I've been listening a lot lately to Bill Laswell's Panthalassa translation and reconstruction of In A Silent Way-era Miles Davis, with Sony providing the original multitracks and handling the vinyl pressing, very nice double LP, but they cheaped out a bit on the jacket as vinyl was still just re-emerging from the early 90s low point, so no gatefold ... another one of those records I can listen to over and over ... so thought I'd record a little of it and link it up here since I imagine it's a bit rare and would be expensive to find a copy these days, this is just the first 6+ minutes of the opening side, which restructures the original album and leads off with the title track, so this is the first 6+ minute of Laswell's version ... Dropbox - Panthalassa.flac - Simplify your life ------------------------------------------------- "Panthalassa" marks a return to some of the most important recordings of Miles Davis' passionate and controversial "electric" period of the early 1970s. Conceived by producer Bill Laswell as a modern mix translation and reconstruction in sound, this unprecedented project features newly restored performances and never-before-heard extended themes from "In A Silent Way" (1969), "On The Corner" (1972) and "Get Up With It" (1974) - all taken from the original multitrack tapes.
Here's another sample from a nice old favorite I've been listening to today, The Blues and the Abstract Truth. The opening "Stolen Moments" is kind of a jazz standard, everyone is probably familiar with it, and it sounds great too, so I picked that one to record... this is from the 1995 Impulse! reissue series done at Capitol Mastering by Kevin Reeves ... like the Panthalassa record I posted above, this one is a little off center too, but I don't think it's very obvious in the listening ... Dropbox - Stolen_Moments_OC9XML.flac - Simplify your life
Here's another nice sounding one I pulled out today, this one of the mid 70s Sheffield Labs direct to disc cuts, opening of the second side of Dave Grusin's Discovered Again!, the first of Three Cowboy Songs, this one "Git Along Little Dogies", some very nice piano by Grusin, and good work from the rest of the band too. Admittedly, I'm not a big Grusin fan in general, but some of this is very nice and colorful ... Dropbox - Git_Along_Little_Dogies_OC9XML.flac - Simplify your life OK, I'll stop now before having to be told
Ok, your comparo in the other thread convinced me to give the OC9XML a try. I’ve got one coming from Amazon on Sunday. I think I know what the difference will be from the samples you posted in the other thread, but I’ll let you know how it stacks up to the AT33PTG/II in my system.
Hehehe, we are just a bunch of enablers around here Be fun to read your comments, look forward to it. I've said it a few times before so I don't imagine it will color your listening, but I find the main strength of the newer designed OC9XML is in the balance, it doesn't seem to highlight any particular area of the spectrum, and that does give it a more natural sound. May be the all-aluminum chassis helps give it a more coherent sound, not sure, most of the other carts in this range are a combo of plastic and aluminum bits. I even sanded the top of mine to remove the anodizing so that it is electrically grounded to the headshell, and with a tighter mechanical bond too (underside of headshell has been sanded nice and flat too), just wanted to take that idea a step further. Can't say it improved the sound, but I like that it's more integrated now
Yea, it is a nice recording, very hot too, gotta be careful. I didn't analyze that track closely enough before posting, but looked at the waveform later and saw that there was some clipping in the middle. It wasn't digital clipping, the recording level wasn't set that high and there was no clipping indication in the recording software. Turns out that my phono preamp has too much gain for this song to use with the Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi HD USB, it is clipping the analog input before A/D conversion, so not affected by the input level control. Oh well, checked the other recordings I posted and they were OK. I'll have to add an attenuator to reduce the level some if I want to be safe recording with that phono preamp.
BTW, I went ahead and recaptured that Dave Grusin track using my CJ EF-1 phono preamp which has much lower gain than my tube preamp with transformers, the dynamic range on that song is incredible, it is a good cartridge test! The DR meter shows a value of 20 with the peaks in the middle hitting -1dB and average RMS level down close to -30dB ... Dropbox - Git_Along_Little_Dogies_OC9XML_no_clip.flac - Simplify your life Code: foobar2000 1.4.6 / Dynamic Range Meter 1.1.1 log date: 2021-11-06 16:25:44 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Statistics for: Git_Along_Little_Dogies_OC9XML_no_clip Number of samples: 26386982 Duration: 4:35 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Left Right Peak Value: -1.19 dB --- -1.83 dB Avg RMS: -27.43 dB --- -25.65 dB DR channel: 20.89 dB --- 19.28 dB -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Official DR Value: DR20 Samplerate: 96000 Hz Channels: 2 Bits per sample: 24 Bitrate: 2438 kbps Codec: FLAC ================================================================================
Just a sidebar, while Discovered Again is is a delight, my #1 go to LP for all sorts of audio testing is Classic Hauser. So far the most well rounded performance from that LP has come from a Shure V15 type III/SAS-B. I also have the recording on CD, as well as 24/96 FLAC download. All of these mediums have inspired grand notions about the most pleasing overall means to recorded music. At any rate, you might want to check out the Classic Hauser LP.
Sounds good, looks like it is from Music on Vinyl, either red or black pressings, presumably from 24-96 digital source, I don't think they do analog, but the Hauser would be a digital recording anyway so that's expected. I have some MoV releases that do sound very good. I don't really have any goto records I use for testing, probably the closest in the last few years is the Melanie De Biasio No Deal record that I sampled here. I typically just use whatever I'm fixated on at the time, so generally something from a newer artist since that's what I listen to most often. Anyway, I was hoping that others would post some of their own OC9XML samples, but looks like that may not be happening, oh well, still may happen In the meantime, OC9XML riding on the Micro Seiki DD-40 ...
