate.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBI9DNITEzY&feature=youtu.betry now
Very nice! Sounds very alive and immediate.BTW, for those not sure how to pronounce ZYX I spoke with the former importer, Tom Wu, a few years ago. I had always thought the brand was Z-Y-X as the all-caps implies this (as does the definition of the letters above) but Tom said the Japanese owners/designers pronounce it 'Zicks'. Go figure. Thought I'd share.
I just had the same discussion with Mehran at Sorasound.com (the current distributor) the other day. I had also thought the brand name was pronounced "Z-Y-X" as separate letters. Mehran corrected me with "Zicks."BTW, even though I only have about six hours on the new ZYX R100 Yatra, I am really enjoying it. In my system, the cartridge "sparkles." A tremendous amount of presence and clarity to the music... particularly in the mids and highs. I'm looking forward to hearing the lower octaves open up.
Listening on cheesy computer speakers is definitely not definitive by any stretch of the imagination but I'll take the Shelter by a fairly wide margin. The Zyx sounds thin and screechy by comparison.
