Koetsu is officially back in production!

@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 🎵

Kiseki came back under new auspices, albeit the new products are not as loved.  Why not Koetsu?  And why not Transfiguration, darnit?

Extremely grateful I snagged a Koetsu Corralstone D just before they were discontinued, this seemed like the most “musical” cartridge for my collection.  Debating in using a SUT which would also require a “voltage” phono as my transimpedience phono won’t suffice. 

I am sure you’ve seen this video of the making of Denon DL-103:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKDtNrN2jy8

What is surprising is that for a ‘high’ volume cartridge produced in a corporate environment, there is one woman and one only who handles the coil winding, the master coil winder.

On Lyra’s website, Johnathan Carr is credited as the, ‘ ‘conceptualizer’, and Yoshinori Mishima is the designer / master craftsman.  In a video with Carr as speaker, he actually presented the number of cartridges Lyra is capable of producing each month, and Yoshinori-San works only on the higher models. The Delos and Kleos  are left to junior craftsman. Both Denon and Lyra, as well as most other Japanese cartridge brands are quite transparent about the inner workings of their production. 
 

Koetsu has always maintained a sense of mystery. The Sugano masters were the sole craftsmen involved as the myth goes. We know nothing of the minions who toil behind the scene. However, I think it is typical for Japanese cartridge makers to have specialized craftsmen for different parts of the production. And with the new Koetsu production announced, the former Axiss Audio owner, Arturo Manzano, has basically outlined the obvious. There were craftsmen, other than the Suganos’, involved and he has managed to gather them to make what they had been making for decades. Whether it will be a ‘cash grab’ will depend on many things, most of all pricing. But I doubt the new products can be priced much higher than before. I don’t think I will have a problem buying the new Koetsus’. But most likely I would hunt down a used Vermillion.