Post by alasdair on Sept 15, 2019 17:30:52 GMT
Queries often come up about the late-lamented Goldring G900IGC cartridge, the first commercial cartridge with van den Hul stylus. Original replacement styli are long gone. However I have found a solution. Mantra Audio sell a Tonar hyperelliptical replacement which tracks at 1.2-1.3g and sounds pretty good. When this wore out, I sent it to Expert Stylus Company for retipping with their Paratrace line contact stylus, which is quite similar to the Van den Hul tip on the original G900IGC.
The result? Absolutely marvellous! I have it mounted in a Mayware Mark V arm tracking at 1.3g and used with a Graham Slee Genera phono stage (with PSU1 power supply). Sound stage, definition, detail and general musicality are all absolutely superb. However for best results I had to fine-tune the capacitance loading to be absolutely spot-on. I have never encountered such a fussy cartridge: at 125pF plus lead capacitance the sound was a little forward but with rolled off extreme treble and at 100pF the sound was slightly recessed and cymbals etc. a little too forward. It needed 110pF to hit the 'Goldilocks spot' where everything was just right.
My previous cartridge was a Denon DL103 with a metal body and a sapphire cantilever with Paratrace stylus - and the Goldring is clearly superior. It has the rather special 'just right' quality that reviews of the original G900IGC noted.
The Tonar hyperelliptical stylus cost £107 and the Paratrace retip cost £120, so the value for money factor is pretty good. Mantra Audio also sell a simple elliptical G900SE stylus for £50; if this has the same cantilever and suspension as the hyperelliptical then a Paratrace retip on this could be an absolute bargain.
The result? Absolutely marvellous! I have it mounted in a Mayware Mark V arm tracking at 1.3g and used with a Graham Slee Genera phono stage (with PSU1 power supply). Sound stage, definition, detail and general musicality are all absolutely superb. However for best results I had to fine-tune the capacitance loading to be absolutely spot-on. I have never encountered such a fussy cartridge: at 125pF plus lead capacitance the sound was a little forward but with rolled off extreme treble and at 100pF the sound was slightly recessed and cymbals etc. a little too forward. It needed 110pF to hit the 'Goldilocks spot' where everything was just right.
My previous cartridge was a Denon DL103 with a metal body and a sapphire cantilever with Paratrace stylus - and the Goldring is clearly superior. It has the rather special 'just right' quality that reviews of the original G900IGC noted.
The Tonar hyperelliptical stylus cost £107 and the Paratrace retip cost £120, so the value for money factor is pretty good. Mantra Audio also sell a simple elliptical G900SE stylus for £50; if this has the same cantilever and suspension as the hyperelliptical then a Paratrace retip on this could be an absolute bargain.
