Ordered the Cardas sweep record today along w Guitar in the Space Age and the Sleep Eazys ( Joe Bonnamassa) today. Hopefully the Cardas record will speed along the break in process for the Art9. It continues to improve!
1,300GBP =1,605.43USD... think I'll wait a while I'm actually still kinda knocked out at how good the new AT-OC9XML sounds for $466. Maybe just a case of good synergy with a nice set of tube electronics, but very nice sound, and a perfect tracker. Resonant frequency a bit low on my Micro Seiki at around 7Hz, but no biggie.
ouch. that is about where i place the the original ART9 in terms of its median competetive value, which made its actual price a very good deal. whether the new one keeps pace remains to be heard.
It sounds real nice beginning at about 50 hours but continues to improve for many more hours. Its unreal that my mid-ling TT can extract so much out of the ART9. I think it having a 10.5 in tonearm, on the fly VTA, and several realignments over 2 years have perked up the SQ here and there, after finding optimal settings for each. Even going to 1.9g tracking force brought a slight but noticeable improvement. One thing for sure it sure isn't getting worse 2 years in. For about 4 months recently I had my Dual 1219 w/ M91 with HE stylus in my main system, nice sounding TT and cart. with a nice helping of detail. When you go back to the ART9, you begin to notice all the detail that you never really missed with the Dual.
I hear you about the OC9 but I am still gun shy about a LOMC cartridge at that price point - coming off a very bad experience with an Ortofon Quintet Blue. How do you rate the AT-OC9 compared to other LOMCs you have heard? Thanks.
Hype of what? I dont know what that statement means......."A record needle that knows analog" Truly, there is a lot of gear thats absolutely wonderful and I trust what you say about how great that cart is, never heard it my self.....no gear perfect in the absolute sense of the word. Many talk about audio manufacturers and their marketing spin....but still...thats some hyperbole they're spinning, with no reason to do such. I mean, the previous cart was all that and a bag of chips......That company really shouldn't need to do that.
I tend to ignore marketing hyperbole like "A record needle that knows analog". Obviously, the needle knows nothing since it is not a living breathing organism. The industry is full of this kind of rhetoric. What is infinitely more meaningful to me is the myriad of positive experiences I have read about on this and other forums for this particular cartridge that happens to mirror my own personal experience with it. It is a very fine cartridge indeed. Is it everyone's cup of tea? Probably not. But, when I decide to do some really critical listening with my eyes closed, it always delivers for me - and I can be very difficult to satisfy in that regard.
That verbiage is pulled directly from the Japanaese AT website and run through an online translator. You'll find similarly strange/amusing phrases when doing that on other Japanese manufacturers websites. AT-ART9XI｜アナログ｜株式会社オーディオテクニカ
Whats so amusing about it is AT need not spin anything. I've used their products in the past with great delight so I know they need not such marketing spin. And the new cart is absolutely on my short list.
Well the translation of certain words and phrases from Japanese to English doesn't always equate to a 1+1=2 in a literal sense. What they mean and how it directly translates into English doesn't always sound right. A phrase in English like "a smooth and liquid midrange" might sound very strange when translated to Japanese. It sounds strange in English as well but we tend to try and paint a mental picture of sounds to make an audio component sound appealing. Bottom line, I doubt they wanted the phrase to read like it does in English.
Seems mainly a little lower compliance and threaded body, and bringing VTA more inline with their other carts ...
I'm not sure we have too much overlap in cartridges, I've been mostly staying on the Benz Micro path for the last few years in my main rig, but it's been really hard to fault this new AT Microline, it does everything very well. It doesn't quite have that lived in comfort that I love about the Benz Wood, so the AT isn't quite as natural sounding as the Benz, but the AT is half the cost too, and has really turned out to be nearly the perfect "daily driver" cartridge, cost per play not obscenely high, and enjoyment very high. Anyway, I haven't yet compared them directly, only table to table, so other variables in the mix ... below is the view today, shoved the Clearaudio Avantgarde with Benz Micro Wood SL next to the Micro Seiki BL-91 with Audio Technica AT-OC9XML so they could both be connected to the Conrad Johnson Premier 15, and then went back and forth a few times, using the MOV reissue of the great Tindersticks Simple Pleasure, mostly the song "I Know That Loving" ... pretty easy to get lost in the music either way ...
ART9XI will be available in US by the end of July per AT US. Thanks for expressing interest in the AT-ART9XI. This model will be available towards the end of July 2020. Let me know if you have any further questions. Have a good day. Regards, Mike Owens Sales Manager, Consumer Products T: (330) 686-2600 x2580
sorry, no. Retail for the original was $1300 with much lower street price. Current suggested retail in Japan is 150,000 Yen which is $1392.41 US. I expect street price in US to be ~ $100 higher than the ART9.
Been enjoying this fine cartridge since January. Incredible wide soundstage. The sound has become so smooth which I never thought I'd say about an AT. Never reaching to lower the treble for harsh highs.
