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Vinyl Asylum: REVIEW: Technics by Panasonic 205cMkII MkIII MkIV Phono Cartridge by Satie

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REVIEW: Technics by Panasonic 205cMkII MkIII MkIV Phono Cartridge

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Model: 205cMkII MkIII MkIV
Category: Phono Cartridge
Suggested Retail Price: $300-800
Description: Comparison of after market Styli - Technics 206c and Jico SAS
Manufacturer URL: Technics by Panasonic
Model Picture: View

Review by Satie on March 30, 2011 at 21:50:53
IP Address: 75.179.191.203
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for the 205cMkII MkIII MkIV


This is a review or the combinations of after market replacement styli with the classic Technics 205c series cartridges. In review are the following cartridges

EPC 205c Mk II L Universal mount on original headshell
EPC 205c Mk III Integrated headshell
EPC 205c Mk IV Integrated headshell

Styli
Technics 206c from William Thakker in Germany
Jico EPD 205c SAS line contact stylus from Jico japan www.jico.co.jp

I had on hand original styli for the MkIII, and MkII. but not for the MkIV

The phono stage is a Melos MA333 Gold with Mullard 12AX7 and Amperex Heerlen 7308 (6dj8 type) which are a full bodied lush sounding combo. So take that in mind with my comments.

Another issue to keep in mind is that the modified Technics 1600 MkII I was using was in the series of models for which the integrated headshell MkII (and for a while MkIII) versions were made for.

The Technics carts in the 205c series range from 8 to 9 on the Regas scale. There are two aftermarket replacement styli worth mentioning. The NOS Technics 206c hypereliptical replacement styli (about $200 from William Thacker) and the Jico SAS line contact stylus (about $120 direct from Jico, $150 from resellers). They just raised prices beginning in April.

The styli are very different in performance, The 206c sounds like "silver" or "transistor" highly detailed, tight bass, brighter, free of resonances, clear and tonally correct - dry where tone is dry, rich when tone is rich, holographic soundstaging, will not "organize" sound for a discombobulated recording, output is low 1.5 -3mV depending on cartridge model; the Jico SAS is like "copper" or :"tube", lush sounding - tonally full, slightly lighter on detail,free of noticeable resoances, very "musical" and dimensional, output is high at 3-6mV depending on model . Both the Jico SAS and the Technics 206c are better than the original styli of the 205c MkII (any version - L, S, H or X) and 205cMkIII. But the 206c is simply incompatible with the 205cMkIV, making for an unlistenable thin sounding mess with barbed wire violins.
I spent two days tube rolling the phono pre to compensate for the 205cMk4/206c, but just couldn't. There is a mechanical impedance mismatch that makes it just horrible. Even my original Mullard CV4004/12ax7 and the Amperex 7308 could not induce enough shimmer and "organization power" to fix the thinness. No VTA or VTF setting or alignment is sufficient. On the other hand, the 205cMk4/SAS combo is lush and inviting, Dimensionally robust, and tolerant even of the most dry sounding tubes (JJ Tesla 803s when not broken in), it is good at any alignment or VTA, better when locked into the optimal setting. Detail retrieval with the SAS however, is one grade below the 205cMk4/ 206c combo.

The 206c is definitely the best match for the 205cMkII. Raising detail retrieval over the original styli and balancing out this bass heavy cartridge. The output is on the low side of 3mV. Quite sufficient for any decent MM stage, and really makes this into a super cartridge. This would put the combo at a 9 or near 9 on the Regas scale.
With the Jico SAS, you get more output and more powerful bass and more detail, but the original is quite a lush sounding cartridge, and may become too bass heavy for some with the SAS. In any case, detail retrieval is excellent ( but not as good as the 206c) and the sound involving and dimensional. If you have a thin sounding or analytical system, this is the one for you!! This is the luscious ripe mango for your stereo salad. 9-

The 205cMkIII is improved by either the 206c stylus or the Jico SAS.
With the Jico SAS you get equivalent detail retrieval to the 206c MkII combo and increase bass and voltage output relative to the original MkIII stylus while nearly maintaining the original's amazing detail retrieval but losing a wee bit of its purity. The Mk3 becomes more robust sounding rich and real, particularly on string instruments, where the rendition of wood tones is significantly improved. No Benz Micro wood cartridge will outdo this, and you don't have to be bogged down in honey'ed syrupy tone. The 205cMk3 with Jico SAS is quick and rich sounding to boot. This is easily a 9+ cartridge stylus combo, possibly 9.5.
With the NOS Technics 206c stylus, the 205cMk3 is very tight and deep in the bass, a little bright, but still rich in tone and not thin. Far less "bloomy" in bass and midrange than the same cartridge with the SAS stylus, transients are superior to a Denon DL304 without the 304's unnatural overshoot. Detail retrieval is stunning and soundstagig is marvelous. If you run a tonally rich sounding system, this is perfect. Though the 205cMkIII/206c is by no means analytical sounding, it does not color in the notes as richly as the SAS, and a shade less than the original stylus, thus would not balance out an analytical or thin sounding system. My favorite for critical listening - when tube rolling, checking out a barely perceptible note in a recording, etc. Probably a 9.5 on the Regas scale.

The 205c MkIV with the Jico SAS is very similar to the sound of the MkIII with the SAS. Detail retrieval is better, and the bass is more finely controlled and tight. The rich tone of the SAS is still very evident and soundstage is deeper wider and more precisely rendered images are placed in it. This combo is not quite as detailed as the Mk3/206c combo, but does not lose much. If your system leans a little to the dry/analytical side, this will be a good counter balance. So far this is my favorite for fun listening and is just marvelous. Probably a 9.5.
Here I think pursuing a NOS original ED4 stylus may actually pay off, but I am not sure, since the SAS stylus was clearly better than the original ED3 stylus, So you are just likely to get a less luscious version of this combo with some more detail retrieval.






Product Weakness: Original replacements are hard to come by.
Product Strengths: Magnificent performance


Associated Equipment for this Review:

Amplifier: Multiamp Dynaco MkIII on midrange
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): Melos MA333 gold and SHA Gold
Sources (CDP/Turntable): Modified Technics 1600 MkII
Speakers: Magnepan Tympani IV with BG Neo8 line array midrange
Cables/Interconnects: JPS Superconductor. and DIY speaker cables
Music Used (Genre/Selections): Classical Orchestra Piano and Jazz
Room Size (LxWxH): 20 x 17 x 7
Room Comments/Treatments: Well placed furniture/bookcases rugs
Time Period/Length of Audition: 2 months 2 weeks with 206c
Other (Power Conditioner etc.): UPS power supply with +- 0.1V power reconstruction
Type of Audition/Review: Product Owner




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Topic - REVIEW: Technics by Panasonic 205cMkII MkIII MkIV Phono Cartridge - Satie 21:50:53 03/30/11 ( 10)