Головки звукоснимателя — Ortofon Quintet Black S

The MC Quintet Black S is the top model of the MC Quintet series of moving coil cartridges from Danish specialist Ortofon. It combines a nude Shibata diamond with a sapphire cantilever, a pairing reserved for this model in the range, and the body is finished in black. Like the MC Quintet Bronze, it belongs to the lower output group of the series, while the Red, Blue and Mono variants deliver 0.5 mV. The Blue, for comparison, carries a nude elliptical diamond on an aluminium cantilever. Ortofon lists it at EUR 999, the highest price in a range that starts with the Quintet Red at EUR 349.

Key specs that matter

Output is 0.3 mV at 1 kHz and 5 cm/s. Internal impedance is 5 ohm, and Ortofon advises loading it at more than 20 ohm. The stylus tip radius is r/R 6/50 micrometre. The response holds within 1.5 dB either way from 20 Hz to 20 kHz, channel separation exceeds 23 dB at 1 kHz and 15 dB at 15 kHz, and channel balance is within 1.0 dB at 1 kHz. Tracking ability reaches 80 micrometre at 315 Hz. Dynamic lateral compliance is 15 micrometre per mN. Ortofon allows a tracking force of 2.1 to 2.5 g, recommends 2.3 g, and specifies a tracking angle of 20 degrees. The black cartridge weighs 9 g and is attached to the headshell with a standard 12.7 mm fixing.

Engineering and use context

The Shibata profile has a slim contact footprint which lets the diamond follow fine groove modulations, while the sapphire cantilever gives a stiff support between tip and coils. The coils are wound with Aucurum, Ortofon's gold-plated copper wire, and neodymium magnets are used across the Quintet line. The body is polycarbonate, which keeps mass moderate. Given this mass and a compliance in the middle band, Ortofon designed it for tonearms of medium effective mass, so the recommended force lies in the centre of the allowed window.

Pairing

The low output means a phono preamplifier with dedicated MC gain or an SUT becomes necessary, since a moving magnet input will not provide enough amplification. The very low internal impedance suits SUT designs with high step-up ratios, and the recommended load is simple to set on most solid-state MC stages. A precise alignment protocol and a stylus force gauge help reach the recommended force.

Alternatives

The Ortofon MC Quintet Bronze is the closest sibling in the series, with a nude Fine Line diamond and the same 0.3 mV output.