Hand-Made Soundsmith Hyperion mkII ES Moving-Iron Phono Cartridge Features Groundbreaking Cactus-Spine Cantilever System: Hear Breathtaking Transients, Microdetails, and Soundstaging 

The groundbreaking Soundsmith Hyperion mk II ES low-output moving-iron phono cartridge delivers vibrant, colorful, and outright masterful playback limited only by the restraints on the rest of your system. A no-holds-barred component that holds its own in the most discerning setups, Hyperion mk II ES features a patent-pending cactus-spine cantilever that supplies stiffness and damping, properties that until this invention were exclusive of one another. Hum-free operation, RF shielding, and extreme stability accompany Hyperion mk II ES' low-effective moving mass to yield breathtaking transient, microdetail, and soundstaging. Hyperion mk II ES does everything but pull up your chair and give you the best seat in the house for unforgettable musical performances. Hand-built in the U.S.A. by Soundsmith lead designer Peter Ledermann and able to be rebuilt for less than a fifth of the original MSRP, Hyperion mk II ES also comes with an unprecedented, free 10-year retipping service for stylus wear to the original owner.

Visually defined by a new, sleek body that resists the uncontrolled vibrations of traditional "boxy" cartridges, Soundsmith's ES line features a significant evolution of its DEMS (Dynamic Energy Management System) design. ES cartridges direct internal vibrational forces without reflection and disperse them properly to the tonearm. Such absence of reflections enables the stylus to stay in far greater statistical contact with the groove walls, leading to increased liquidity, reduced "grain," and preservation of valuable detail. Azimuth adjustment is also built into each model, along with the option for electrical isolation for hum-prone systems.

Reference-Level Performance Made Possible by Cactus-Spine Cantilever
Superior cantilever designs have always employed tapered cantilevers. They must also have mutually exclusive dualistic qualities: both stiffness and damping are required. If one could, they'd build tapered, longitudinal stacked columnar fibers, stacked and damped with desiccated resin. You'd get the absolute best of extreme rigidity, internal damping, and tremendous strength. Fortunately, nature already thought of such a fiber. Soundsmith's custom-formed cactus-spine cantilever system on the Hyperion cartridge represents an apex for moving-iron cartridge designs, and drastically reduces the moving-mass in the generating system, yielding reference-level performance tailored to pair with the world's finest sound systems.

Advantages of Soundsmith Moving-Iron Cartridges
Enjoy the best of both worlds: Soundsmith's moving-iron cartridges encompass the advantages of moving-coil and moving-magnet designs while simultaneously lessening or eliminating the respective approaches' deficiencies. Boasting extraordinary tracking abilities that let them effortlessly sail through complex musical passages, a warm and detailed character, exceptional transient response, and a full sound that completes entire notes and finishes instrumental structures, Soundsmith models exude natural musicality and high-end design.