Lyra Helikon

According to the people at Scantech, there is no sonic difference between the low and high output versions of this cartridge. Having said this, the main difference is fewer windings on the coils, hence lower moving mass for the coil assembly. One might conclude that this would increase speed and low level detail.

Many years ago I owned a tube preamp that required an outboard step up device for the low output cartridge that I was using. I tried a number of different outboard transformers including a Denon, a Cotter and finally a Koetsu which was by far the most musical of the group. In the end I preferred the sound of the cartridge going straight into the preamp even given the higher noise level and loss of dynamics. IMHO, I would reccommend going with the higher output Helikon rather than using a step up transformer; however, if you must use a transformer, use the one made by Lyra.

I have only a limited number of hours on my Helikon, but continue to be very pleased. A friend suggested that I try damping (apparently the Helikon puts significant energy into the tonearm which can effect image focus and bass). My arm uses a silicon trough/paddle damping arrangement that allows one to vary the amount of the paddle making contact with the silicone. A small amount of damping resulted in a significant improvements to the sound (better focus, more image density, fuller midbass, more stable image) and in trackability (particularly highly modulated vocals). More damping reduced highs. Would be curious with respect to the experience of others with respect to damping and any other suggested tweaks.