Authorized dealers for Hana Hana Umami Blue

In Living Stereo — in-store — New York City, New York, United States (website)
The Audio Association — in-store — Anaheim, California, United States (website)
The Music Room — online and in-store — Erie, Colorado, United States (website)
3mA Audio — online and in-store — Houston, Texas, United States (website)
A/V Solutions — in-store — Pleasanton, California, United States (website)
Absolute Audio - Canada — in-store — Calgary, Alberta, Canada (website)
Acoustic Sounds — online and in-store — Salina, Kansas, United States (website)
Acoustic Streams — in-store — Lower Drift, England, United Kingdom (website)
AES — in-store — Mitte, Hessen, Germany (website)
ALAIN CHOUKROUN — online and in-store — Paris, Île-de-France, France (website)

and 234 more verified dealers

95%

Hana Hana Umami Blue

Name: Hana Hana Umami Blue
Brand: Hana
SKU: hana-umami-blue
Rating: 95 (24 reviews)

View at Hana

The HANA-Umami Way

The HANA-Umami Blue high-end moving coil cartridge combines the vision of Master cartridge designer Okada-san with the history of unique materials, classic Japanese techniques, and modern audio engineering. The Auricle™ body design, unique and exclusive to our Umami series, is CNC machined from Duralumin. Sharing key Umami Red ingredients, including the precision-cut diamond stylus, Boron cantilever, and high-purity copper wires, then combining these with the Alnico magnet-based generator found in the famous Hana ML, creates the exceptionally musical Umami Blue.

This synergistic relationship in MC cartridge design between specific materials, unique body design, a sophisticated generator, and hand-built precision is critical for outstanding cartridge performance. This creates a memorable and emotional experience, reminiscent of a meal at a Michelin 3-star restaurant, with every element and detail working in concert.

All the major parts in a HANA-Umami Blue are manufactured in-house by Excel Sound with its rich history spanning over 50 years. Excel’s highly trained craftsmen skillfully hand assemble the HANA-Umami Blue ensuring an intensely musical experience furthering the HANA “Brilliant and Gorgeous” sound quality.

Umami Sound - Exceptional Musical Quality

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Professional Reviews 95/100

Deliciously Crispy

Sound Quality

96/100

Build Quality

94/100

Features Usability

86/100

Value for Money

96/100

The Hana Umami Blue pairs deep-resolution retrieval with an unusually natural, neutral balance, extracting vivid vocal texture, controlled bass and a broad, locked-in soundstage without surrendering analog ease. Andre Jennings highlights its commanding micro- and macro-dynamics, while Alan Sircom hears high-end spatial solidity and authoritative low end. It is a compelling moving-coil sweet spot for meticulously set-up vinyl systems.

What Reviewers Are Saying

"The Hana Umami Blue brings that high-end cartridge ‘wow’ factor at a stunning, attainable price."

— hi-fi+

"The Umami Blue is the least expensive cartridge I’ve heard that does most of the things that the big high-end cartridges do."

— The Absolute Sound

"This Umami Blue doesn’t leave much on the table and has quickly become part of the mainstay cartridge rotation because it is so enjoyable to listen to."

— The Absolute Sound

"The Umami is a flash of “Blue” lightning at its price point."

— The Absolute Sound

"This cartridge immediately impresses with its sense of pace, dynamics, movement and openness, as well as naturalness and emotion."

— StereoNET United Kingdom

"The Blue is an imaging champion."

— Positive Feedback

"The Umami Blue has microdynamics in spades."

— Tracking Angle

"The tonal balance and subtlety of the Umami Blue left the PP-300 in the background."

— Audiophilia

"this splendid Hana cartridge delivers the music in abundance and more importantly, like all Hana cartridges, with the punch well above its given price."

— Audiophilepure

"Swap the term umami for musical and organic and there you have it."

— The Ear

Pros

Exceptionally transparent, neutral presentation combines fine detail with convincing analog naturalness.

Broad, deep and stable imaging makes individual instruments easy to follow within the soundstage.

Surefooted tracking and very quiet backgrounds preserve microdetail through demanding musical passages.

Cons

Its highly revealing Microline stylus exposes record noise, rewarding meticulously cleaned vinyl.

Careful setup, loading and tonearm-height adjustment are needed to achieve its best balance; the short body may require spacers or arm-height adjustment.

SOUND QUALITY PERFORMANCE 96/100

Reviewers consistently describe an exceptionally clear, natural and musically engaging presentation, combining tonal neutrality, harmonic richness, strong dynamics and substantial but controlled bass. Its ability to reveal recording differences without sounding etched or harsh is a recurring strength, alongside unusually convincing spatial reproduction.

Overall Sound

96/100

The Umami Blue is repeatedly praised as balanced, transparent and organic rather than overtly warm or analytical. Hi-fi+ calls it natural and neutral without veiling, while The Ear hears a finely judged blend of warmth and detail; several reviewers also highlight its powerful, well-controlled bass, smooth extended treble and outstanding dynamics.

Tracking Retrieval

96/100

Tracking reports are exceptionally strong: The Ear heard no strain, distortion or harshness from quiet passages through large-scale climaxes, and The Absolute Sound found it easy-going on dynamic, complex material. Positive Feedback calls its tracking ability "perfection," while multiple reviews praise deep retrieval, very quiet groove backgrounds and the Microline stylus's ability to uncover fine musical detail; Audiophilia notes that this resolution can also expose noise on poorly cleaned records.

Soundstage Imaging

96/100

The Blue earns repeated praise for a broad, deep and stable presentation with precise image placement. The Ear reports a wide, deep stage with convincing separation, while Tracking Angle and Positive Feedback describe three-dimensional voices, locked-in instrumental positions, abundant air and realistic image definition.

FEATURES USABILITY PERFORMANCE 86/100

Tonearm compatibility / system fit.

Tonearm Compatibility

86/100

At roughly 10g with a 0.4mV output, the Blue is practical for many suitable moving-coil arms and phono stages, and StereoNET found the threaded body and supplied screw lengths make mounting straightforward. It remains a low-output MC that benefits from thoughtful loading, VTA/SRA adjustment and phono-stage matching; Positive Feedback also notes that its relatively short body may require arm-height adjustment or headshell spacers.

Assessments of Build Quality, Usability, and Overall Propositions.

Build Quality

94/100

The handmade moving-coil construction uses a machined A7075 Duralumin body, solid boron cantilever and nude Microline diamond stylus, with carefully finished terminals and damping-oriented body treatment. Reviewers also note the protective stylus guard, threaded mounting holes and handsome wood presentation box; Positive Feedback specifically commends the construction and attention to detail.

Value for Money

96/100

At approximately $2,500, reviewers repeatedly find the Umami Blue unusually competitive against substantially dearer moving-coil designs. The Absolute Sound calls it a performance-for-cost benchmark, Tracking Angle regards it as a product to beat near its price, and several reviewers say it delivers much of the high-end Umami Red experience for appreciably less.