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Rega P3,6,8 & Nagaoka cartridges and the 'Trade-up' Trap

Posted by cabiner on October 12, 2020 at 18:35:06:
Back into Vinyl: Rega P3/6/8 and Nagaoka Cartridges Or A lesson/re-minder on component hierarchy and the 'Trade-Up' Trap

As an aging baby-boomer (72 in 2021) who regretted selling his vinyl collection not long after doing so around 2010, I longed for the warmth, dynamism and even the ritual of vinyl replay, including the (almost) obligation of sitting down to listen to the selection. With the main buyer of my collection so gracefully willing to sell me back my 250 or so favourites, I got back in (Fall of 2016) with the new Rega P3. However, my memory did kick back in time when it reminded me how many LPs sounded bright/harsh (Dylan, Springsteen, to name a few) so, I need to pick a cartridge that would permit me to enjoy my old favourites. The search and listening sessions led me to the Nagaoka brand. I settled on the MP110 as a reasonable match for my tastes and level of table and arm. Two years later I upgraded to the new Rega P6 and, on the recommendation of the excellent sales-person and TT set-up guru, I stayed with the MP110 to see what the new TT and arm would contribute. With the MP110 on the P6 the sound kept its round, warm and gentle inclination but, with more openness and detail.

Fast forward to Sept. 2020, when I made another upgrade to the Rega P8 and again went with the recommendation to leave the MP110 on the new RB880 arm to see what the MP110 could deliver. The sound delivered by the total package provided me with the sound I was always looking for -impactful without harshness. Now came the self-imposed and inflicted 'upgrade trap'! Specifically, if my music could sound this wonderful with the lowly MP110, I could only guess and imagine what it would be like with the models above it!

Driving to town to have the MP200 installed, I calculated that, if I took my time by upgrading only when the styli needed replacement, I would be close to 80 years old before getting to the MP500. So, given COVID-19 and the list price difference of about 500$ Cdn., I had the MP500 installed. To not make an already long story longer, after eight days and 35 hrs. of usage I returned the MP500. Although I could readily hear that it was a better cartridge (detail, openness, etc), it just couldn't move me. I just couldn't get involved with the music.

Now, the upgrade trap was still set for 'On', so on the way to the dealer I was still debating with myself about making an upgrade but, just a smaller step (i.e.MP150 or MP200) to allow my ears time to adjust. I may yet go that route but, at the last minute, I recalled how pleased and satisfied I was the week previous to the MP500 and the MP110 was re-installed.

No regrets, completely satisfied. And, to top it off, the store charged me a more than reasonable amount for return the MP500 -basically paying for the tech's time to remove and install cartridges. Bottom-line: with the MP500 I did not enjoy the cymbals nine feet from me in my living room, which may explain why for almost half-a-century I always tried to get concert seats in the 'J' to 'L' row area; while, with the MP110, I could play the music loud with any sense of assault. Wonderful!

In fact, based on decades in this great hobby, this involvement as left me with the feeling that some high resolution components maybe be doing more harm than good by making some/many recordings unlistenable or, at best, uninviting to listen to on a regular basis.

The text below was taken from an on-line review at oldtimemusic.com. I am providing an excerpt since I feel it better details and reflects what I heard and felt. Other web-sites, forums and You-Tube videos are also available for research.

" .....So let us return to the sound. Nagaoka has made a great effort to make sure that this cartridge will appeal to lovers of vinyl. There is no harshness in the sound at all, and it is warm and gentle on the ear. There will be no problem with lengthy listening sessions with this cartridge.

We were able to listen to some rock classics from Dire Straits and Led Zeppelin. The sound was powerful and articulate and gave you the feeling that the cartridge was designed for rock music. But then a quick change of style to Sade and it became gentle and warm. Then on to Chaka Khan where the rhythms in the midsections excelled.

The 'Wow' moment...It was here that the balance across the frequencies was most noticeable. When you listen to some of these old classics on vinyl, it makes you realize why people love them so much. They sound great. And this cartridge gives a sound that is very complete. But it still is able to give you some of those highlights that some tracks give you. The' wow' moment if you like.

You don't have to try and imagine what the sound must have been like when it was first recorded. Just kick back and listen; it is there right in front of you. And this is including all the little nuances so sadly missing from today's 'perfect' digital recordings.

The bass is not as prominent as some might want. It is gentle and almost subtle. It was most noticeable on Led Zeppelin's 'Rock n Roll', where it all but disappeared. If you are used to hearing that song with John Paul Jones's bass thundering along, you might miss it. On other tracks, it was perfectly balanced, especially with the softer touch of Sade and Chaka Khan.
On the higher frequencies, there is a slight roll-off, and the sound has a warm feeling. The high frequencies are not shrill at all, even at volume and do not leap out at you. In some people's opinions, it could probably do with a little bit of refining at the top end. But they sit neatly in the mix.
Where this really does score points is in the mids...They offer a very sweet and rounded sound and push the vocals and orchestral instruments to the front of the stage. This allows great clarity. It also makes sense that if the bass were any more prominent, it might start to drown out this important area. That may be the logic behind the design of the sound. Something we would definitely agree with. In our view, the mids are often ignored, yet they contain some of the most important content of the song.
You might have guessed by now that we were impressed with the sound. It is full and rounded, and as we said nicely balanced ...." Again, an excerpt from oldtimemusic.com. Thanks.

Finally, and for what it's worth, I wrote this as a re-minder of component hierarchy and in case others may be going thru the same audiophile in-securities of liking something down the ladder. Bob