enjoing my Ortofon SPU G-shell carts in my heavy tonearms since quite a while I believed when adding the Meister Silver to the Anniversary 85 I should be well equipped until Ortofon will celebrate its 100 Anniversary – in five years. Last week my friend in Utah told me he had just received one of the first units of the recently issued SPU 95 and he couldn`t believe what a kind of “Killer Cart” this one is. Knowing that he has quite some experience with Ortofon carts among others I did not hesitate testing one.

here it is:

having tested the SPU 95 for over a week this full bodied cart provides very lifely and airy qualities. it might not have the heavy push the Meister silver comes with, nevertheless its dynamics and pace are extraordinary. The sound is more on the modern side than close to the old SPUs which is not a problem at all. Usually you are enjoying the old style SPUs and are not going for a copy. I am very happy with this SPU and not because it is the latest of its kind, because every new entry must be good (?) – no, it provides an amazing warm, subtle and very well balanced sound I really like.