Shibata Audio – Mark du Plessis – From a passion for listening to music on vinyl, a search for a real live sound arose. My goal is to listen to the nuances in the music instead of hifi equipment, to approach the real timbres of voices and instruments as much as possible.
After years of careful mixing and matching, I ended up with HANA and ZYX phono cartridges combined with passive Step Up Transformers. The results are spectacular.
In addition, the price-quality ratio of the phono cartridges from HANA and ZYX is exceptional.
The entry level cartridges ZYX R50 Exceed Bloom and ZYX ULTIMATE Exceed 100 clearly play at a higher level than the competition. The same applies to the cartridges from HANA.
Besides selling a carefully selection of high end Japanese phono cartridges, there is also the possibility to have a cartridge professionally installed. This can be done at Shibata Audio or at your home. The advantage of this is that the turntable does not have to be transported, with possible damage or disruption of the adjustment as a result.
If you would like to experience the quality of the cartridges yourself, you can make an appointment at the listening room of Shibata Audio in Amsterdam.