Last year bought a grab bag of random cartridges in preparation for setting a second turntable up. Had a look at it the other day thinking I ought to get my second TT running and amongst a couple of Shures, some A&R x77 bodies and stuff that I have no idea about was an ortofon OM as used on cheapy dual turntables in the late 80s. This triggered something in the recesses of my mind and I remembered mention on here by Luckythedog that this made a rather good mono cartridge with the addition of an S-120 DJ stylus. I also embarked on some research on these ortofons as, apart from some friends with the aformentioned plastic nasty 505-1s I bypassed those during my vinyl madness phase going straight from a P77 MM to an AT-F3 MC. But they look nice on lightweight arms, and a vast range of stylii are available.
Well the internet being as it is of course there is lots of wrong stuff out there but if I understand correctly from a motor persective the LM series became the OM series which evolved into the Super OM which then evolved again into the 2M series. Along the way there were a couple of changes in the stylus design but backwards compatible (LM stylus will not fit into SuperOM, but will the other way around). This suggests that all current OM stylii are superOM.
Motor wise OM to superOM was a different winding and 'split pole pins' according to the information I have found with coil parameters of 580mH and 1kOhm. Not much published on if the split pins actually improve things as much as ortofon marketing would have you think, and nothing if they are used today outside of the 2M range,although the concorde nightclub does have the same motor specs as the super OM. Does anyone have any info on this? Annoyingly the super OM bodies go for $70+ still so its not a loose change purchase to try but does suggest there is a group that enjoy them and think they are worth the extra. Ortofon still sell the OM-40 needle with a Fritz Gyger stylus which did suprise me (albeit at a price).
So is this a sleeper, or just nostalgia hyped up by the DJ link?
Well the internet being as it is of course there is lots of wrong stuff out there but if I understand correctly from a motor persective the LM series became the OM series which evolved into the Super OM which then evolved again into the 2M series. Along the way there were a couple of changes in the stylus design but backwards compatible (LM stylus will not fit into SuperOM, but will the other way around). This suggests that all current OM stylii are superOM.
Motor wise OM to superOM was a different winding and 'split pole pins' according to the information I have found with coil parameters of 580mH and 1kOhm. Not much published on if the split pins actually improve things as much as ortofon marketing would have you think, and nothing if they are used today outside of the 2M range,although the concorde nightclub does have the same motor specs as the super OM. Does anyone have any info on this? Annoyingly the super OM bodies go for $70+ still so its not a loose change purchase to try but does suggest there is a group that enjoy them and think they are worth the extra. Ortofon still sell the OM-40 needle with a Fritz Gyger stylus which did suprise me (albeit at a price).
So is this a sleeper, or just nostalgia hyped up by the DJ link?
Hi, I hate to send you away from here, but I would suggest you pose the question over on the cartridge forum at vinylengine.com if you have not already done so. Lots of pretty knowledgeable folks there.
I searched. To be honest level of knowledge in this particular area is very low and level of subjective conjecture very high. There are some good threads but few and far between there. Better knowledge here.
As with so many things in the wacky world of hi-fi there is a range of opinions on these. There are some strong advocates- enough to pique my interest- but also those who think the newer 2M range is appreciably better. As you say, the Super OM bodies and complete cartidges are not quite impulse purchases, but the only real way to know what's what is to listen in the context of your own system, music and tastes. I still have an Ortofon VMS20E/II in good condition which sounds rather like the older OMs I heard (and sold) back in the 80s. My take (FWIW) on these older Ortofons is a clean, clear sound, but not the most powerful or dramatic. Things change depending on what sort of turntable and arm you have, naturally. What can sound rather underwhelming on, say, a Linn or a Thorens, may sound great on a Lenco, a Technics, or a Trans-fi Salvation.
What would do me is some credible FR plots. As I get older I subscribe more and more to the fact that FR differences are the main difference between cartridges once you have the mass matched to the compliance. Back in the 80s when I was running a P77 it wasn't easy to get the bits together to measure a cartridge. Nowdays no excuse. What measurements are out there show that many of the new crop of carts have an engineered resonance to pick up the top end. I don't want that.
I'm still in half a mind to get one of the AT150-MLX before supplies run out but that would mean diverting funds from things I actually need to get done with my system...
I'm still in half a mind to get one of the AT150-MLX before supplies run out but that would mean diverting funds from things I actually need to get done with my system...
Hi Bill, yes I still use the S-120 stylus on an OM body with coils wired in series for mono. It really is rather good IMO. I also have an S-120 on an OM body for stereo, which is also very good for day to day use.
AFAIK the fundamental generator is the same in all OM/2M/Concorde bodies, though there is variation and finesse to detail which can be worthwhile when fitted with line contact styli like the OM 40, which is also very good indeed even on standard OM bodies IME.
As to plots, below 15kHz you'd be hard pressed to tell apart the OM40 and S-120 except as to harmonic distortion and IMD, where differences are very apparent both audibly and by measurement IME. This shows up on critical listening only though. Trackability performance of the S-120 is better, and it is somewhat quieter as to surface noise. I use OM40 and S-120 stylus, that's all these days !
