Ortofon SPU A95 ANNIVERSARY Cartridge

SPU 95 also upgrades the old SPU with depth and perspective and individual sounds

Stereophile December 2014
Reviewed by Art Dudley

“… Unsurprisingly, the Ortofon SPU 95 performed well on my Thomas Schick tonearm… First things I noticed… The SPU 95’s permanently rich, unquestionably SPU-like bass registers and the new turntable are somewhat nice sounded refined…

… The SPU 95 was also impressed by the abundance of musical and sonic details…

..A95’s natural, colored timbral presentation is durable…

Speaking of spatial performance, the SPU 95 also improved the older SPU in its ability to convey depth and perspective and the “integrity” of individual sounds…

All in all, the SPU 95th Anniversary achieves exactly what Ortofon intended to do: It’s a well-behaved, particularly modern turntable with a lot of detail and a good sense of space in stereo, quiet and impenetrable in the groove – yet still the same. At the same time, it’s an SPU with solid sound and precise driver feel associated with devices with relatively low compatibility. “

Design, premium materials and features
The SPU A95 is built with the magnetic system applied in the previous SPU 90th Anniversary.

The mechanical structure and many internal mounts of the SPU A95 cartridge have also been redesigned. The mechanical heart is a revolutionary customized SLM (Selective Laser Melting) manufacturing procedure. The use of Titanium in the SPU A95 has further improved the overall rigidity of the structure as well as its internal damping capabilities.

Another feature is the inclusion of the famous Field Fixing Element (FSE) system, which consists of a small cylinder of conductive material strategically placed inside the magnetic system. FSE guarantees that the force field within the system will always remain constant, regardless of the movement of the armature.

A Naked Elliptical diamond pen adorns the aluminum bracket, representative of the legacy created by SPUs, along with a black-painted milled wood body.

Let’s take a closer look at the product features

• Output voltage at 1000 Hz, 5cm/sec. – 0.3 mV
• Channel balance at 1 kHz – 1 dB
• Channel separation at 1 kHz – 23 dB
• Channel separation at 15 kHz – 15 dB
• Frequency response – 20-20,000 Hz ± 2 dB
• Tracking ability at recommended tracking force at 315Hz *) – 70 µm
• Compatibility, dynamic, lateral – 9 µm / mN
• Style type – Bare Elliptical
• Stylus tip radius – r / R 8/18 µm
• Tracking force range – 2.5-3.5 g (25-35 mN)
• Tracking force, recommended – 3.0 g (30 mN)
• Viewing angle – 20 °

Typical values:

• Internal impedance, DC resistance – 2 ohms
• Recommended load impedance – 10 – 50 ohms
• Cartridge body material – Composite of milled wood and resin
• Frame structure – Titanium
• Coil wire material – Silver Plated Copper
• Cartridge color – Gloss Black
• Cartridge weight – 28 g