Anyone who has had a VdH Colibri for over 1000hrs


I am on my 3rd Colibri and have never had one long enough to put over 400hrs on it. My current H.O. XCP is as sibilant as the prev. Colibris but I love it regardless because on over 50% of my collection it is sublime! I do however feel or hope that with lots more hours the suspension will loosen up and the tracking will improve and elimate most of the sibilance. Should I reset my optimistic expectations or is there hope after all?
vusi_khumalo
Vusi,
Its an interesting trade off, isn't it. The sibilance can lacerate the eardrum I agree, but with the right mix on the LP the cartridge is sublime. I suspect that on a lot of pop rock and jazz the high end is boosted on the EQ to give the playback some flash for mid fi gear use. When all that high frequency info is picked up by the Colibri it manifests as spit, grain and searing hi hats etc. That's my theory. I wonder if cartridge loading has any effect. As much as I love the carty I wish it were a little more forgiving.