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Experienced
reviewers have stated unequivocally that no other cartridge in the world can
match the London Decca's head-spinning musical realism. Another claims it
sets an example for all other cartridges (presumably, including more
costly ones), in the area of dynamics, rhythm, pacing and timing.
How and why is this cartridge different from, and possibly superior
to all the others?
Is it a "moving coil" or a "moving magnet" design?
Neither! Only a lighter, thinner shorter, magnetically active metal foil,
bearing the stylus, comprises the entire moving system. This results
in lower moving mass than either moving coil or moving magnet models.
The London Decca cartridges may be the only ones which have no
cantilever, in the conventional sense. This appears to be the
underpinning of their stunning success- it has been said that the London
Deccas "reek of musicality."
Other cartridges (both moving coil and moving magnet) mount their styli on
the long end of a thin tube (cantilever) which works like a lopsided
"see-saw." The short end of the cantilever attaches to either a
coil of wire or a magnet. At the fulcrum point, a flexible
"rubbery" sleeve functions as a pivot, allowing the
stylus/cantilever assembly to respond to the "wiggles" in the LP
groove. Because the front section of the cantilever, which holds the stylus,
is much longer than the rear section which is attached to the coil or magnet,
a large movement of the stylus is transformed to a smaller movement at the
coil or magnet, possibly causing cantilever-design cartridges to sound dynamically
compressed and lacking in transient attack. London Decca's
engineers advise that this problem with dynamics and transients is compounded
by the cantilever's "rubbery" fulcrum point which tends to absorb a
significant amount of the stylus-generated motion, before it can reach the
coil/magnet electrical generator assembly. Also, a smearing of the
sound is said to occur, which they refer to as "cantilever haze."
But in the London Decca, there is no long cantilever and no
"rubbery" fulcrum point to absorb, dissipate and smear the
vital musical energy. Instead, the stylus is attached directly to a
magnetically active, metal support just a few microns thick (armature) which
passes through the center of the main generating coil-positioned only
about 1 millimeter above the stylus! The stylus motion is not inverted
or "transformed" to a smaller value, as in long cantilever designs.
Flowing from this immediate- positive-direct scanning of the groove
is a breathtaking "alive" quality. The listener tends to feel that
the performing artists are actually in the same room, with a startling,
palpable presence.
From the beginning, music lovers have lauded the unparalleled vividness of
the London Deccas which were first introduced over 25 years ago. However,
earlier models were criticized, at times, for such reasons as their unusually
high vertical tracking force, a tendency to mistrack, and the need for
special (damped) tone arms.
“The voices...you'd swear they're in the room.
There's no escaping it. The London Reference...is the most involving cartridge i've ever
heard."
Reference, Hi-Fi News, October 2004.
"If other
cartridges could remove veils between you and the music, the Decca literally
opened up the window. There is very little one can say to prepare you for the
midrange of the London. …the London Reference Phono Cartridge is indeed
exactly that: a reference cartridge, one that sets a reference for
transparency, immediacy, and music is-in-your-room experience. "
Reference, Dagogo, May 2007
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