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Recommended cartridges for Yamaha GT-2000

I know I am probably asking the age old question here...

I have just purchased a GT-2000L and waiting for delivery. While waiting I have been looking at phono stages and cartridges etc. I know that I have probably gone about things backwards, but I have a Yamamoto HS-4 being shipped, seeing it was a recommended headshell (10.7 grams stated weight). I am now thinking about cartridges. I see some recommendations for the Hana SL, and wondering if this is a good combination (the total weight with headshell 5g +10.7g=15.7g may be lighter than the recommended ideal value?). Also wondering what other cartridges are recommended - particularly with good price/performance ratio. I don't really want to spend much more than the Hana SL if possible. For info, I have not yet got a phono stage - I plan to build a Pearl 3 - a DIY designed by Pass Audio. Hooked up to Linkwitz LXMini+2 speakers with a Nelson Pass active crossover.
 
Fpilot said:
I know I am probably asking the age old question here...

I have just purchased a GT-2000L and waiting for delivery. While waiting I have been looking at phono stages and cartridges etc. I know that I have probably gone about things backwards, but I have a Yamamoto HS-4 being shipped, seeing it was a recommended headshell (10.7 grams stated weight). I am now thinking about cartridges. I see some recommendations for the Hana SL, and wondering if this is a good combination (the total weight with headshell 5g +10.7g=15.7g may be lighter than the recommended ideal value?). Also wondering what other cartridges are recommended - particularly with good price/performance ratio. I don't really want to spend much more than the Hana SL if possible. For info, I have not yet got a phono stage - I plan to build a Pearl 3 - a DIY designed by Pass Audio. Hooked up to Linkwitz LXMini+2 speakers with a Nelson Pass active crossover.
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Congratulation on purchasing the 2000L :thumbsup:

The Hana cartridges have all been well received. My opinion would be to save a little more and get the Hana ML. The better stylus will last you longer and it matters more on the inner grooves which the ML will track better.

Which turntable did you have before the 2000L?
 
theophile said:
Congratulation on purchasing the 2000L :thumbsup:
SL
The Hana cartridges have all been well received. My opinion would be to save a little more and get the Hana ML. The better stylus will last you longer and it matters more on the inner grooves which the ML will track better.

Which turntable did you have before the 2000L?
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Thanks for the reply and thanks for the cartridge recommendation. It looks like the ML is heavier at 9 grams vs 5 grams, so will probably be better from a compliance perspective as well. Unfortunately, the ML is almost double the cost of the SL here in Australia ($2000 AUD vs $1200 AUD). I do travel to Tokyo/Yokohama periodically with work, so perhaps I should wait to see if they might be somewhat cheaper there. I do have to wait to build a phono stage as the Pearl 3 kits are sold out and waiting for re-stock and I will have to do a little work on the GT-2000 when it arrives - I want to freshen up the veneer on the plinth and replace the internal transformer to convert it to 240 volts.

Current turntable is a Rega Planar 3 with a Rega Exact MM cartridge that is about 2-3 years old. Current amp has a MM phono input, but not a MC input. Regardless, I will be building a phono stage (I like DIY audio projects - hence the Linkwitz speakers and the DIY Pass active crossover).
 
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Fpilot said:
Thanks for the reply and thanks for the cartridge recommendation. It looks like the ML is heavier at 9 grams vs 5 grams, so will probably be better from a compliance perspective as well. Unfortunately, the ML is almost double the cost of the SL here in Australia ($2000 AUD vs $1200 AUD). I do travel to Tokyo/Yokohama periodically with work, so perhaps I should wait to see if they might be somewhat cheaper there. I do have to wait to build a phono stage as the Pearl 3 kits are sold out and waiting for re-stock and I will have to do a little work on the GT-2000 when it arrives - I want to freshen up the veneer on the plinth and replace the internal transformer to convert it to 240 volts.

