The century-old Danish firm Ortofon, renowned among music lovers and audiophiles around the world for the extraordinary technical and sound quality of its pickup capsules, step-up transformers, tonearms and cables, has just announced the addition of two new models to which it will undoubtedly It is the most iconic of its ranges of pickup capsules: the SPU. Introduced on the market in 1958 in response to the demand for capsules to play the then groundbreaking stereophonic vinyl records, “SPU” is the acronym for “Stereo Pick-Up” or “pickup capsule”, since, until that time (during the 50’s and 60’s of the last century), the capsules on the market were simply called “capsules”. Of the SPU, we must especially highlight the relevance that Robert Gudmandsen, one of the emblematic engineers of the Scandinavian company, had in its development.
Based on 10-year-old technology and Ortofon’s experience in designing monophonic cartridges, the SPU immediately defined the quality standard for pickup cartridges for professional and audiophile applications, while also setting the path forward. in creating products of its kind for decades to come. Named SPU GTX S and SPU GTX E, both moving coil (MC), they incorporate a step-up transformer, a fiberglass reinforced casing and a quadruple grouping of coils with OFC copper windings, the difference between one and the other being the type of needle they mount, spherical type in the first case and elliptical type in the second. The first differentiating element of these refined transducers is that they are handmade in Denmark by highly experienced professionals, an essential condition for them to exhibit the incredible degree of precision of their physical execution and the extreme reliability that this entails.
Thus, its unibody shell is molded from a fiberglass-reinforced copolymer that to date has never been used in SPU capsules. This solution ensures a stable form factor, high rigidity and very low resonance for the enclosure that houses the delicate signal generator. The bottom cover is also molded from the same material, thus encapsulating the entire assembly in a uniform construction and appearance. On the other hand, by integrating its own step-up transformer, developed in collaboration with the prestigious specialized firm Lundahl, the GTX can be connected directly to any standard phono stage or amplifier as if they were moving magnet capsules. The result is two new modern classics designed for today’s vinyl enthusiast that combine the musicality and rich tonal character that has defined the SPU Series for decades with cutting-edge innovations in audio engineering.
