Phono cartridge Sumiko Songbird Hi

The Sumiko Songbird H movable coil pickup head belongs to the top Reference Series and is a new generation MC cartridge. The company draws attention to the fact that it took three years to develop this head. The model received a "bird" name by analogy with its brothers in the series - Blackbird and Starling (Songbird translates as "songbird").

Exceptionally high performance was achieved thanks to the use of a special open housing and a rigid attachment of the generator (converter). This design makes it possible to effectively eliminate external and internal parasitic resonances. The converter mechanism is attached to a rigid console tilted at a slight angle, and the housing itself is made of aluminum and processed on high-precision machines with numerical control. The internal wiring is made using a wire made of purified copper, which improves conductivity and transmits a signal with minimal losses. Model Sumiko Songbird H it has a characteristic blue color, and for mounting in the shell of the tonearm, there are a pair of threaded holes on its upper panel.

The pickup head is equipped with a light needle with an elliptical profile, which is attached to a light and sufficiently rigid tubular needle holder made of aluminum with a special coating. The suspension element is made of synthetic rubber, which, according to Sumiko, is more effective and durable compared to the traditionally used butyl.

The Sumiko Songbird H output voltage is 2.5 mV, which is quite high for heads with a movable coil. Such a high output guarantees a minimum noise level and facilitates the selection of a preamp/phono corrector for this MC cartridge, since it allows the use of a corrector designed for MM heads. The advantages of the model include the ability to track the sound track of a vinyl disc very accurately, a fairly wide frequency range with an upper limit of 40 kHz, as well as a good indicator of channel separation. The weight of the cartridge does not exceed eight and a half grams. The pickup head is great for most modern tonearms and vinyl turntables.

Features of the Sumiko Songbird H pickup head (2.5 mV):

• Aluminum housing with an open architecture, internal wiring is made with a wire made of purified copper
• Elliptical Profile Needle, Lightweight Aluminum Tubular Needle Holder
• Wide frequency range
• High output voltage of 2.5 mV

Characteristics of the Sumiko Songbird pickup head:

• Type: with movable coil (MS)
• Needle Sharpening Type: Elliptical
• Tracking angle: 20°
• Cantilever material: aluminum
• Dynamic compliance: 10 x 10-6 cm/din
• Downforce range: 1.8 - 2.2 g
• Optimal downforce: 2.0 g
• Output voltage : 2.5 mV
• Frequency response: 12 Hz - 40 kHz
• Channel separation: 30 dB
• Channel unbalance: less than 0.5 dB
• Recommended load resistance: 47 kOhm
• Recommended load capacity: 100 - 200 pF
• Internal resistance: 135 ohms
• Weight: 8.5 g