4. Installation guide
It is now big time to remember that a cartridge is an energy converter, just like your speakers. In other words, this means that you should treat your cartridge likewise. Every speaker manufacturer, for example, gives more or less detailed instructions on how to set-up his product. Problem is he has no clue of your specific environment-and I mean system and room. As a result, the way you set-up your speakers has usually little to do with the manufacturer's recommendations... The same goes with your cartridge: The manufacturer might declare that the ideal loading for his product is around 1k only there is no way for him to know that, because of specific interactions between your tone arm and cartridge (or, why not?, your particular listening preferences...), you just happen to need a bit more damping. The latter asking for a lower load value. Subsequently, I would personally gladly urge you to experiment a bit: Try first the recommended load and, then, go a bit up and down to see what happens. And you might well be in for a surprise!
At this point you should also understand why the one input – one output SUT boxes that you see selling on the market, are usually "flops", as most of these cater for only one load value. I admit that one can find – at great cost – very nicely made (and rather flexible, too...) outboard SUT's.
Still, there is a very serious problem that plagues both kinds: Keep in mind here, that at 10:1 gain, every metre of output cable is equivalent to 100 metres of input cable. You wouldn't want 100 metres of cable loading your cartridge, would you? And, if this happens at a "meagre" 10:1 gain, you could well imagine the results at 32:1!
So, if you want optimum performance, there is a basic rule never to be tampered with: The SUT's should be installed as near as possible to the phono stage inputs and – ideally – hardwired (to optimize reflected capacitive loading seen by the cartridge). You can see in the picture, such an installation in the writer's own all tube phono amplifier...
The two small metal cubes near the inputs are LUNDAHL LL1678's which give near stellar performance for a measly EUR 80 a pair. An extremely rare phenomenon in Hi-end land...
APPENDIX
MANUFACTURERS OF MC STEP-UP DEVICES (The list might not be exhaustive...)
1) STEPHENS & BILLINGTON
A small and rather snobbish English firm with no distribution in Europe (except in Croatia!!!). The Americans crave about their TX-103, which they consider the best there is. Maybe, but I did not like the fact that they look at their E-mails every 15 days or so and I surely stood in awe when I heard the asking price: GBP 270 +17.5% VAT + GBP 40 S&H for a pair! Still, the THX-103's were my first choice, before having been pissed off by their attitude, that is! www.stevens-billington.co.uk/page103.htm
2) SOWTER
Another British company with excellent credentials. I am already a client, so I can attest that quality is superb and people very knowledgeable and helpful (especially Brian Sowter). Prices are much more down to earth – about GBP 40/piece – and one should note the fact that they can build transformers to your specs, without surcharge.www.sowter.co.uk
3) LUNDAHL
A well known Swedish company, with a well organized and documented website. I was already very happy with their OPT's, which I used to build my SE 300B/2A3 monoblocks. Their price/quality ratio, plus the fact that their US importer maintains a very useful and informative forum on AUDIO ASYLUM, finally made me decide for their SUT's. Good choice! www.lundahl.se
These are the manufacturers I have been in contact with for this project. Similar products can of course be found elsewhere: BARTOLUCCI (in Italy), ACEA (in France), and of course the Japanese TAMURA, TANGO and JAMES.
Finally, there is JENSEN in the USA, which have in their website a host of information on choosing the right SUT for your cartridge. As a (very useful, indeed...) bonus, they have compiled downloadable tables, showing the internal impedance, as well as the output of quite a number of cartridges. (See www.jensen-transformers.com/mc.html)
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