Description
Ortofon MC Cadenza Red Moving Coil Phono Cartridge
Review quote MC Cadenza Red
Audiophilia May 2016
Reviewed by Anthony Kershaw“… I was quite surprised at the detail and sophistication of the first in line Ortofon Cadenza (Red) moving coil. …it does extract a ton of detail and shades the detail with expression and accurate dynamics.
…As audiophiles we’re always looking for the proverbial veil lifting in front of the stage. The Red did just that. More importantly, the cartridge has a very sweet disposition. All carts add their own voices, and some, too many. The sweetness here is tactile. Massed violins had weight and sheen, and a presence that only well designed analogue allows…
…Bass was emphatic. Deep and with the resonances that make it such a satisfying musical component…
…The midrange is always the most elusive to capture, especially voices… The balance is right on so many of their carts. The Red is wonderfully in balance, nothing jars,nothing compresses. You’ll get the air and the musical presence…
…I really like this cartridge. For the price, a favourite moving coil…”
German HiFi magazine STEREOPLAY’s GOLDENES OHR Award 2017
The readers of the STEREOPLAY voted for the best Hifi products of the year. With votes coming in from across Germany, MC Cadenza Red won in the category phono cartridges.
The Cadenza series
At Ortofon we constantly look for new technology to be used in our products and push the performance of existing technology. Thus we assure the highest level of performance and quality. The Kontrapunkt models and MC Jubilee became market standards and are among our most popular cartridges. Nevertheless Ortofon decided to develop a new cartridge series that is even more ambitious.
By carefully implementing cobalt-iron pole pieces, new improved winding process on the armature, using extruded aluminium housing in the models as well as other changes, we have been able to reveal new possibilities in performing the analogue information. It was also decided to make a more complete range of cartridges, which meant an introduction of a moving coil Cadenza Mono model to support our customers, who have an extended interest in micro groove mono records.
Each of the five Cadenza Series cartridges has its own individual sonic expression, and all five models together represent the ensemble of five classic variations:
- MC Cadenza Mono is a true mono cartridge for playing mono microgroove vinyl records
- MC Cadenza Red delivers open, dynamic sound with a touch of warmth
- MC Cadenza Blue adds more dynamics and resolution, sounds more open and reproduces more details
- MC Cadenza Bronze adds even more details and resolution but in a very evenhanded way that pays respect to all elements
- MC Cadenza Black is the best of everything, true to the groove with resolution and accurate insight into each recording
The story about Cadenza
Cadenza (from Italian: meaning cadence) refers to a portion of a concert in which the orchestra stops playing, leaving the soloist to play alone in free time, without a strict, regular pulse. A cadenza can be written or improvised. It’s usually the most elaborate and virtuosic part the solo instrument plays during the whole piece. At the end of the cadenza, the orchestra re-enters, and generally finishes off the movement.
During the 19th century, composers began to write cadenzas out in full. Others wrote cadenzas for works, where the composer had intended for the solo to be improvised, in order for the soloist to have a well formed solo that they could practice in advance. Some of these have become so widely played and sung that they are effectively a part of the standard repertoire.
Review quote MC Cadenza Red
Hi-Fi News July 2012
Group test“…From the start, the Cadenza Red dispensed an air of calm. It was tonally neutral, with a smooth and natural mid and treble…
…Bass was accurate, extended and open-sounding, helping the cartridge’s ability to offer realistic stereo perspectives…”
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