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The new Ortofon MC A90 moving coil cartridge uses a revolutionary new manufacturing process known as Selective Laser Melting (SLM) in which micro particles are laser-welded together, layer by layer. ‘This high technology and high precision process eschews traditional techniques to provide increased rigidity and body density resulting in the further reduction of unwanted resonances while still maintaining exact figures for cartridge mass,’ says Matthew Hunter, of SpeakerBits, which distributes Ortofon cartridges in Australia. Hunter told Australian Hi-Fi Magazine that the SLM manufacturing process enables Ortofon to build all of the essential components into the single-piece body, including the complete magnetic system, the terminal block, and the silicone rubber wire guard.
Ortofon says it will be building only 400 of the MC A90 cartridges worldwide. Tom Manning, Managing Director of Speakerbits, says the new cartridge is: ‘… not only a celebration of history…, it actually creates history by significantly raising the standards by which sound reproduction are measured. Those who choose to adopt the A90 will experience the lifelike, open sound, with exceedingly clear midrange for a presentation that is unparalleled. The A90 remains extremely musical while paying close attention to micro dynamic detail, with its delicate, but also analytical nature. Lovers of music will take note of a truly organic and encapsulating experience which transcends the limits of recording and undeniably blurs the distinction between what is live and what is recorded.’
The magnet configuration used in the A90 is derived from Ortofon’s acclaimed MC Windfeld. This unique generator system is light-weight, compact, and uses a Field Stabilising Element (FSE) to ensure that the force field remains stable irrespective of the movement of the armature. The FSE consists of a small cylinder of silver plated copper placed inside the magnetic system. Hunter says: ‘FSE plays a tremendous part in the A90’s remarkable dynamics, ensuring that every detail will be delivered with striking accuracy and plenty of space between each instrument in a recording. This simply results in more drama and greater breadth, height and depth of the sound and stereo image.’
The MC A90 also uses the Wide Range Damping system originally introduced on Ortofon’s MC20MkII and also included on the Winfeld, which Ortofon claims virtually eliminates distortion and resonances. In this system, a small, heavy platinum disc is sandwiched between two rubber absorbers, both with different properties. This not only makes sure that exceptional tracking performance is maintained but also ensures perfect damping through the entire frequency spectrum. ‘It’s a significant reason why the MC A90, while achieving the most linear frequency response and the highest upper frequency limit ever, at the same time tracks a fantastic 100μm at a vertical tracking force of only 2.3 grams,’ says Hunter.
The A90’s boron cantilever is tipped by an Ortofon Replicant 100 diamond stylus. This ultra-fine and now extra polished diamond was first introduced on the famous MC-3000 MkII. Incredibly thin and light, it has an extraordinarily large contact surface despite a minimal radius of rounding, so that when correctly aligned it is able to track even the most demanding of groove modulations. ‘The Replicant 100 will read musical information from the groove with a level of accuracy that is unparalleled by any other stylus tip in existence,’ says Hunter. The movement of the tip is transmitted via ‘Aucurum’ coils of gold-plated, six nines oxygen-free copper wound on a specially designed armature, for an output impedance of 4Ω and an output voltage of 0.3mV, to make the MC A90 a perfect match for most existing step-up transformers as well as active MC pre-amps. ‘These electrical characteristics, together with its optimal weight and compliance to suit the vast majority of modern medium-mass tonearms, mean the A90 is easily compatible with a seemingly endless array of modern contemporary high end turntable equipment,’ says Hunter.
Technical Data Ortofon MC A90
Output Voltage: 270μV
Channel Balance: <0,2db
Channel Separation at 1kHz: >28 dB
Channel Separation at 15kHz: >22 dB
Frequency Range: 10Hz–80kHz (–3dB)
Frequency Response: 20Hz–20kHz ± 1 dB
Tracking Ability: 100 μm
Compliance: 16μm/mN
Stylus: Nude Ortofon Replicant
Cantilever: Boron
Stylus Tip Radius: r/R 5/100
Tracking Force: 2.3g (23mN)
Tracking Angle: 23º
DC Resistance: 4Ω
Load Impedance: >10Ω
Weight: 8 grams
RRP: $5,377
For more information, contact Ortofon at SpeakerBits
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