Soundsmith Straingauge SG-200 cartridge system

Dear Dougdeacon: +++++ " The original SG I heard (at RMAF a few years ago) had oodles of dynamics, a full frequency range, speed, weight, heft, etc. Everything it did it did well and nothing was distorted. However, it lost or severely attenuated the complex harmonics we're used to hearing on two familiar Vivaldi and Handel LP's.... " ++++++

+++ " lose the lowest levels of musical harmonics. They simply fall below the sound floor of the component and are not retrieved.

People who listen to rock or other amplified/electronically manipulated music might not notice or care. We listen almost entirely to classical, with a heavy emphasis on original/early instrument recordings. Reproducing harmonic complexities with completeness and accuracy is essential to reproducing the actual sound of such music. " ++++

this is not the first time that you post about harmonics and I think that on each time " things " are not very clear because IMHO you was not precise, I mean what harmonics are you talking about?: in which frequency ranges? it is the 2th, the 3th, the 5th, the 6th, its combinations or what? how any one of us with the same LPs can even figure what are you talking on harmonics with out be more precise about?

I think I know both of you ( about listen music experiences/habilities. ) more or less as you know me too.
I know all the " implications " on the music experiences on harmonics and its main influences on any music experience.

My take on the SS is that its main " trouble " is about frequency response deviations against any other LOMC/MM/MI cartridges due that does not performs with the RIAA eq. ( as any other cartridge/phono stage and as the recording was recorded. ), the SS has its own eq. curve. IMHO there is no reason that the SS can't handle music harmonics but its frequency deviations makes a different tone/color. I heard it in a very good audio system and that's was what I heard.

As you I heard in my system all the cartridges you name it but the Olympos that I heard in the same system I heard the SS along all them I heard in my system the Goldfinger, Coralstone, AT Supreme and the like. All of them good performers with its own trade offs.

IMHO the SS is a cartridge that can fulfil some persons music priorities that likes those deviations/colorations/distortions. I know you don't like it, you are to polite about, as neither I. Our priorities are different but other people are different too and some of them love it.

You and Stringreen posted to hear it before decide to buy it and I'm with both of you the only " thing " I can say is that we have to hear it for some hours ( not brief way ) against other top cartridges and then decide about.

Regards and enjoy the music,
R.

Thanks, Raul. Our ears/priorities certainly do differ in some ways, always have, but we seem to have reached similar conclusions about the Strain Gauge (I assume you meant SG, not SS?). You may be perfectly right that it displays other behaviors besides harmonic attenuation, behaviors which bother your ears more than mine.

All one can advise anyone is what you and I have both said, listen for yourself and decide.

P.S. With regard to whether it was the 2nd, 3rd, 4th or nth order harmonics which went missing, my recollection (several years old now) is that basically they ALL went missing. If some were attenuated more than others my ears aren't good enough say.

I do know it was much harder to distinguish between (say) an 18th C. oboe and a 20th C. one. The difference between those two instruments is vast when heard live, and quite clear with all those LOMC's too. The SG lost a lot of the distinctions.

Will be fascinated to hear this supposed harmonic deficit when I audition the Straingauge. Would love to hear from others with experience.
I certainly know what I like in a cart's sound - hate cheaper Lyras, eg Skala, but love the Parnassus. Much admire the Orpheus, but Zu 103 an interesting alternative.

While I appreciate deeply the pro's and cons of varied designs, which are far less varied than the listening preferences of audiophiles, those that indicate that one MUST listen to a particular product at length to create a long term opinion are correct in my experience.

One experience I had with England in the home of a well known audiophile, engineer and reviewer who initially very much disliked the SG in his system, was monumental. After disliking it very much after 120 seconds, he suggested an experiment, likely to prove to me how bad the Strain Gauge is. We would play a CD and LP of the exact same classical performance, and compare. After 5 minutes of the CD, we played the Strain Gauge. As long as I live, I will never forget the confused expression on his face, as he then hurriedly transferred the LP to his new $8K magnetic "favorite" cartridge on his adjacent table, only to have the notes sound as if they were being ground out between some Metal gears. He turned to me and apologized, saying that if "anyone had told him that after 40 years of listening to magnetic cartridges, he had become biased to where he could not hear something so much better, he would have thought they didn't know what they were talking about".
This experience proved to me once again that we do have a long term acoustic memory of a sort - as well as a bias - sometimes so much so that it makes an unbiased hearing of something different very difficult, if not impossible.

While I would never dispute someone preferences, the comments about lack of harmonics implies technical inaccuracy in so far as tracing what is in the groove. With the levels of detail the SG is capable of, I would rather suggest that the non-linearity due to poor groove tracing of most magnetic cartridges CREATES harmonics, much like the non-linearity of tube gear. I have measured it - which is a simple task. If someone claimed that, I would agree - the SG reveals, but does not add. Being capable of reproducing a square wave from a record with little ringing or roll is clear evidence of that. The crescendos re-creation with no congestion is also evidence of that - and the physics support it real tracking capability. It is everyone's cup of tea?? Absolutely not. But those who have purchased it have largely indicated to me that "the musicians have finally arrived in their listening rooms." That makes my day every time I receive such an Email. Nothing is perfect. But the SG is unique.

Peter Ledermann/Soundsmith

Dear Slowlearner: Good England experience.

+++++ " This experience proved to me once again that we do have a long term acoustic memory of a sort - as well as a bias - sometimes so much so that it makes an unbiased hearing of something different very difficult, if not impossible. " +++++

this is something that happens almost all the time between LOMC biased listeners when hear the MM/MI alternative for the first time and normaly they don't give the " time " to this MM/MI alternative and frequently they don't even made the right MM/MI cartridge overall set up with the same care as they took with their LOMC favorite ones.

I try hard to be not biased to the magnetic cartridge alternative over the SG one, even I know and I prefer the quality performance of DVD-A against any magnetic cartridge.

I posted that I don't see any reason why the SG can't handle the " harmonics development " that as you posted came with the cartridge habilities to " stay in the groove " the tracking cartridge habilities that means lower or higher distortions ( depend on its tracking habilities. ) where these tracking distortions have and develop its own harmonics.

The first time I heard your SG I can't detect any tracking problem because that was not what I was testing ( was not in my place but SD ones. ) but LP tracks that I used at my place as part of my overall audio item testing process that I know in very precise and clear way.
That very first time with your SG cartridge was a learning session where what I detect was frequency deviations more than harmonics problems and I detected way before we compared against the Olympos that showed a lot lower frequency deviations/distotions. We tested both cartridges with almost the same LP tracks that I know as good as my hand fingers.

Nothing is perfect in audio always we find out trade offs and if it's true that SG signal pass through less phono stages ( no inverse RIAA eq. for example. ) that always degrade the cartridge signal it is true that our ears ( especialy mines. ) are very sensitive to frequency deviations that makes that some of the very top magnetic cartridges sounds more " natural ".

IMHO and thinking in " high voice " maybe the SG cartridge self deviations could be ( to me ) less " important " with a different/better SG self electronics. I don't know the SG electronics design so I'm only " thinking " about, I " know " that that SG electronics are not perfect and always could be up grade it. I can be wrong but I think that as designer you are not totaly satisfied in the SG today status and I hope that in the future its quality performance can lower or disappear its today performance " problems " in favor of the music listening home experiences.

Opinions are always that: opinions. Even with all the " problems " that surround the magnetic cartridges ( less and lower in the MM/MI field. ) I still prefered against the SG, at least for now.

Regards and enjoy the music,
R.