Step up transformer for Benz Ebony TR cartridge


Friends, I have a good offer on a Benz Ebony LP and Benz Ebony TR. I have not heard either of them. I would ideally like a clean, fast and natural sounding cartridge. Recently I heard a Lyra Delos on a Rega P9 and RB1000 tonearm, while it was clean and fast it had a very CD like presentation. On good recordings it was great but on average recordings the high frequency was very CD like. I did not enter the Vinyl world to hear a CD like thing, no matter how high the resolution might be. IMO, analogue playback can remain or retain its analogue character still retrieve tons of details and play high resolution.
This is exactly my expectation from one of the Benz carts here. Reading the reviews, I felt the TR is more suitable for my taste which is to have a neutral and fast cartridge while still retaining the full glory of analogue playback. I listen to a lot of Rock n Roll (e.g Elvis) and old world classics so the cartridge should not over blow defects in the recordings but reveal the true character of the music that is on the record. In this context I have two questions:

1. Which of the two cartridge would be more suitable to my needs, Ebony TR or Ebony LP ?

2. If I go with Ebony TR, what kind of step up transformer would I need ? I currently use a RCM Sensor Prelude phonostage which has a gain of 76 db but I am not sure that is enough for the very low output voltage of Ebony TR. Can anyone suggest a suitable step up transformer which is not too expensive yet does justice to the TR ?

BTW, I use Verdier turntable and a Vector Basis 4 tonearm. The Verdier is neutral yet warm, very revealing yet a tad romantic. I would like to avoid a cartridge which is on the darker side of the neutral. If I have to err, I would like to have something on the livelier side of the neutral.

Please help and suggest.
pani

Showing 4 responses by dailycitrus

Mulveling,

you were spot on correct. I received the Benz Micro Ebony TR cartridge yesterday and paired it with the Bob's SUT with a 40:1 gain capability. Its a magic combination; all the reviews are correct. very nice choice.

thanks
I have a Lyra Erodion SUT and enjoy it. Any thoughts on its abilities to handle the TR? I would like to purchase the Benz Ebony TR and prefer to pair the Erodion with it.

I see the Erodin specs 2 to 10 ohms spec. Is that a show stopper for the TR at 1 ohms?
Thanks for the detailed in put. Your response, which is much more detailed that I can be, is much appreciated and unfortunately what i expected. The dealer is still checking but I think if I want to hang with a Benz and keep my Lyra i will have to settle for the L.

the Lyra has a SUT ratio of 20:1 / 26dB and as you suspected the phono input impedance is 47k and 2MV sensitivity (vintage McIntosh C22).
Mulveling, Talked to a few experts, read several reviews and exchanged emails with Bob; I ordered 1 Cinemag 1131 today. Thanks for that reference.

Also, what cables are you using from the TT to the SUT and from the SUT to the Pre-Amp? I am considering Bob's silver 1m for the TT to the SUT.

I will compare the Cinemag to the Lyra when it arrives.