SoundSmith Aida High-Output Cartridge

Now at True Audiophile

Trying to find a solid line of cartridges that allow an audiophile to reach a higher level of performance without the price penalty has been an incredible challenge.  After years of listening to just about every line of cartridges we are confident SoundSmith fulfills that criteria. --True Audiophile mini review

"A triumph of Soundsmith Engineering, Stereophile Class “A” rated, a rarity at its price point – and for good reasons."

"...Holy Analog Bomb Batman, right out of the box this thing is an order of magnitude better in every respect. It's like I got a new stereo. The soundstage got deeper AND wider. I jerked my head once because something jumped on the WAY outside of the old width boundary. I had no idea how rolled off the top end was, yet now it's not overly bright, just right. Rock solid bottom end just slammin' those kick drums. Amazing separation of instruments. Exquisite detail and dynamics. This is gonna be FUN!" --Steve Hoffman Forum

The Aida employs a single crystal Ruby Cantilever and our Optimized Contour Line Contact Stylus; we did this to resolve the challenges of playing the inner grooves with the same level of confidence as the outer. How did we do this? The unique stylus shape of our OCL stylus has a “sharper” playing surface on the faceted diamond, allowing it to ride easily in the groove modulations of even the most difficult passages and high frequency information that other cartridges simply cannot trace. The result - a truly superb cartridge, surpassing top MC designs with air, focus and sound staging no cartridge at this price should be able to achieve.

Also available in dual-coil mono.

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Warranty

1 Year

Specifications

Cartridge Type: Fixed Coil
Stylus Type: Contact Line
Output: High
Output Voltage: 2.12 mV

Available As Dual Coil Mono: Yes

Additional Specifications

Stylus: Contact Line Nude, 0.100mm SQ
Radius of curvature: OCL (Optimized Contour Contact Line)
Cantilever: Ruby
Recommended tracking force: 1.3 - 1.6 gm (standard medium Compliance); 1.0 - 1.2 grams for special order High Compliance
Effective tip mass: 0.30 mg
Compliance: 28 μm/mN (high), 22 μm/mN (medium)
Frequency response: 20-20,000 Hz ± 2.5 dB
Channel separation (stereo only): 1000 Hz >30 dB, 50-15,000 >20 dB
Channel difference: <1.0 dB (Stereo), <1.0 dB (Mono)
Output voltage (Aida): 2.12 mV
Cartridge weight: 6.8 grams
Loading (Aida): ≥ 47 kΩ

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