Cartridges — HANA SH MK II

The SH MK II is a moving-coil phono cartridge from HANA, built with a sophisticated Shibata stylus and high output voltage. The SH MK II brings HANA's more accomplished current engineering to serious analogue vinyl reproduction.

Key specs that matter

The stylus profile is a Shibata tip - a sophisticated grinding style favoured for tracing high-frequency groove modulations accurately, mounted on a tapered aluminium cantilever. Output voltage is a high 2mV at 5cm/second, easing gain demands on the connected phono stage. Frequency response spans an exceptionally wide 15Hz to 32,000Hz within plus-or-minus 3dB. Internal impedance is 130 ohms, with channel separation at 28dB at 1kHz. Recommended load is the standard 47,000 ohms. Weight is 8.6g.

Sound and use context

Expect the exceptionally detailed character HANA's Shibata stylus technology is broadly known for, with the high 2mV output working directly with many MM-capable phono stages without necessarily needing dedicated MC gain.

Pairing

The high 2mV output and standard 47,000-ohm recommended load work with a wide variety of phono stages.

Alternatives

HANA's own SL MK II offers a lower-output alternative sharing the same Shibata stylus technology within the same broader catalogue.