Sota+SME IV=Ugh !!!

Interesting ...

Circa 1986 the SME V debuted on the Star Sapphire. It made the cover of Stereophile and J Gordon Holt *really* like it. The table was voiced with SME arms. You might contact the SOTA folks in Illinois for their thoughts.

I'd pick the Sonata.
 

I have used the SME on Sota Sapphire, Star and Cosmos with uniformly great results. When Sota was in its early stages, they often bundled their tables with an SME

I had a clearaudio maestro before and it does what you are looking for and it is a great cartridge.

I agree that the Sumiko Celebration is a good option. It was designed using an SME V arm. I had the combination until I recently bought an AirTight PC-1. There is a well written review of the Celebration in an old issue of TAS. The Celebration, IMO, is slightly warm of neutral and has good bass performance and detail. It does not overly extended in the high frequencies and I think it is a good value for about $2K.

All,
Thanks so much for sharing your opinions – there are several options here that I’m sure I would be very happy with.

A few things I would like to present/clarify:

First, I apologize for the misleading title on this forum post caused by not hitting the caps key when punching the =+ key. I meant to title it “Sota+SME IV+Ugh !!!” which was my way of putting forth my struggle in identifying the cartridge I’d like to have with my table and arm rather than “Sota+SME IV=Ugh !!!” which implies I’m having issues with my Sota/SME combination. That is so far from the truth; I couldn’t be happier with that combination.

Secondly, I specified “wood bodied” knowing that non-wood bodied cartridges would also meet my prerogatives. Why did I do this? I simply like stuff made of wood, like why I was attracted to Tannoy’s Prestige line and a Sota TT - their wood work is absolutely beautiful.

Anyway, I’m pursuing a Grado Reference for its characteristics and price point. I realize that the sum of my components, including the addition of the Grado, probably add up to overly warm. For me, this is what I’m looking for, really. I’m so fond of the distant memories I have of my father playing his tube equipment back in the day when that warm lush sound was so prevalent. I guess I’m trying to re-create that joy.

Thank you.