Current turntable is a Rega Planar 3 with a Rega Exact MM cartridge that is about 2-3 years old. Current amp has a MM phono input, but not a MC input. Regardless, I will be building a phono stage (I like DIY audio projects - hence the Linkwitz speakers and the DIY Pass active crossover).
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That is a big price difference. Maybe when it is time to retip, that would be the time to consider a microline stylus profile. My ART20 did not come with an ML stylus but it will be getting one when it comes retip time.
 
Unfortunately Hana cartridges are not available in Japan, they are for export only. I use an SL on my 2000, it was a game changer for me. Before I got the SL I played around with several different cartridges and headshells. The SL has never left my 2000 since installing it.
 
marvelus10 said:
Unfortunately Hana cartridges are not available in Japan, they are for export only. I use an SL on my 2000, it was a game changer for me. Before I got the SL I played around with several different cartridges and headshells. The SL has never left my 2000 since installing it.
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Is Excel the OEM?

Edit: Don't worry. I found the link:

excelsound.co.jp

ステレオカートリッジ | エクセルサウンド株式会社

エクセルサウンド株式会社は1970年より、レコード視聴に欠かせない「ステレオカートリッジ」をはじめ、より現実の音に近いサウンドや機能にこだわった「オーディオアクセサリ類」を世に送り出しております。特に「レコードにまつわるステレオカートリッジ製品」は高い技術とクオリティから日本のみならず、世界でも愛されており「一歩上の価値」を感じていただける製品となっています。半世紀を越える老舗音響メーカーとして、匠の技が光るこだわりの製品を皆様にお届けいたします。
excelsound.co.jp excelsound.co.jp
 
marvelus10 said:
Unfortunately Hana cartridges are not available in Japan, they are for export only. I use an SL on my 2000, it was a game changer for me. Before I got the SL I played around with several different cartridges and headshells. The SL has never left my 2000 since installing it.
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Looks like a few people recommending the Hana SL, including a friend of mine that is very into vinyl. I note that there is a SL and a SL2. The 2 looks like it is a little heavier at 8.6 grams vs 5 grams for the original SL. I can get either here, the SL2 being a couple of hundred dollars more expensive. Any advantage of one over the other?
 
Thanks for that. I probably should have been a little more specific. From my limited understanding, it looks like there is a sweet spot for cartridge weight for compliance with the YA-39 arm. My understanding is the combined headshell and cartridge weight should be around 18-20 grams. Moreover, if the combined weight is too much, the limited balance weight adjustment may not be sufficient to properly balance the arm. People are reporting that the original Hana SL works well, but it is light at 5 grams. My headshell is 10.7 grams, so this would be around 16 grams total. The Hana SL2 is 8.6 grams with my headshell will be around 19.3 grams - theoretically in the sweet spot? I am happy that the Hana SL2 has improvements, but I am concerned more about compliance. Maybe I am overthinking things, however these things are expensive, so do not want to make a rookie mistake.

Thanks again for your help - and your patience!
 
Fpilot said:
Thanks for that. I probably should have been a little more specific. From my limited understanding, it looks like there is a sweet spot for cartridge weight for compliance with the YA-39 arm. My understanding is the combined headshell and cartridge weight should be around 18-20 grams. Moreover, if the combined weight is too much, the limited balance weight adjustment may not be sufficient to properly balance the arm. People are reporting that the original Hana SL works well, but it is light at 5 grams. My headshell is 10.7 grams, so this would be around 16 grams total. The Hana SL2 is 8.6 grams with my headshell will be around 19.3 grams - theoretically in the sweet spot? I am happy that the Hana SL2 has improvements, but I am concerned more about compliance. Maybe I am overthinking things, however these things are expensive, so do not want to make a rookie mistake.

