Lyra Titan i MC Phono cartridge

The scope of the improvements are in the suspension, damping, and voicing of the cartridge. The primary technical objective of the changes was to improve the tracking of the cartridge, especially during test conditions when ”torture tracking tests” are used. It is a well known fact that low-compliance MC cartridges track less well then their high-compliance MM siblings. However, at LYRA we wanted to give it our best shot, and we succeded in improving tracking markedly over the previous model.

Even though we had intended this to be a ”silent” improvement in the middle of the model cycle, we quickly realized the changes resulted in a number of very audible improvements. The entire performance from the bass through the midrange register was noticably better and every listener exposed to this cartridge would comment that this raised the entire level of the cartridge’s performance. At this point we ”gave in” and decided to announce the improvement with an alteration of the model name and introduction of new packing.

The only components that create the magnetic field of the “Titan i” are two symmetrical disc magnets. The magnetic field is therefore also symmetrical, and the field distortions created by conventional polepeces and offset magnets have been completely eliminated. The magnets are made of a new neodymium compound that is the most powerful magnetic material in the world. The improvements to the magnetic field result in more accurate conversion of mechanical vibrations into electrical signals; in other words, lower distortion. At the same time, this allows the coils and cantilever to move more freely, leading to improved low level resolution and better tracking abilities, particularly at low vertical tracking forces.

The “Titan i”'s body is machined from a single piece of titanium alloy, which has been curved and shaped in a manner calculated to minimize standing waves and internal reflections and resonances. This attention to detail has also been extended to the interior body structures, which are too intricate to be formed by mechanical means. A different process called electrical discharge machining was therefore employed, not only because of its ability to fashion complex shapes, but also because unlike conventional machining, it is a non-contact process, and therefore does not create any mechanical stresses in the machined structures. The superior rigidity afforded by the “Titan i”'s solid, intricate, low-resonance body construction helps create a clearly defined reference pivot for the cantilever, which improves the conversion accuracy of mechanical vibrations into electrical signals. The rigid “Titan i”ium body also creates an efficient path for the vibrations from the stylus to be channeled away from the critical signal generator area and into the tonearm, where this energy can be dissipated effectively. The particular titanium alloy used has been chosen specifically for its low-level of self-resonances and advantageous sonic properties.

The “Titan i” has been designed for ease of use. The body incorporates threaded M2.6 holes to make it easier to install the mounting screws. The total height of the “Titan i” is just under 17.9mm, while the distance from the center of the mounting screws to the stylus tip is 3/8 inch (9.525mm). Henceforth, all LYRA cartridges will be standardized with these height and mounting-screw-to-stylus dimensions.

TECHNICAL DATA

The “Titan i” is fully nude design, with a body shape that has been designed to minimize cavity resonances, and also minimize the presence of conductive materials in the vicinity of the magnetic gap and signal generator coils. For similar reasons, the front magnet carrier of the “Titan i” is both non-magnetic and non-conductive. This non-conductive, nude construction prevents the formation of dynamically induced variable eddy currents that would otherwise interfere with the primary magnetic field and distort the signal generation process.

The “Titan i”'s stylus rides at the tip of a low-mass diamond block measuring 0.08 x 0.12 x 0.5mm. The stylus itself is a LYRA-designed line-contact, with a major radius of 70 micrometers and a minor radius of 3 micrometers. We first designed a number of different stylus shapes based on theory and calculation, and then subjected the candidates to exhaustive interative testing. The result is a stylus that is extremely good at tracking and detail retrieval, yet offers ultra-low levels of groove wear, has a very good signal-noise ratio, and reduces the audibility of groove damage.

The “Titan i” uses a compound structure cantilever which has been designed to increase the propagation velocity and self-dampening characteristics as much as possible. Consisting of a solid boron core, an outer diamond layer, and an additional reinforcement metal jacket, the cantilever's combination of low mass, high stiffness and low internal resonances reduces overshoot and ringing, thereby helping to minimize the audibility of groove damage and improving the perceived signal-noise ratio, even on worn records.

The 5.5-ohm low-impedance signal coils are wound from high-purity copper over a chemically-refined high-purity iron core, which has been gold-plated to reduce eddy currents and thereby minimize distortion. The impedance characteristics remain flat far beyond the audible range, and the use of high-purity materials reduces both measured and audible distortions.

The free length of the “Titan i”'s suspension wire is ultra-short. This creates a precisely defined reference pivot for the cantilever, and plays an important role in improving the conversion accuracy of mechanical vibrations into electrical signals. The compound damper system utilizes completely new damper materials that provide superior tracking, detail retrieval and minimal ringing.

The cantilever assembly of the “Titan i” has been mounted directly to the titanium body. Intermediate mounting methods such as polepieces or subcarriers have been completely eliminated. Both the cantilever and the insides of the body have been shaped so that when the two components are joined to each other, a double-knife-edge system will be created, which will concentrate as much pressure as possible on the joint area and thereby achieving a type of cold weld. This direct mounting system minimizes the number of mechanical joints between the cantilever and tonearm, and maximizes mechanical energy transfer away from the stylus and generator area. The end result is far less reflected mechanical energy, and therefore significantly reduced levels of distortion and resonance.

The signal output pins of the “Titan i” are plated with rhodium, a highly conductive yet tough material that, unlike gold, will stay intact and retain its superior conductivity, even over repeated cartridge installations.