The Ortofon Xpression High-End cartridge

The state of the art product, the Ortofon Xpression represents a combination of three elements very characteristic for Ortofon:

• The cutting edge SLM materials technology pioneered by the MC A90 and SPU 90th Anniversary
• Modification of the generator system introduced with the MC A90 and the MC Windfeld
• Ortofon design tradition 

Utilising these three elements we created a new product in order to support our customers of the SPU cartridges and Ortofon tonearms.

The Xpression cartridge bridges the gap between the SPU-type cartridges and High-End cartridges like the MC A90 and the MC Windfeld designed for headshell mounting. The result is a high-performance moving coil cartridge with the convenience of a standard headshell connector, which provides a simple and elegant method of directly connecting the generator and tonearm via the Xpression’s one-piece body.

Review quote Xpression

Stereophile September 2018
By Jim Austin

"...Ortofon's 90th Anniversary SPU is a very fine cartridge. The Xpression is clearly and significantly better. My 90th Anniversary has the characteristic SPU midrange richness and color, but with far fewer compromises at the extremes of audioband. The Xpression has all of that, and it's better still in the lows and hights... The most important improvement is in the heights. The fundamental tones of higher-pitched instruments and voices, and the even higher-frequency tones that convey color and a sense of space, were almost perfectly articulate and clear... Ambience was reproduced but not exaggerated... The music came across with more drive, more emotional force... The sound got out of the way, which let me focus on the essence of the music, on human expression through sound.

...The Xpression is expensive, but age and experience have shown me that it's hard to set a budget for experience, including - or especially - the experience of music.”

Since the cartridge length is identical to that of an SPU, the Xpression can easily be fitted onto tonearms without additional concern for proper alignment.

The cartridge height is likewise identical to the SPU height, which makes further VTA adjustments unnecessary.
The length of the cartridge ensures proper match with the SME-mount type tonearms, e.g. SME, Grace, Fidelity Research, SAEC and Micro Seiki brands. Additionally, the mass and compliance properties of the Xpression ensure that a proper match will be achieved with any SPU-compatible arm.
The Xpression can ideally be combined with the TA-110 and TA-210 tonearms. The combination of Xpression, TA-110/TA-210 and ST-80 SE MC transformer gives a supreme experience!

Output voltage at 1000 Hz, 5cm/sec. 

  0.3 mV

Channel balance at 1 kHz 

  < 0.2 dB

Channel separation at 1 kHz 

  > 28 dB

Channel separation at 15 kHz 

  > 22 dB

Frequency response 

20 Hz0-20 kHz +0.5 /-1.5 dB

Tracking ability at 315Hz at recommended tracking force 

90-µm

Compliance, dynamic, lateral 

11 µm/mN

Stylus type 

Special polished Nude Ortofon Replicant 100 on Boron Cantilever

Stylus tip radius 

r/R 5/100 µm

Tracking force range 

2.3-2.8 g (23-28 mN)

Tracking force, recommended 

2.6 g (26 mN)

Tracking angle 

23°

Internal impedance, DC resistance 

4 Ohm

Recommended load impedance 

 >10 Ohm

Cartridge body material 

SLM Stainless Steel and Specialproprietary TPE compound

Cartridge colour 

Black

Cartridge weight 

  28 gram

User Reviews