I was getting ready to install the cartridge and do some listening tonight, but I got a dud. The suspension was partially detached. Lucky I ordered from Amazon, so it’s an easy return. I’ll have another in a few days.
That's too bad, not a good sign, there have been a few people here mentioning issues lately with AT carts, including myself with the new VM740ML, hope they aren't cutting corners to keep up with demand on some of these really popular carts.
So, my second one arrived in good shape. I installed it on my SL-1210GAE using a stock Technics headshell and checked azimuth using a Fozgometer. Channel balance is good (looks to be within 1dB) and channel separation at 1 kHz is a very impressive 37dB, using the AP test record. By comparison, my AT33PTG/2 only hit about 30dB, though that is per spec for that cartridge. The OC9XML however is spec’d at only 27dB, so it’s getting another 10dB over the spec! The cartridge I had installed right before this one was the AT33PTG/2. Admittedly without any break-in, but the OC9XML sounds considerably brighter than the AT33PTG/2, which has a much warmer, relaxed sound by comparison, but also loses some detail to the OC9XML . Bass goes deep and is nice and punchy, and has a bit less mid bass sound than the AT33. Like the AT33, it’s nice and quiet in the groove. I need to do some more break-in and further listening, but so far this is quite a good cartridge for the price. If you’re into a warmer, relaxed sound, opt for the AT33PTG/2 at the same price point. The OC9XML is more neutral, and a bit brighter, but also noticeably more detailed.
Yea, it will be interesting to revisit after a few more hours breakin, I don't think the brightness shows in the samples I posted in the other thread, if anything it is reversed, the 33PTG is a little hotter in the upper octave, but cartridges are unfortunately not very precisely made, and do vary quite a bit from one sample to another, so often hard to characterize a certain LOMC model and have that result be true for all of us. I do think you'll like it more than the 33PTG, but obviously it comes down to nuances in the sound, maybe just in the way the bodies handle the vibration, definitely not a completely different sound Keep us posted, I think there's a lot of interest in this comparison around here.
Yes, I was surprised how everything actually sounded in my system! If I A/B with a digital source to give me a baseline on, say treble or bass response, it becomes very apparent. It may be a sample-to-sample variation in either cartridge as well. I've seen pretty wide variation in channel separation between different (seemingly identical) replacement styli on the same cartridge body, as one example.
I found I had to move my chair a bit closer to the speakers to have a better 3D presentation with the OC9XML as compared to where I sit with the Nagaoka MP-500. Not sure if it's because of the differences between the cartridges, or the MM/MC phono inputs on my Parasound, or both. But I think it worth it to experiment with speakers and chair placement when you change components.
Not sure if you like Public Image Ltd. The color scheme of the "The Body" single is very similar to the OC9XML:
I am using the AT-LH11H Headshell, which, from some divergent features to the lighter stock headshell, quickly and easily assures cart compliance to the Technics tracking error scheme. Resonance peak is at 6.559 Hz and from stock cables from my SL-1210GR to my Parasound P6's phono stage and amplification powering JBL L100t3 mains and a JBL B380 Subwoofer, the sound seems life-like, similar to my Shure V15 type III/SAS-B running on a stock Technics headshell. I have been told I will get an even better experience from one of the AT-ART9 series carts. Maybe that's true; but I'm not biting on that just yet. since the OC9XML delivers an SACD like experience with added presence, making me think what else is there to glean from the record groove?
Nice, it does look like a perfect match, and I do like PiL! Good to see you are still enjoying the new OC9XML, mine is gliding through the grooves on the Broadcast The Future Crayon album right now, always gets a few spins whenever it is out of the cover, and it's out pretty often these days, I think Broadcast will always be one of my favorite bands, and those few records will always be cherished, miss Trish so much. The MA-505 MkIII tonearm with the OC9XML moved over to the DD-40 right now, so it's doing the honors today ...
Nice picture, really looks the business! Looks like you are running it a bit tail up, or is that just the angle of the shoot?
It is indeed a bit tail high on a standard weight record with VTA set at zero. My AT-VM540ML also sets a bit tail high mounted to stock headshell with VTA set to zero. I have a few 15mm tall Shure V15V-MR carts, as well as a V15 type III cart, each mounted to a stock headshell with 2mm shim, and they are about perfectly level at zero VTA setting on a standard weight LP.
I was just thinking about getting that headshell…I guess it makes the cartridge ride a little higher than the Technics OEM ‘shell? Incidentally, don’t bother with the ART9XI if you like the OC9XML. I bought one and compared it head-to-head with the OC9XML. For one, the OC9XML had better measured channel separation at 37dB vs. 30dB, and it was audible (using the AP test record and a Fozgometer). The OC9XML is also more neutral, which I suppose some may not prefer, but I do. Finally, the ML stylus definitely traces inner grooves better than the SLC on the ART9XI, and the OC9XML picks up less extraneous noise, perhaps because of the stylus shape. The OC9XML is an amazing deal for almost any price, but particularly at this price point. It’s my new regular cartridge.
