Soundsmith Paua Mk II

Moby

Moby

New member
Joined
Jun 20, 2014
Messages
92
Location
Front Range, Colorado
Have any of you tried the Soundsmith Paua Mk II? I'm thinking of upgrading from my Lyra Delos and am considering this cart along with the Kiseki NS Purple Heart.
 
I have the Aida which is a couple of steps down from the Paua and I love it. Very quiet in the grooves and sounds wonderfully balanced. Sound stage is extraordinary with the SS carts. Wide and deep. From what I understand the low output versions take it to an even higher level of performance. The great thing is the rebuild price is quite low in comparison to others.
 
I've heard both the Kiseki PH and many Lyras, and the PH definitely has a warmer/richer tonal balance than the Delos. From what I've read in reviews and user comments on the SS Paua Mk II I'd expect it to also be warmer than the Delos, but I haven't experienced the SS myself so that's really just speculation. Wish I could be of more help, but now you've got me considering the Paua MkII as a potential upgrade from my Ortofon Cadenza Bronze... there's no end to this madness!
 
Also giving some serious consideration to the Ortofon Windfeld Ti which I'm hearing very favorable reports about. Since I've been so pleased with the Cadenza Bronze it seems like that would be a logical and clear step up in performance. The new Windfeld Ti is in Ortofon's hand built Exclusive line and incorporates many significant upgrades from the Cadenze Bronze including a Selective Laser Melting Titanium body, advanced magnetic design and coils, improved damping system, and a specially polished Nude Ortofon Replicant 100 stylus on boron cantilever.
 
I’ve read nothing but great things about the Windfeld Ti. So the three carts I’m considering are (in order of cost - low to high) the Kiseki NS Purple Heart, the Soundsmith Paua MKII and the Winfield. That’s a range of $1,500 to $2,000 difference in cost, depending on deals I can find. I’ve got a local dealer installing the Kiseki on an SME turntable to test it out. Once it’s broken in he’ll report back to me and I’ll go check it out. He also carries Soundsmith and Ortofon, but I don’t know if he’s got those carts available for demo. I’ll report back if and when I hear anything.
 
I have a trusted and unbiased audiophile friend who has directly compared the Windfeld Ti and Kiseki PH, and found the Windfeld Ti to be clearly superior in detail retrieval and spaciousness without being at all analytical or too polite like the original Windfeld could be. The Kiseki definitely has a warmer tonal balance between the two but can sound a bit veiled in comparison. Everything's relative and they're both great cartridges, probably comes down to system balance and personal preference to reach your desired goals.
 
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