Cartridges that get strings right?


The more I listen to live performances the more I’m struck at how difficult it is for home audio to get strings right, both solo and massed. The violin, in particular, can be biting and warm at the same time. Any cartridges that are notably good performers? 
pingvin
While I agree with everything that has been posted so far, there is another variable to getting the sound of strings correct. Nobody has mentioned the quality of the phono stage. Many phono stages are not that compatible or resolving enough to get this aspect right. What Ralph says above is 100% correct, but IF the phono stage has incompatibility with the cartridge...a problem occurs. The ability of the phono stage to amplify the cartridge signal without distortion is paramount. The more resolving the phono stage, the more the signal will pass through.
Dear @atmasphere  : """  Any cartridges that are notably good performers? ""  that's the OP question and I can't read nothing about in your post.

Btw, It does not matters all what you posted about cartridge/tonearm combination ( that all audiophiles know its importance. Only rookies are ignorant about. ) the cartridge self tracking abilities is the must important issue.

We can have a near " perfect " cartridge combination with a resonance frequency at 8hz-9hz but says almost nothing if that cartridge was designed with 6cu on compliance, it will be a very bad tracker and that " string rigth "  never will show up. I said " strings rigth " but could be any other performance characteristic. What if that 6cu additional comes with conical stylus shape instead VDH or Shibata one?
A cartridge is a whole unit and as its tracking abilities is important are other important characteristics as  motor design or suspension and quality level excecution of that design.

Everything the same : cartridge abilities is the name of the game.

""" Once the signal is properly tracked, you have to get it to the preamp where it gets properly amplified and equalized .  """

curios but instead to talk about that " amplified and equalized " subjects you gone for a way less important " road ":

""  The inductance and capacitance conspire to throw things out of whack: they create an electrical resonance  """.


@daveyf   """  Many phono stages are not that compatible or resolving enough ...."""

well neither people touched the amplifier resolution or cable resolution or several other links in the " prolific " audio system chain.


The best linephonostage/cables/amplifiers/ speakers/TT/tonearm can only reproduce ( always with degradation of the signal that pass through each link. ) what the cartridge pick-up.


The star in an analog room/audio system is the cartridge it self ( other than the LP. ) and all the other links in the audio system chain work as slaves of that cartridge.
Yes important slaves, but that's all. 

R.



In my system the London Decca Reference cartridge blows away everything else I have tried for orchestral music.  It's a fussy cartridge (but not as much as in the old days) that requires a good tonearm and phono stage match, as well as precise alignment.  But nothing sounds like this modern version of an audio dinosaur.

My second go to cartridge for classical are the Ortofon SPUs.  I particularly love the SPU Royal GM MkII and Synergy GM models.  If you can't do an SPU headshell you can try the SPU Royal N which is made for standard 1/2" cartridge mounting.

Norman Pickering was a noted violinist. He invented the Pickering cartridge because he didn't like how violins sounded on other cartridges. 
One of the best Pickering cartridges is XLZ 4500s 

Dear @br3098  : Did you try the Colibri or the A90/95 ?, all LOMC cartridges that are really the only cartridges ( LOMC ) that can reproduce " stings rigth ".

I heard the GM MK2 and the London Reference but unfortunatelly not in my system. I don't like the SPU line reproduced sound signature but the Royal is different.

R.