Nagaoka (Nagaoka) cartridges are not only known for their ability to restore vocals, but also have quite good reviews in terms of cost performance! As for this article, I will give you an overview of 8 popular Nagaoka cartridge models, so that everyone can be better prepared when upgrading cartridges!
Founded in 1969, Nagaoka is located in Togen City, Yamagata Prefecture, Japan. At the beginning of its establishment, it used to be a watch bearing manufacturer, and now it is a member of the world‘s highest quality cutting material processing experts! Nagaoka enjoys creating new products from difficult-to-cut materials such as diamonds, carbides or ceramics, and has extensive experience in jewelry processing! Since the 1950s, Nagaoka has been developing accessories for playback, and even developed Japan’s first diamond needle in 1956!
To celebrate the company’s 80th anniversary, Nagaoka announced two new “Jewel Tone” cartridge series in 2020: the aluminum cantilever JT-80LB (Lapis Blue) and the boron cantilever JT-80BK (Black) two moving magnet MM ( Moving Magnet) phono! The biggest feature of this series is its cartridge body, stylus and barrel are redesigned to show the brand new side! Among them, the JT-80LB uses an aluminum cantilever and a diamond oval stylus for a wide and powerful sound characteristic! As for the high-end model JT-80BK, it uses a boron cantilever and a solid oval stylus, which has an excellent three-band sound balance! Both new cartridges have been engineered to perfection by simplifying the number of parts to reduce unnecessary vibrations!
JT-80LB (Lapis Blue) Thick and warm texture type cartridge with strong emotions (Suitable for pop and lead vocals）
The JT-80LB cartridge is equipped with an aluminum alloy needle bar keyed with an oval needle. The output power is 5.0 mV. The biggest highlight is to show the level of sound volume. It can cope with the metal aftertaste of piano sound and the thickness of jazz sound. Present! JT-80LB pays special attention to the volume and detail of the sound. It can highlight the emotions when showing vocals and strings, and restore the luster in the sound!
Features
-The inclined panel design can easily observe the operation status and replacement of the stylus
– Post design simplifies stylus installation
JT-80LB (cartridge) : HK$1,650
JT-80BK （Black)exquisiteAnalytical phono, dynamic details and openness (suitable for large-scale ensemble volume play)
The oval-shaped solid needle of the JT-80BK (Black) stylus stem has an output power of 3.0 mV! Although the output power is lower than the Lapis Blue, the sound is more delicate than the latter! The sound quality of JT-80BK (Black) is more neutral, and it will be more present when playing music! Especially when dealing with jazz, the sound performance will be more delicate, and the overall details and resolution will be more prominent. For traditional moving magnet MM cartridges, the width of the sound field is the biggest highlight!
Features
-The inclined panel design can easily observe the operation status and replacement of the stylus
– Post design simplifies stylus installation
JT-80BK (cartridge) : HK$4,200
In addition to the “Jewel Tone” cartridge series, Nagaoka also has a popular cartridge series called MP (Mobile Permalloy), where “P” stands for Permalloy! This series belongs to the MM series and uses light magnets as coils! Its characteristic is to have the smooth sound of MM cartridge, but also have the transparent characteristics of similar to MC cartridge! The biggest advantage is that the back end of the stylus cantilever is loaded with an ultra-light “Permalloy oscillator”, and the main body of the cartridge is supported by a solid samarium cobalt magnet, which makes the overall operation more stable! The Nagaoka MP cartridge series includes the following models: MP-100, MP-110, MP-150, MP-200, MP-300 and MP-500. The model features are as follows:
MP-100The choice for beginners, the mid-frequency vocals are thick and moist (suitable for pop music, rock music)
The MP-100 delivers clear and detailed musical presentation that is more than worth the money! Features include a lightweight aluminum cantilever, perfect for beginners as an entry-level upgrade! Because of its natural neutral sound and accurate three-frequency balance, it is more suitable for novice players when matching playback equipment!
Features
-Super fine polished conical diamond tip
-Samarium Cobalt Magnet
-Aluminum alloy cantilever
-Carbon fiber plastic
-Antimagnetic permalloy shell
MP-100H (cartridge with housing): HK$1,200 ｜ MP-100 (cartridge): HK$1,000 ｜JN-P100 (replacement needle): HK$300
MP-110 cost-effective upgradeChoiceanalyze the fineness orientation (Suitable for all kindsinstrumental ensemble）
The MP-110 is the successor to the acclaimed classic model MP-11 cartridge! Continuing the characteristics of the classic work, and making a number of major improvements in details, you will have another experience in terms of sound details and musicality. MP-110 is quite outstanding in terms of durability and stiffness, and has a very good sound reproduction ability, which can effectively preserve the dynamic details in the signal, so that there is less signal loss during the amplification process! Whether you like listening to rock music or orchestral music, the MP-110 can restore the details of the music!
