Hana New Umami Black MC Cartridge – Quick Look
All Image Credit: Excel Sound
The Excel Sound Corporation have announced a new flagship moving coil cartridge to their Umami series, the Umami Black MC cartridge. This latest addition, again designed by the master cartridge designer behind the Umami line, Masao Okada-san, is said to be a step above all the other Umami series including the Blue.
Refinements and improvements include:
- A diamond cantilever that uses a Microline nude diamond-type stylus that creates an extremely rigid and non-resonant signal transfer from the vinyl to the generator assembly. Plus a newly developed “OKD” moving-coil generator. The OKD is a moving-coil generator with a proprietary integrated pole piece and rear yoke, and an inverted U-shaped front yoke that are said to be unique, optimizing energy transfer while at the same time reducing unwanted resonances. The open bottom design of the U front yoke is said to create a “more homogenous flux field” reducing saturation and precisely locating the diamond cantilever, thereby “eliminating tracing error”.
- The OKD’s parts, plus the 24k gold-plated brass output pins are all cryogenically treated. A process that is claimed to “refine their microstructure for enhanced conductivity, reduced distortion, and support tonal purity”.
- The Umami Black generator employs a powerful rare-earth neodymium-iron-boron magnet (NeFeB), that is said to be capable of “delivering superior energy conversion”. Sitting within the magnets field is a 2mm square hybrid carbon permalloy armature comprising 78% carbon-infused nickel-iron that is hand wound using 30-micron, 4N high-purity copper wire.
The Umami Black MC cartridge outputs 0.3mv at 5ohms, providing compatibility with both current and voltage modern phono amplifiers and step-up transformers.
Finally, the Umami Black’s Duralumin body is finished with a high-gloss black Urushi lacquer finish that is applied via a high-temperature, vapor deposition process with thermosetting at 120º Celsius.
- Body: Duralumin (A7075)
- Cantilever: Diamond
- Stylus: Microline Nude Diamond
- Structure: “OKD” generator with Inverted U Front Yoke and Integrated Pole Piece and Rear Yoke
- Armature Material: Permalloy, 78% carbon-infused nickel-iron
- Armature shape: 2mm Square Plate
- Material: Pure Iron
- Magnet: Neodymium (NdFeB)
- Output impedance: 5 Ω
- Output voltage: 0.3mV
- Load Impedance: 50 Ω
- Treatment: Cryogenic – “OKD” generator with U Front Yoke, Integrated Pole Piece and Rear Yoke, Gold-plated Output Pins
- Frequency response: 15-50,000Hz
- Output balance: 0.5dB/1KHz
- Channel separation: 30dB/1KHz
- Tracking weight: 2g
- Trackability: 70μm/2g
- Dynamic compliance: 10 x 10-6 cm/dyne (100Hz) Estimated at 17 x 10-6 cm/dyne at 10Hz
- Weight: 11.3g
MSRP:
- US: $11,500.00
- UK: £7,995.00
- EU: €10,000.00
For more information visit the Hana website.
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