Ortofon 2M Black Moving Magnet Cartridge
"...The 2M line has become a de-facto reference for moving-magnet cartridges...it is due to both the sound quality of the various 2M models as well as the wide price range across the line... The differences among the four stereo 2M models occur in three primary areas: stylus profile, body material, and engine ...
... The 2M Black is "open, fast, detailed, vivid, full of vitality and sonically spectacular." It is a true high-resolution transducer that consequently puts great demands on the downstream electronics and speakers...
...On the other end, the 2M Red is far more forgiving than the 2M Black, but also less involving, at least in the context of my system (the turntable is a Technics SP-15 with an Audio-Technica ATP-12T tonearm, both in a Technics SH-15B2 base - red.)...
...with the 2M Blue ...you get the audiophile treatment: a full-range, highly resolving presentation that sounds neither stiff nor unforgiving. In fact, the 2M Blue's balance, both tonally and in terms of overall resolution, may be its greatest feat. It's an easy cartridge to listen to, and even novice listeners...
...While the 2M Black sounds more immediately impressive, the 2M Bronze is the more satisfying over the long haul, halving the difference between the Black's speed and resolution and the Blue's balance. In fact... it is a mixture of all of these sonic virtues. It's fast, but not ostentatiously so; it turns information into music, and it does this because it is better balanced, neither leaning in one sonic direction or another. I would say that it represents not just the 2M line's sweet spot but also its musical core. ..."
The Audio Beat, August 2016
Exploring Ortofon's 2M Lineup
by Marc Mickelson
Technical Specs:
Output voltage at 1000 Hz, 5cm/sec. - 5 mV
Channel balance at 1 kHz - 1 dB
Channel separation at 1 kHz - 26 dB
Channel separation at 15 kHz - 15 dB
Frequency range at - 3dB - 20-31.000 Hz
Frequency response - 20-20.000 + 2 / - 0 dB
Tracking ability at 315Hz at recommended tracking force - 80 µm
Compliance, dynamic, lateral - 22 µm/mN
Stylus type - Nude Shibata
Stylus tip radius - r/R 6/50 µm
Tracking force range - 1.4-1.7 g (14-17 mN)
Tracking force, recommended - 1.5 g (15 mN)
Tracking angle - 20°
Internal impedance, DC resistance - 1.2 kOhm
Internal inductance - 630 mH
Recommended load resistance - 47 kOhm
Recommended load capacitance - 150-300 pF
Cartridge colour, body/stylus - Black/Black
Cartridge weight - 7.2 g
2M PnP MkII cartridge with integrated headshell weight - 20 g
2M PnP MkII cartridge with integrated headshell length - 52 mm
Replacement stylus unit - 2M Black (interchangeable with 2M Bronze)
Stylus lifetime: with proper care, we find that up to 1000 hours is possible without degradation of performance.
2M Series styli interchangeability:
The 2M Series' engines, coils, and magnets configurations are not identical: Red and Blue are identical, so are the Bronze and Black and so are the true mono variants 2M Mono and 2M 78. Likewise, 2M series styli are interchangeable within the below combinations:
- 2M Red, 2M Blue, and 2M Silver
- 2M Bronze and 2M Black
- 2M Mono and 2M 78