Swiss high-end audio firm, Nagra, announces the upcoming release of its first phono cartridge – the Nagra Reference MC cartridge. Initial units are scheduled to be delivered in December.
The Nagra Reference MC cartridge is the product of a number of years of intense R&D supplemented by extensive listening tests. This moving coil cartridge will be available in 4 and 6 Ohm variants. Designed in parallel with the Nagra 70th Anniversary Reference turntable/tonearm system, it is an ideal companion component to complete the ultimate LP playback platform.
The Reference MC cartridge features a number of significant and unique elements. While traditional moving coil transducers utilize a single layer coil body, the Nagra Reference MC cartridge employs a multi-layer transducer featuring a double layer coil body wound with hyper-pure silver windings. The 6 Ohm Reference outputs 0.45mV @ 5cm/S. The 4 Ohm Reference achieves an output of 0.30mV @ 5 cm/S.
A stiff ruby cantilever is mated to a high strength titanium structure featuring a DLC (diamond-like carbon) coating. The titanium structure utilized in the coil body/cantilever interface addresses a traditional source of resonance and substantially reduces vibration unrelated to the musical signal. The stylus tip is a Swiss produced, Fritz Gyger S profile chosen for its wonderful combination of detail retrieval and musicality.
Further evidence of the obsessive attention to detail in the cartridge’s design is found in the connector pins. Those employed in the Reference MC cartridge eliminate the commonly found connection joint between the pin and the coil. In the case of the Reference MC, the pin is a continuous single piece from its external end point to its internal point of contact with the coil, resulting in a welcomed lowering of inductance.
In addition to the extensive focus on the generator system and groove/stylus/ cantilever interface, Nagra’s team of engineers and designers paid great attention to the Reference MC cartridge body. Substantial material science investigation lead the team to a unique, non-ferrous alloy called EXIUMÒ AM. Born from aerospace materials research, EXIUMÒ AM is the result of a collaboration between the CNES (the French equivalent of NASA), the Ecole de Mines de Paris and the French firm LBI Foundries.
It was developed to address the need for an alloy with very high damping properties – a necessary attribute for a particular Mars mission whose purpose was to measure minute seismic activities on the red planet. Nagra engineers determined that this high damping characteristic alloy was perfect for use in audio applications where the elimination of unwanted vibrations and resonances is an extreme priority. As a result, the Reference cartridge utilizes an EXIUMÒ AM inlay at the critical interface between cartridge generator and the cartridge body. (An examination of Nagra’s 70th Anniversary Reference turntable will reveal that the table’s platter features a precisely CNC machined ring of EXIUMÒ AM.) Nagra’s use of EXIUMÒ AM is exclusive. Nagra has secured the sole worldwide right to use EXIUMÒ AM in audio products. In order to produce a cartridge of optimal weight for the Reference Anniversary tonearm, while maintaining high internal damping properties, a proprietary super magnesium alloy is utilized for the balance of the cartridge body.
The Nagra Reference cartridge has exceptional tracking ability, resonance control and exemplary specifications (their bloviating PR words not ours). It will match most tonearms and phono stages but will reach its ultimate potential when paired with the Nagra Reference turntable/tonearm system and Nagra phono stages.
Explaining How a Moving Magnet Turntable Cartridge Works
If you’ve ever sat back and admired the warm, inviting sound of vinyl, it all starts with one surprisingly small but vital piece of the puzzle: the phono cartridge. And when it comes to turntables, one of the most common cartridge types is the moving magnet, often abbreviated as MM. For newcomers and seasoned audiophiles alike, understanding how a moving magnet cartridge works is key to appreciating what’s really happening when that stylus drops into the groove.
At its core, a moving magnet cartridge is an electromechanical transducer. Its job is simple in theory but elegant in execution—it converts the physical movement of the stylus tracking the grooves of a vinyl record into an electrical signal that can be amplified and turned into music. But the way it does that is what makes it so fascinating.
Inside a moving magnet cartridge, the stylus (the tiny needle that touches the record) is attached to a cantilever—a thin, lightweight rod, usually made of aluminum or boron. This cantilever is suspended so it can move freely in response to the vibrations caused by the groove modulations on the record.
At the end of that cantilever is a pair of tiny magnets—hence the name. These magnets move in close proximity to fixed coils of wire inside the cartridge body. When the stylus traces the groove, it causes the magnets to vibrate. Those moving magnets induce a small electrical current in the coils through electromagnetic induction. That signal is then sent through your turntable’s tonearm wiring to your phono stage, where it gets boosted to line level and eventually ends up at your speakers.
One of the main reasons moving magnet cartridges are so popular is their combination of affordability, durability, and performance. They generally have user-replaceable styli, which makes maintenance easier and more cost-effective. If you wear out the stylus—or, more likely, accidentally snap it off while dusting your LPs—you don’t have to replace the entire cartridge.
Tonally, MM cartridges tend to be a little more forgiving and warmer-sounding compared to their more delicate and often more expensive moving coil (MC) counterparts. That makes them ideal for a wide range of systems, especially in real-world listening environments that aren’t acoustically treated or loaded with exotic gear.
From a technical standpoint, moving magnet designs also have a higher output voltage than moving coil cartridges. That means they work well with the built-in phono preamps found in many integrated amps and receivers—no need for ultra-low noise, high-gain stages just to get them up to volume.
For most vinyl lovers, especially those building out an accessible and great-sounding analog rig, moving magnet cartridges are the smart choice. They balance engineering precision with practicality—and they sound fantastic doing it.