Features
-Superfine polished oval diamond tip
-Samarium Cobalt Magnet
-Aluminum alloy cantilever
-Carbon fiber plastic
-Antimagnetic permalloy shell
MP-110H (cartridge with housing) HK$1,400｜MP-110 (cartridge) HK$1,100｜JN-P110 (replacement needle) HK$400
MP-150 Broad Sound Personality Choicethe vocals are sweet and melodious (suitable forvocals and Acoustic music play）
The MP-150 has a lightweight tapered cantilever for excellent fidelity in dynamic range reproduction, making playback sound more vivid and detailed! The MP-150 can also present a pure, thick and rich bass level, the three frequencies are straight and smooth, the mid-high range is naturally full, and the mid-range and vocals are thick and rich!
Features
-Super fine polished oval diamond tip
-Samarium Cobalt Magnet
-Tapered aluminum alloy cantilever
-Carbon fiber reinforced plastic
-Antimagnetic permalloy shell
MP-150H (cartridge with housing) HK$3,000 ｜ MP-150 (cartridge) HK$2,700｜JN-P150 (replacement needle) HK$1,200
MP-200 The Choice for Accurate and Bright ToneThe background is quiet and the separation is very high (suitable for large ensemble movements)
The MP-200 is characterized by its vivid timbre and high-balanced tri-band performance. The biggest focus of MP-200 is the wide sound field and accurate positioning! The biggest feature of MP-200 is that it does not make any compromise on sound quality, the sound response is refreshing, the sound field is wide and natural, and the high frequency extension is excellent! Belongs to the super-value representative in the same price cartridge!
Features
– Extra fine polished special oval diamond tip
-Samarium Cobalt Magnet
-Lightweight, high-strength boron cantilever
-Carbon fiber plastic
-Antimagnetic permalloy shell
MP-200H (cartridge with housing) HK$3,600 ｜MP-200 (cartridge) HK$3,300｜JN-P200 (replacement needle) HK$1,300
MP-300 is the best choice for high-level preparations, with a delicate and prominent air (suitable forVocals, Acoustic music and moresolo piece)
The MP-300 features a full-attack configuration, and the three frequencies are meticulously restored! MP-300 restores sound details, the tri-band performance is flat and smooth, and the music is rich! Due to the light weight of the cartridge material, it is easier to travel around the record, and it is easy to reproduce all kinds of details in the music one by one! Because MP-300 has extremely high sound line reproduction ability, it can accurately show the spatial layout of singers and performers, which is more suitable for music enthusiasts who like details!
Features
-Exclusive super tough body
-Super fine polished special oval bonded diamond tip
-Samarium Cobalt Magnet
-Lightweight, high-strength boron cantilever
-Carbon fiber plastic
-Antimagnetic permalloy shell
MP-300H (cartridge with housing) HK$5,400｜MP-300 (cartridge) HK$5,000｜JN-P300 (replacement needle) HK$1,600
The flagship of the MP-500 series, the ultimate in MM cartridge function (suitable for classical music, large ensembles and various large dynamic movements)
MP-500 is the flagship of the MP series. It was selected as “Stereophile’s Editor’s Top Picks For The Industry’s Best Product” by Stereophile Magazine in the United States earlier. The sound is tuned with professional tone! In addition to the vivid personality, it also has a high-quality reference-level sound quality, which is most suitable for use with high-end playback systems! MP-500 is made of superior shock-resistant materials, and the needle and needle bar are joined by our own proprietary technology! The needle bar is made of high hardness boron material and glass fiber bracket samarium cobalt magnet, and then shielded by permalloy anti-leakage technology!
Features
-High hardness shell
-Superfine diamond tip
-Samarium Cobalt Magnet
-Lightweight, high-strength boron cantilever
-Carbon fiber plastic
-Antimagnetic permalloy shell
MP-500H (cartridge with housing) HK$6,400｜MP-500 (cartridge) HK$6,100｜JN-P50 (replacement needle) HK$2,000
Concluson: The personalization division of the cartridge is meticulous and complete, and the Jewel Tone series is the most memorable!
Nagaoka’s most heart-wrenching part is that the individualized division of labor for each MP cartridge is actually quite careful. Even novice players can find the corresponding series according to their budget and listening preferences! Including the two series of “Jewel Tone” and MP (Mobile Permalloy) for the 80th anniversary celebration, the “Jewel Tone” series is obviously more commemorative, and is undoubtedly the first choice for Nagaoka fans! As for the choice of many MP series, there are everything from one thousand yuan entry to early six thousand high-end, which makes it easy for novices and veterans to find their favorite!
Nagaoka cartridge details:https://www.hedonic.store/
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