Ortofon 2MR Red Moving Magnet Cartridge
ORTOFON 2MR - THE TECHNICAL ARGUMENT
The 2M range of moving magnet cartridges has established itself over many years as one of the foremost solutions for high-quality vinyl playback at a competitive price. Spanning many awards and critical reviews, plus countless endorsements from fans around the world - across the whole 2M range there is a solution to suit any type of user.
2M Reduced, or 2MR, aims to expand the offering further by taking the same 2M design and technology, but delivering it in a cartridge with reduced height to suit a variety of other tonearms or use cases.
VTA - WHY DOES IT MATTER?
The Vertical Tracking Angle (VTA) is the angle between the pivot-point of a cartridge's cantilever and where the diamond touches the record groove. Ortofon cartridges are constructed so that the cantilever angle corresponds to the 20º record cutting angle, when the cartridge is loaded with recommended tracking force and the cartridge base is parallel with the tonearm, which in turn is parallel to the record surface. As a result of this design, if your cartridge is ever mounted on a tonearm where it must lean even slightly backward compared to the record surface, the VTA will not be correct and you will lose important musical details.
The existing 2M range is well suited to many tonearms in the modern market, and is perfectly at home on tonearms with adjustable VTA. However, there are many tonearms from popular turntable makers, such as Linn, Rega, Pro-Ject and others, where the VTA is not adjustable and the regular 2M cartridge height is too high. Similarly, there are instances where you may wish to modify your turntable with a thicker mat or platter upgrade and you need to compensate with reduced cartridge height.
Enter 2MR.
2MR reduces the overall cartridge body height to 14mm, saving you 3mm over the standard version. This reduction makes a world of difference to the achievable sound quality of your turntable where VTA is an issue with a standard 2M cartridge. It's also infinitely easier to accommodate than many tonearm modifications or upgrades you may otherwise need to make.
As this different sized cartridge option is helpful in many use cases, each model of the 2M range is available as a 2MR variant, including the 2M Black LVB250, the 2M Mono and the 2M 78. For convenience, the 2MR styli are exactly the same as the regular 2M range styli and can be swapped and upgraded as effortlessly as the regular range.
The Ortofon 2M Blue is an evolution and an update of Ortofon's best-selling OM Series of Moving Magnet cartridges. The 2M body, generator and stylus profile have all been greatly improved and this great budget cartridge integrates 21st century technology in an affordable package.
“The 2M Red is the entry level and 2M Black is the flagship. Their performance is a fitting tribute to Ortofon and chief engineer Per Windfield!”
- Neil Gader, The Absolute Sound, Product of Year Award Issue, January 2009
The 2M series of cartridges feature Ortofon’s trademark split pole pins, an invention which enables moving magnet cartridges to have flat frequency response, just like a moving coil cartridge. Ortofon invented the Split pole pin technology and were originally offered in the 500 series and Super OM series. The 2M Blue uses an improved engine, which provides an increased output of 5.5mV.
The 2M series was developed in conjunction with Danish designer Møller Jensen Design – the same designer who designed the award winning MC Jubilee and very successful Kontrapunkt series. Inspired by the facets of a diamond, whose contours gracefully trace the grooves on a record’s surface, the 2M’s handsome elegance establishes a great combination of form and functionality.
The 2M series is designed for precise and accurate retrieval of the information in the record groove. Ortofon's philosophy is to make cartridges which reproduce the record grooves as accurately as possible, without coloring the sound. The 2M series design has been optimized for ease of mounting and their weight and size fit virtually any current turntable.
The name 2M was selected among several ideas. Ortofon wanted a modern name which would be both easy to pronounce and to remember, therefore an alpha numerical name was chosen. Mathematically 2M can be also represented as MM, which also happens to be the abbreviation for moving magnet.
Of course the 2M isn’t just another pretty face. Engineered to the highest standards the 2M series follows Ortofon’s unrelenting commitment to providing the most precise and accurate reproduction possible without coloration.
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The 2M Red is designed for precise and accurate retrieval of the information in the record groove. It is Ortofon's lasting philosophy to only ever play the recorded sound, without colouration.
All-purpose cartridge that delivers an open, dynamic sound
Tipped Elliptical diamond stylus profile
Overhead mounting cartridge for installing into a headshell
Moving magnet cartridge with removable stylus
Utilises Ortofon's split-pole pin technology to reduce the eddy current and to get a flat frequency response, like with an MC cartridge
Can be upgraded with other styli from the Ortofon 2M range
Anti-resonant Hopelex body
Reduced-height 2MR cartridge body
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