Koetsu is officially back in production!

Sugano is irreplaceable. They were his designs. Ouija Boards or Medium? Either they only produce to templates laid down by Sugano(ie Materials/dimensions/tolerances/techniques/) or this smacks of someone wearing a mask which they have no claim to.

Literally as soon as the new team deviates from the Sugano template it is a Koetsu in name only. They should stick to his template. Strictly. In order to use that company name in good faith.

No problem with them making their own designs with the proviso ’the craftsmen from Koetsu’. Under a new company name. New designs/no input from Sugano the cartridge maker/ Not Koetsu.

Old designs/ Penned by Sugano/ Strictly made to Sugano’s template without deviation. Genuine successor to Koetsu.

All the rest is BS if it isn’t done that way. Do like Sugano from Sugano designs: You have a chance of rightly inhereting the Sugano kudos.

Deviate from Sugano. Introduce new models not penned by Sugano: A big money grab to ride on the coattails of the deceased.

I have a Koetsue Rosewood Signature... and am very happy with it. It has the right balance of detail and natural sonics for me. But I have not compared directly with others. 

@theophile your position on this is similar to saying that a modern Ferrari (say, 1980-) is not really a Ferrari after Enzo Ferrari passed away.

I think very few people would subscribe to that position.

@theophile 

Your post reads more as a philosophical stance rooted in a Sugano-era view of the brand than one grounded in actual listening experience. It comes across as a purity argument presented as a quality judgment.

Labeling the work of current craftsmen as a “cash grab” feels like a strong conclusion without direct comparison between original and new production. Without that firsthand experience, it’s difficult to assess whether the spirit of Koetsu has been preserved or meaningfully evolved.

It’s also worth pointing out that even under Sugano, Koetsu was not completely static…materials, stones, and voicing varied over time. So the idea of a single fixed “template” may be more idealized than historical.

Ultimately, the real test will be how the new cartridges perform in well-resolved systems, especially in comparison to earlier Koetsu examples. That’s where the conversation becomes meaningful and the purpose of this thread. 

Good to hear 🎵