I know that the high-end ZYX R-100 Fuji is one killer cartridge. It's as good as a Shelter 901, but a little different in the way it does things. It is slightly better than the 901 on small scale music, and the 901 is a little better on large scale stuff. Nothing that I know of can beat the 901 for accurate bass response, and natural tonality. Not too sure how the lower end ZYX stuff is. I heard that their $1k model was the OEM for the Monster Alpha cartridge. Not sure about that.
I have not heard the Sumiko Blackbird, but I'm not holding my breath about it. It is supposed to be an upgrading of the Blue Point Special, and is even on a similar platform. The BPS was a barking dog, and needed replacing in a major way. If Sumiko was smart, they'd resurrect the old Supex MC line, and that would sell like hotcakes, just like it used to, back in the day.
I have not heard the Sumiko Blackbird, but I'm not holding my breath about it. It is supposed to be an upgrading of the Blue Point Special, and is even on a similar platform. The BPS was a barking dog, and needed replacing in a major way. If Sumiko was smart, they'd resurrect the old Supex MC line, and that would sell like hotcakes, just like it used to, back in the day.