All Product Reviews

Hi-Fi Choice March 2018 Issue 434

• Otello

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I can’t deny it. There is something highly evocative about a cartridge that glows in the dark. That’s right: two blue LEDs at the front of the Soundsmith cartridge light up to confirm its operational status. Just a gimmick? No, not really. You see, the Soundsmith is quite unlike any phono pick-up you’re likely to have come across. It’s not a moving coil, nor is it a moving magnetic/moving iron type.

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Hardly 90 seconds into the demo, the earthquake hit. No, not one caused by God and nature, or the vibrational residue from a huge subwoofer in the room above or below. Rather, this earthquake was courtesy of the huge industrial washing machine located directly below Soundsmith's fourth floor exhibit. And we are not talking minor stuff here, folks. Everything was shaking badly, including the sign on the wall, and it went on for several minutes.

• Hyperion

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The Aida is nearer the top of a line that extends well into exotic MC pricing, but, understandably, the most popular models are even lower in price, such as the Boheme, at $1199, or the shop-girl of the series, the Carmen at $699. And you can get right into old Shure top price territory at $379 for the Otello. Pretty operatic, eh?

• Aida
• SMMC1

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