Hana ML Low Output Moving Coil Cartridge

Rating:

...I've given it five stars so the answer is yes.
It's the most expensive cartridge I've ever bought. I was using a Denon 103r which is a superb cartridge for the money, around £300 (the DL110 is also a great value cartridge). At just over £1K the Hana is not four times better but extracts more information from the groove (I'm always amazed how a groove in a bit of plastic can conjure up so much), separates instruments and is superb on vocals, both lead and backing. One example that stood out for me was on the track "Auntie Aviator" from John and Beverley Martin's "Road to Ruin" album. The drummer plays a ride cymbal mixed fairly low but you can follow it sparkling through the song and hear the different stick hits. I've been listening to the album since I bought it in 1970 and had never noticed that cymbal. It's those small details that bring a song to life and push it along.
I have never heard very high end cartridges and I imagine the law of diminishing returns applies as you go up the price scale. However, for me the improvements, while not night and day, and my increased enjoyment of the music have been worth the price.

Rating:

I could write a review which describes how the Hana ML sounds supremely detailed, with airy natural vocals, and a very solid and powerful, but not overbearing, bass. I could mention the breathtaking instrument separation and clarity of presentation. I could also go on about the fact that I originally bought this cartridge to go into a secondary system but because it sounds so good it’s now it’s my main rig. There are probably many more things I could say but I’ll keep it simple:

I don’t know if I miraculously stumbled upon the ideal set up for this cart but, straight out of the box, this Hana ML is something else! I’d been running a Dynavector KV Karat 17DX (about 400 hours) which is a fantastic cart but when I swapped it out for the Hana, its difficult to describe it but I ‘felt’ the music, rather than just hearing it. Whether it was AC/DC, Beethoven or Zappa (or anything else in between, for that matter), everything just came alive.

For an objective test, I enrolled my wife (a true hifi sceptic) to listen to her favourite album (Dark Side of the Moon). I put it on, she listened, and at the end she said it sounded so amazing it had given her goosebumps. Pretty much says it all.

P.S. The Dynavector is happily singing away in the other system, and still sounding fantastic. Horses for courses, maybe?

Rating:

Reviewing a cartridge is quite difficult if you only have one turntable!
Having used a Hana EL for several years, which I found to have superb sound quality and fantastic value for money, it was time for an upgrade. Having exhausted myself with reviews and various forum threads I opted for the Hana ML cartridge, no rhyme or reason for this apart from I'd had experience of another Hana cartridge. Well I was blown away with the performance of the ML, superb detail, beautiful mid-range and full and solid bass. Never really understood all the fuss about MC cart's, I do now, what a revelation to my ears, well that's my opinion anyway. Music and the sound of the equipment is very subjective and that will be down to the individual, the Hana ML will sound stunning in any system apart from Fisher-price.

Rating:

Thanks to Analogue Seduction for sorting out the ordering problem, they provided good communications and quickly resolved the problem.
Great Cartridge

Rating:

Much better than I expected.