Thanks again for your help - and your patience!
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I didn't answer your question. Not out of disdain or lack of concern. Just because I haven't broken the minutae of the analysis down. There are in the early pages of this thread a lot of posts about cartridge weight and headshell weight. They should be considered together. If you have already read all of this thread, go back again there is a lot of great information here. I love the spirit of fellowship amongst the 2000 series owners here at AK. Many will post their findings knowing that it will assist others. Good on you guys. :thumbsup:
 
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Thanks again for your help and patience. I am the type of person that would rather work something out for myself and learn rather than just ask for the answer. I am happy to use the available calculators to work this out, I just need a few data points to be able to plug in headshell and cartridge data. Using the calculator mentioned earlier in the thread here https://korfaudio.com/calculator , I am not sure of two of two of the initial bits of data to determine cartridge and headset compatibility. Could someone help out with the tone arm effective mass (9 grams?) and compliance?

Thanks again.
 
Fpilot said:
Ahhh, OK. Sorry to bother you.
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There is a lot of good first hand information in this thread. I can't give it to you but you could help yourself to it.

There's also a shipload of discussion on the main Social Group. This page gives some hints

Yamaha GT-2000 Turntable Social Group

Alternative hypothesis: Matching of tonearm effective mass & cartridge compliance is nowhere near as critical as people think. The YA-39 is a good, medium-weight tonearm and will work with any cartridge out there. I find the korf calculator very useful http://korfaudio.com/calculator
audiokarma.org
 
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theophile said:
There is a lot of good first hand information in this thread. I can't give it to you but you could help yourself to it.

There's also a shipload of discussion on the main Social Group. This page gives some hints

Yamaha GT-2000 Turntable Social Group

Alternative hypothesis: Matching of tonearm effective mass & cartridge compliance is nowhere near as critical as people think. The YA-39 is a good, medium-weight tonearm and will work with any cartridge out there. I find the korf calculator very useful http://korfaudio.com/calculator
audiokarma.org
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Thanks, I have read the thread. I hope my posts did not give the impression that I was too lazy to do that work myself. My understanding from reading this and other threads on different forums is that the effective mass of the tonearm is 22 grams, but there has been discussion about if this includes the headshell and cartridge as the original documentation for the turntable may not have been clear. I have not managed to find what the compliance in um/Nm as required in a data field of the calculator linked to. I was asking for some clarification and thought maybe someone might want to offer a new user some assistance. If you, or others here would rather not offer it, that is fine and your prerogative.
 
Fpilot said:
Thanks, I have read the thread. I hope my posts did not give the impression that I was too lazy to do that work myself. My understanding from reading this and other threads on different forums is that the effective mass of the tonearm is 22 grams, but there has been discussion about if this includes the headshell and cartridge as the original documentation for the turntable may not have been clear. I have not managed to find what the compliance in um/Nm as required in a data field of the calculator linked to. I was asking for some clarification and thought maybe someone might want to offer a new user some assistance. If you, or others here would rather not offer it, that is fine and your prerogative.
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I don't know the effective mass of the YA-39 nor any of the other Yamaha arms which is exactly why I said I cannot help you. I am the very individual who was the first to state that the 22gms always shown for the arms doesn't make it clear whether that figure includes headshell/headshell and cartridge. The Yamaha stock headshells are quite heavy. If the 22gms included just the headshell, that alone makes the arm about 9 or 10 grams. That sounds way too low. So I surmise(guess) that the 22 gram figure excludes the headshell(which also precludes the cartridge).
 
There's definitely more information about the 2000 series here than anywhere else on the internet. Starting a conversation with a particular 2000 owner who uses a Hana might be valuable.
 
OK, thanks for that. I thought I saw reference to people using the linked calculator, but I was unsure how they were getting results without inputting the data. If the best information available is to look for a combined headshell and cartridge weight at 18-19 grams, I can work with that and start with those cartridges people here have discussed. I have about 6 weeks to investigate as I have to build a phono stage before I need a cartridge.

Thanks for your help and patience and have a great day.
 
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