There are a few dealers offering trade in deals on the Hanas that might ease the pain. ElusiveDisc and Gene Rubin come to mind. If you don't have a spare cartridge, there's an Audio Technica on Amazon for around $20.
You might be better off with a good MM. (which you already have) over a high output MC. That was basically the opinion of my Hana dealer. He thinks the EL is an exceptionally good cart for the $$$, but when I inquired abouy the EH, he wasn't so enthusiastic.
I hear you about the price. Matter of fact when I ordered my Prime I was hoping to get a Dynavector 10x5 or cheaper cartridge. And they aren't cheap anymore either! But the places I looked were out of them and the store I ordered the Prime with gave me a little discount on buying a cart/table package and I asked if they had the Hana SH in stock and he said they did. SO I just went for broke (damn near) and ordered the pair. For the money it's worth it once you hear one. It's easily three times the cartridge my DL160 was and that's no exaggeration. If the SL version is even better then I may have my next cartridge picked out already..
The EH would be more tolerant with alignment, I think. I had the EL before I got the SL (long story). The difference was not huge. Most of the character of the cartridge comes from the magnet and winding design, I think. If you can just focus on enjoying the music and forget the 'what ifs' I think the EL might make you real happy. Then again a Dynavector 10x5 is about $100 less than the SL. It has been highly reviewed. I have a 10x3 and when I'm using it I don't miss the Hana SL too much.
Honestly, now i'm thinking i have to nail the alignment on the Nagaoka and maybe just get a new stylus for it if it's borked.
I ended up exchanging the EL for an SL. So far it's disappointing. I spent multiple hours last night tweeking the setup with SRA and tracking force settings and can't get any bass from this cart. I've set up Shibata styli before and didn't have this difficulty. I settled on a resistance load of 500 ohms and gain of 60db. This yielded the best dynamics, but it's very bright. How did you guys set VTA/SRA? Tail up, even, tail down?
If it's a new SL, let it burn in before you judge its bass output. Out of the box, mine was all midrange but over time the highs and lows extended a lot and it gives a really musical presentation now.
Hmm...I'm a believer of break-in, but going from zero bass to good bass is quite a stretch. As it sits right now, I estimate I'm getting nothing below 200Hz.
I spent a lot of time setting this cart and my VPI Prime. Went in circles, vta, vtf, azimuth, check alignment, repeat. On the prime you change the vtf you must do it with the arm set at the proper vta or else you could be off a gram or so, which will also affect the sound. I’m running it now with tail down. At about 75 hours and it sounds wonderful. BTW my phono stage is the Lehmann black cube 2se 1000 ohm 56db. It did change around the 40-50 hour mark. Good luck mdr
Nothing at all or just really quiet? With mine, bass was much quieter than it should be at first, but improved a lot. I guess my point is to give it some time before you return it. Also, to answer your other question, I have my tonearm set roughly parallel to the platter. It's a Rega (with a 3mm tonearm base spacer) and I haven't experimented with other settings but the cart doesn't sound too bright or too dull in my system.
Quick question now, and forgive me if it sounds idiotic - I'm just trying to learn something. How do you adjust the SRA? I know how to adjust the VTA - by vertically raising/lowering the tonearm assembly. Is there a separate/specific procedure for the SRA? Or is it part of the result, so to speak, of the VTA adjustment?
Someone with more knowledge on the subject will respond, but my understanding is that they are intertwined. Vertical tracking angle refers to the tonearm / cartridge angle. Stylus rake angle refers to the stylus angle (the actual angle that is cut on the stylus) in regards to the record. Adjusting the VTA will affect the SRA.
Ditto. Also, I bought a VTA-on-the-fly mod for Jelco arms from a guy on eBay. It fits my Sumiko Premier MMT; but it's a bit heavy and too tall for my dustcover. We are going to work on a mod of the mod. If it works, I'll be able to adjust SRA by ear in a valid manner.
Interesting. Can you provide a link? My arm is similar to the Jelcos in that VTA is adjusted by a collar clamp. I even suspect the yoke shafts are the same diameter. My arm is basically a Frankenstein that uses designs from about 4 brands. It has the headshell of a Clearaudio, geometry of a Rega, Jelco mounting style and bearings unlike any of those...also has an uncommonly light mass of 10gm. I'd love to have VTA on the fly, but it sounds like this mod would interfere with my dustcover as well. I'll keep an eye on your progress. Thanks.
Anyone running their Hana at over 2 gm VTF? Since 2 gm is the suggested ideal, I imagine the safe range is likely 1.8 to 2.2 gm.
A better design would be a tanged /splined adjustment screw (no taller than the arm) that mates to a female extension for adjustment.
Agreed but "SRA" is misused by nearly everyone. It means rake angle within the cartridge / stylus assembly. Example- a rake angle of 2-degrees would mean that the stylus is tilted 2-degrees with respect to the unmounted cartridge assembly. VTA is the actual tracking angle measured at the record surface.
I just got my Hana SL 2 days ago and set it up for 2 grams and it sounds fantastic so I am thrilled. I was so afraid I was going to hear a Sonic signature from this cartridge that would drive me up the wall but that's not the case. It sounds just like I want it to sound, meaning not overly bright and having excellent bass definition, superb mid-range and and Crystal Clear highs. And I have not heard a single syllabant yet
I discovered last night that my in-line subsonic filters were cause of my lack of bass. I was able to get very good bass when I switched my preamp to 47KΩ. I still question the SRA of the stylus. When I eyeball an angle of 92° (measured at the stylus centerline), the cartidge tail is much too close to the LP surface.