LD
bThat matches what I would expect. Possibly no one outside of ortofon has done a proper head to head of the internals to determine what the actual improvements are. Ah well if a cheap superOM body ever comes my way.
I have to say its not a bad time to be into MM. Whilst we can't get some of the wonder carts from the 70s anymore, the fact that people have worked out the interchangeability of various bodies and there is a wider range of Stylii available than I can ever remember. Of course one might wonder why you want a Gyger S on a ruby cantilever for moving magnet, but the fact that you can if you want is great.
I have to say its not a bad time to be into MM. Whilst we can't get some of the wonder carts from the 70s anymore, the fact that people have worked out the interchangeability of various bodies and there is a wider range of Stylii available than I can ever remember. Of course one might wonder why you want a Gyger S on a ruby cantilever for moving magnet, but the fact that you can if you want is great.
Yes. Over the years I extensively measured and analysed the VMS/OM/2M generators and suspensions/cantilevers/styli, and for me it ticks the boxes including affordability. I came to standardise on it, and design my setup and preamps around it. More importantly, I enjoy, and am totally used to, the sound and presentation by now.
I think the better bodies are worth looking out for, Bill, but pretty much all combinations are effective. If one cuts away the stylus body for a 2M, it will mount and work well on a standard OM body, for example ! I did this, just for the hell of it. The moving mass of the generator is nicely low, and the cantilevers/styli on the better units are well thought through and sort of Bauhaus I suppose. I like that.
LD
I knew the S-120 tracked well but hadn't compared specs until this evening. That's really rather impressive and rather better than their megabuck MCs. I also trawled the vinyl engine for the OM specs and found a new award for the most pointless graph. It's something against frequency but they didn't seem to think you would need to know (even though the test record is listed).
Still that's the mono rig sorted out and a few things to try out as and when funds and space become available.
Still that's the mono rig sorted out and a few things to try out as and when funds and space become available.
Attachments
more searching and I have a data point. Turns out the 540 is still being made as the music hall mojo. Ortofon still have the 540 brochure up on their website 500 Series and there is a picture comparing performance of normal and split pin designs. Of course with no y axis markers you have to guess the scale!
OM40
Hello all you good readers. I'm still out there and following this forum although I haven't posted in ages. Ages ago I sent an OM30 with an open coil back to Ortofon to see if they could repair it. They responded by sending me a brand new OM40, gratis. Thank you Ortofon. At that time there was nothing published about the OM40. Used it for many years, and then used the OM40 cart, (factory labeled OM40) with an OM10 stylus. The 40 stylus suffered a catastrophe and in retirement I couldn't afford a 40 stylus. I still loved it and would love to get another stylus and try it on my diy linear tracker. Something I have been wanting to know but have been unable to find out is whether or not there is actually any difference between the factory labeled OM30 and OM40 carts. other than the stylus design. So, can anyone out there shed any real light on this subject?
Thanks,
BillG
Hello all you good readers. I'm still out there and following this forum although I haven't posted in ages. Ages ago I sent an OM30 with an open coil back to Ortofon to see if they could repair it. They responded by sending me a brand new OM40, gratis. Thank you Ortofon. At that time there was nothing published about the OM40. Used it for many years, and then used the OM40 cart, (factory labeled OM40) with an OM10 stylus. The 40 stylus suffered a catastrophe and in retirement I couldn't afford a 40 stylus. I still loved it and would love to get another stylus and try it on my diy linear tracker. Something I have been wanting to know but have been unable to find out is whether or not there is actually any difference between the factory labeled OM30 and OM40 carts. other than the stylus design. So, can anyone out there shed any real light on this subject?
Thanks,
BillG
I am pretty sure that its just the stylus between the two. Compliance figures are the same so rubber parts are likely identical as would be cantilever . Some prefer the OM-30, possibly because its not as hard to align as the Gyger.
Plus tooling for these will have been expensive. Ortofon will want to milk it!
Plus tooling for these will have been expensive. Ortofon will want to milk it!
Been doing some more digging on this and the 2M series use exactly the same generator body as the OM and DJ concordes. So you could (if you wanted) stick the latest split pin generator from a 2M bronze/black into an OM body or any other combination. Just depends how much glue they used.
Teardown pic of a concorde here http://bilder.hifi-forum.de/max/707829/ortofon-concorde-mit-nadel-30_614363.jpg you can see the generator 'block'.
Teardown pic of a concorde here http://bilder.hifi-forum.de/max/707829/ortofon-concorde-mit-nadel-30_614363.jpg you can see the generator 'block'.
Actually, by having a close look onto these Ortofon cartridges, we find that their bodies, hence the generators, always are labelled »OM«, or »Super OM«, or sometimes »OMB«, respectively, while the styli carry the numbers 5, 10, 20, 30, or 40, respectively. That means, the difference between the cartridges is only their stylus. There are some electrical differences, which I don't exactly know, between the OM and the Super OM bodies, whilst the OM and the OMB bodies appear to be the same, as »B« stands for bulk - OMB cartridges were sold to TT manufacturers as OEM equipment. Best regards!
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