Turntables, Arms & Cartridges

Ortofon's Quintet Blue MC bests its 0.5mV specified output at 0.62mV/100ohm with a superb 0.1dB channel balance and >25dB separation through the midrange. Meanwhile, the relatively high 2.3g downforce secures its tracking up to a ~70µm groove modulation before letting go at the top +18dB (315Hz) test track. This is textbook stuff for a modern MC with a symmetrical 16/16cu (vertical/horizontal) compliance which, with a 9g bodyweight in a 10g effective mass arm, delivers a subsonic resonance at ~9Hz. So the Quintet Blue/9cc Evolution tonearm represents a good match just as the separate 'moving coils' inside the Blue's generator service the X8's genuinely balanced audio output connections.

The Quintet Blue's HF distortion and response are both lifted with L+R cuts, reaching +1dB through the presence band and mid-treble [black trace, inset Graph] while the slight depression through this same region with L-R grooves [red trace] suggests some emphasis of strong central vocals, for example. The resulting stereo response [dashed trace] is smoothly extended to –1.5dB/20kHz. PM