Ortofon Cadenza Blue - Ortofon Cadenza Bronze

[RSG]

I recently acquired an Ortofon Cadenza Blue, in fact from a member here Petro85, Steve, great cartridge, great price, great guy! Now a friend-dealer is offering me a new Ortofon Cadenza Bronze for $1,100.00 plus the blue?

 

[Petro85]

Hey Robert!! That's not a bad deal. You better go hear the bronze before you jump into it.
I personally loved the bronze, but some say its warmer than the blue or black. And I'm not sure it's $1000 better than the blue. Trust your ears

 

[RSG]

Hey Robert!! That's not a bad deal. You better go hear the bronze before you jump into it.
I personally loved the bronze, but some say its warmer than the blue or black. And I'm not sure it's $1000 better than the blue. Trust your ears

Hi Steve, I was wondering the same thing. I'm guessing if they were both new prices it would be worth it. I'll be talking to you

 

[audio.bill]

Robert, congrats on getting into the Cadenza cartridges! I find them to be superb performers that are competitive well beyond their price points. I run the Bronze, and before I purchased it I discussed the differences between the Blue, Bronze, and Black directly with Louis (the main man) at Ortofon US. He described the Blue as being ultra detailed, and that it tends to match best with systems that are laid back and can benefit from its very revealing perspective. The Bronze is the warmest of the three, with a tonality in the midrange that gives it a very smooth and rich balance along with a subtle sweetness. The Black has more of a neutral perspective and is exceptionally revealing while being a bit less forgiving than the Bronze. The differences are primarily due to differences in the cantilever material and stylus profiles used in each. There is a $400 increment in retail pricing between each of the three cartridges, so whether it is worth $1,100 to go from the Blue to the Bronze will depend upon your sonic preferences as well as whether you'd prefer to get a new cartridge. I have only personally heard the Bronze in my system, but I have to mention that when properly aligned the Ortofon Replicant stylus profile is amazingly quiet in the groove. I have never heard another cartridge that has such silence behind the music. Virtually all of the surface noise heard with other cartridges which I thought was inherent to the vinyl playback process has miraculously vanished.