ORTOFON MC RONDO RED

Pre owned. Supplied with original manual and packaging.

The Ortofon MC Rondo Red is a moving coil phono cartridge designed to deliver a balanced and homogeneous sound, ideal for listeners seeking a clear and pleasant musical reproduction without excessive dynamics. The stylus is a finely polished elliptical diamond mounted on a cylindrical aluminum cantilever, ensuring precise tracking and a linear response across the entire frequency range.

The Rondo Red body belongs to the same sonic family as the Bronze and Blue models, sharing the benefits of wooden housings that contribute to a natural, resonance-free soundstage. The cartridge tends toward a smoother and more controlled playback with gentle dynamics, making it perfect for less complex music or relaxed listening. The recommended load impedance is around 100 Ohms, with the option to increase it if a more open, airy soundstage is desired.

The wooden body is crafted from innovative materials combining 55% ground wood in a resin matrix processed by injection molding, allowing the creation of complex structures and refined finishes inspired by Japanese decorative art and lacquering techniques. The finishes of the Rondo series, including the Rondo Red, feature shades of red, blue, and bronze modulated with delicate black shadows, giving each cartridge an elegant and distinctive appearance.

The integrated MC system of the Rondo series uses carefully selected components to ensure Ortofon’s exclusive sound quality and easy installation. Neodymium magnets provide a high output of approximately 500 μV, optimizing the signal-to-noise ratio. The cantilever and diamond are paired with individually developed damping systems for each model, ensuring a linear frequency response and excellent tracking ability. The armature windings are made of special copper wire with two-layer gold plating, offering outstanding resistance to corrosion and stable conductivity, both crucial for sound quality.

The close mechanical contact between the wooden housing and the motor units contributes to a homogeneous and natural sound, enhancing the non-resonant properties of wood and delivering a well-balanced, transparent, and remarkably engaging soundstage.

Technical specifications:

• Output voltage: 0.5 mV (at 1 kHz, 5 cm/sec)
• Channel balance: 2 dB (at 1 kHz)
• Channel separation: 22 dB (at 1 kHz); 15 dB (at 15 kHz)
• Frequency response: 20 – 30,000 Hz (-3 dB); 20 – 20,000 Hz ±2 dB
• Tracking ability: 80 µm (at 315 Hz, with recommended tracking force)
• Lateral dynamic compliance: 15 µm/mN
• Stylus type: Nude Elliptical on aluminum cantilever; tip radius: r/R 8/18 µm
• Tracking force range: 2 – 2.5 g (20 – 25 mN); recommended tracking force: 2.3 g (23 mN)
• Tracking angle: 20°
• Internal impedance / DC resistance: 6 Ohm; recommended load impedance: 10 – 200 Ohm
• Cartridge body material: grinded wood/resin composite; color: red
• Weight: 10.5 g