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Ds audio optical phonograph cartridge

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bob4 View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote bob4 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Ds audio optical phonograph cartridge
    Posted: 24 November 2022 at 8:09am
Some next level technology......


https://Ds-audio-w.biz/products/184/

A new cartridge technology based on LEDs and LDR in the cartridge body instead of magnets and coils. A piece attached to the end of cantilever obstructs the path between LDR and LED. 

Cartridge is standard size, standard connection, but requires a special preamp/power supply. Works with standard turntable wiring.

Due to the operating principle the noise floor is claimed to be considerably lower, because of the absence of electromagnetic interference.


Edited by bob4 - 26 November 2022 at 5:26am
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Conanski Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 November 2022 at 10:33pm
I was going to ask... how does it track the vinyl but obviously that is what the needle is for. That is too bad because it means the groove still gets worn but this also makes this a viable retrofit for any turntable... which I'm sure is what they were going for.

Originally posted by bob4 bob4 wrote:

Due to the operating principle the noise floor is considerably lower, due to absence of electromagnetic interference.
Ha.. sounds like marketing speak, the noise floor is considerably lower because the audio pickup doesn't actually touch the recording medium, sure RF isolation is an added bonus but it's WAY down the list in terms of significance. The rated sig-noise ratio of a standard turntable is supposedly 60db but depending how dirty and worn the vinyl is it could easily be 1/2 that, they didn't list a number in the specs that I saw but this optical cartridge has the potential to have a S-N ratio as good as any other solid state electronics, and it will be much the same on any piece of vinyl. Neat product.

P.S. I seem to remember one of the Japanese brands(Akai maybe) made an all optical turntable back in the '90s, I think it used lasers and a stepper motor on the arm for tracking so nothing touched the vinyl, but it was expensive and CDs were booming at the time so it didn't sell.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote toastyghost Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 November 2022 at 10:36pm
I’ve listened to records on a laser optical turntable before. It’s weird. They’re super clean but the tiniest bit of dirt or dust is super offensive. On paper, if records were well looked after it should be the best option - but a huge part of being an audiophile is tweaking stuff so it was never gonna take off anyway.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote fat_brstd Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28 November 2022 at 12:04am
The optical pick ups are weird. I heard one quite a few years ago and as Toasty said non mint records sounded really bad but otherwise it was clean, quite clinical. Cool but not for me, definitely the way if you are archiving clean mint vinyl though.

On another note on cool cartridge technology, Audio-Technica have just released this special cart for their 60th anniversary called the AT-MC2022 where they have lab grown the diamond so that the entire cantilever & diamond stylus tip are made out of a single piece of diamond do no transition from diamond to cantilever, its all one part. Pretty amazing tech. No idea if it will make any difference to the sound but diamond should make a much stiffer cantilever than boron or aluminium do which are commonly used in high end carts

Info - https://www.audio-technica.com/en-us/at-mc2022

Edited by fat_brstd - 28 November 2022 at 12:07am
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote snowflake Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28 November 2022 at 10:14am
they haven't replaced the stylus with a laser here. They've replaced the coil and magnet with an LED and a photoresistor - which I think means it can operate at a much higher voltage which is less prone to interference.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote bob4 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28 November 2022 at 10:21am
The working principle is NOT direct optical scanning of the groove. Instead, an object attached to the end of the cantilever obstructs, and thus modulates a light source. The analog signal is gained from the variation of light intensity, much like in an optical volume swell or wah wah pedal
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