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Ortofon OM 5E

mayidunk said:
The OM10/OM20/OM30 styluses will fit both the OM, and Super OM carts.

If you buy the OM5E cart, you're getting the OM cart, with the 5E stylus, while if you buy the OM10/OM20/OM30 cart, you're getting the Super OM cart (which has better specs than the OM cart) along with the OM10/OM20/OM30 styluses.

IIRC, the OM5E stylus and the OM10 stylus are elliptical, the OM20 stylus is a nude elliptical, and the OM30 is a fine line. Not too sure what the OM40 is, though.

As far as I know, the optimum VTF for the OM5E is 1.75 to 1.8 Gr.
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I had read this back before the Super bodies were out.
 
Balifly said:
I can not comment on the difference in sound between the two series.

My is the Ortofon OM 20 upgraded with an Ortofon OM 30 stylus.

I have not done a side by side comparison of the Ortofon OM20/30 with an Ortofon Super OM 20/30 set up.

It is very doubtful that I would be able to discern the difference even if I tried! :scratch2: :music:
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Mine are the older non-super models. There is a difference in sound between the 20 & 30 stylus on the some om body on my TT.
 
I think the major 'improvement' to the "Super" series was the pole pieces being slit to reduce eddy current losses for better HF response. Some prefer the older versions.
 
gary7 said:
Mine are the older non-super models. There is a difference in sound between the 20 & 30 stylus on the some om body on my TT.
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I was referring to the difference between OM cartridge and the OM Super cartridge not the stylus.

I can detect difference between the OM 20 and the OM 30 stylus.

My apology for the confusion. :music:
 
I have an Ortofon Omega (which I have read is on par with the OM 5E) and I had the same feeling when hearing it. Very neutral cart. :thmbsp:
 
OM5E was my first real cartridge. Fitted it to my first TT, a Pioneer PL-23 (which I regret that I sold, it had some affection value as being the thing that did get me into vinyl). It sounded very good on my primitive system back then (2008-2009, 45 W ITT amp and Beovox S45's), I especially liked how the bass stood out.

Bought a Pioneer PL-620 for my brother last Christmas with a Super OM20 fitted, that reminded me of the old days. A very good stylus, and we quite like the design.

FYI, the styli are also fully compatible with all the Concorde cartridges.
 
Compatible in the sense that they will fit, yes. I have what appear to be later (earlier?)-era Concordes (a 20 and a 30) with 600mH bodies. The OM bodies (non-Super) are around 450mH, so the top end is a bit more mellow with the Concordes. But the reduction in mass lets the arm do some very nice tricks.
 
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wualta: Earlier. The hifi Concordes sported the same generator version as the LMs, i.e. the predecessors of the OMs (while practically all of the initial pro/dj Concordes were based on the OM generator...). The rear tube on the needles of these was a tad wider - that's why the newer needles also fit on the older LM and hifi Concorde bodies, but not the other way round.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini
 
Aha. So was there an OM-generator lineup of Concordes that aren't DJ types? EDIT: No. (1) old hifi Concordes: LM generator, light and adjustable body; (2) current hifi Concordes: don't officially exist, because there is no current hifi Concorde body anymore; (3) old pro/dj concordes: OM generator, heavy body.. ...Rats.
 
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Just got home from work. An interesting read. I'm learning a lot about Ortofon OM 5E and Ortofon OM series in general.

Right now I'm liking what I hear from the OM 5E on my Dual. I was considering an upgrade to a 20 stylus in the not to distant future. But for $69, I can get an Ortofon Super OM 10. Upgrading the stylus to a 20 or 30 later on would then get me the full effect utilizing the "Super OM" cart.
 
gary7 said:
What I have read over the years is that the OM-5E body & the OM-10-40 body's are different. The 5E can use the upper end stylus, but to get the total sonic benefit you need to have a 10-40 body. I have used them all except the 40. The 5E to the OM-20 are similar in sound to me. Going to the OM-30 was a big jump in clarity, air & soundstage, plus it had a little higher output on my TT.
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I did read a comment like this somewhere else too so if you want to keep that cart with a higher stylus it might be worth researching it some more.
Otherwise I agree with gary7. I went from OM 10 > 20 > 30.

Spellbinder said:
.. I can get an Ortofon Super OM 10. Upgrading the stylus to a 20 or 30 later on would then get me the full effect utilizing the "Super OM" cart.
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If you're going to do that I recommend passing the 20 and going straight to the 30.
 
FWIW-- I have the Concorde body w/ProS, 10, 30 & 40. i got the ProS & 40 from KAB when I bought my 1200mk2. Picked up 10 & 30 along the way. they all sound good yet having their own 'personality'
 
If I were going to upgrade to a stylus 20 or 30, I would just get the Super OM20 or OM30 cart, because the cost of the stylus is the same, or very close to, the cost of the stylus with the cart. Keep one of the carts as a spare.
 
I bought ortofon 5E and Ortofon Pro S, despite not being a '' eliptical '' cartdrige, ProS sounds infinitely better than 5E on my Pro ject Essential.
 
My 2 bits...

Stylus 10 to 20 big improvement
20 to 30 noticeable improvement
30 to 40 the last few % of extra detail is extracted

Bodies
OM - lower inductance standard pole pieces - more extended /prominent high end (we are talking above 15kHz so not all of us will hear this!) - but the eddy current losses cause a slight droop from around 2kHz to around 8 to 10kHz - around 2db loss.

OM Super - higher inductance reduces high end rise - makes it slightly more linear / neutral at the top, split/slit pins/poles means less eddy current losses so the dip from 2k to 10kHz should be reduced to circa 1db - maybe a touch less.

In theory, with the better styli (30/40) the super body should be marginally better...

but the difference is very marginal!

One thing to note: the OM5 is relatively low compliance compared to the 10/20/30/40... but the OM and OMSuper bodies have a removable weight in the top (2.5g) - so when moving from the OM5 to the OM30, you can simply remove the weight, and your setups effective mass has instantly dropped 2.5g helping it to match better with the higher compliance stylus....
Which is why the series is called the OM - Optimum Mass series.....

bye for now

David
 
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