Synergy

Dear @rvpiano  : 13 years ago all the Clearaudio MM cartridges were made by Audio Technica and the Virtuoso ( that I owned ) cartridge motor was the humble one by the AT 95 and improved under Clearaudio needs.

This was my review of the Virtuoso:

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/review-clearaudio-virtuoso-wood-cartridge

Maybe what you need is to match ( as mulveling said. ) with a different tonearm the other alternative is that you need a really accurated set up especially in the VTA because the Virtuoso is extremely sensitive to minute VTA changes.

The other issue is that the retip was made by SoundSmith and maybe with ruby cantilever and this kind of material is not very good on that place where even hardened aluminum is a superior choice.

Before you spend more money try some cartridge set up modifications not only VTA but vtf and azymuth too and try to mantain clean the stylus tip and obviously your LPs.

R.

Roll em IF ya got em. You should check out the muscular Kuzma… seems to work well in my systems….

@rvpiano You might like the Benz wood bodies….

@pindac @rauliruegas @tomic601

Thanks so much for your suggestions.

i think I might  have been a little premature in my evaluation.  Most things really sound good.  Maybe being too compulsive!

@rvpiano I can second tomic601's Benz Wood recommendation. Never bright or edgy, and never boring. Just nicely balanced and a bit sweet :) 

I started out in analog (years ago now) with a Benz Glider L2, and it kept the upgrade-itis at bay for two full years! In retrospect, it was a great 1st choice for me. Glider is very close to Wood, the latter is just a tad sweeter. Any of the Wood versions - L2, M2, SL, SM will do nicely (M is medium output, L is low output, S is the most recent version, 2 is the older version). 

RV, I think you should move up the Clearaudio line to the Maestro V2. It has a much better cantilever and stylus. It should be more detailed. The Charisma is really what you want. I had one which I gave to a friend and he loves it. He also had a problem with brightness and the Charisma with it's aggressive bass cleared that right up. It is one of the most dynamic cartridges I have ever heard and beautifully made and presented. It rivals moving coil cartridges in the 4-5000 dollar range. Next up would be the Soundsmith Voice which I can not say enough good things about. Mine is now driving a pair of Magico S7s. I gave it to that friend for his 70th birthday and he LOVES it.  I liked it so much that I bought a Hyperion MR, a $10K cartridge which I should have shortly.