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SoundSmith Carmen mk II
Welcome to the next level
At this point, I've played hundreds of records with this ebony-bodied wonder, and I think I'm finally starting to grasp some of the inner beauty of Peter Ledermann's inventions.
Just wanted to let you know how much I LOVE the SoundSmith Carmen Mk II phono cartridge.
Created out of the desire to make a very high performance design at an affordable price, the Carmen mk II was crafted to have unparalleled purity of tone and ultra-smooth presentation. Just slightly lush with a well-developed midrange, the Carmen is surprisingly pleasing and will seduce you into long, late listening sessions.
The stylus used is a large part of what makes it special; an ultra-low mass occlusion free nude diamond cut and polished into a true hyper-elliptical shape. The combination of low tip mass and the Fixed Coil design gives the Carmen a tremendous resolution advantage over MC designs selling for more than twice the price. Housed in a handmade solid Ebony case, the Carmen delivers.
Also available in dual-coil mono ($300 additional).
Why Fixed Coil Kicks Ass
Lasts A Lifetime
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Professional Reviews 90/100
Nicely Roasted
Sound Quality
90/100
Build Quality
91/100
Features Usability
88/100
Value for Money
89/100
The Carmen mk II brings vinyl to life with lush dimensionality, ultra-smooth tone and a richly developed midrange. Jeff Day highlights its musical, pure presentation, while the 2.12mV fixed-coil output sidesteps step-up-transformer fuss. A handmade ebony body, fine contact-line stylus and rebuildable design make this an especially compelling high-performance cartridge.
What Reviewers Are Saying
Pros
Lush, dimensional and ultra-smooth presentation with a particularly well-developed midrange.
Healthy 2.12mV output can be used without an expensive step-up transformer.
Handmade ebony-bodied construction and multiple rebuild options support long-term ownership value.
SOUND QUALITY PERFORMANCE 90/100
The Carmen mk II is presented as a musical, tonally pure cartridge with a gently lush, exceptionally smooth balance and particular attention to midrange richness. The review also describes a dimensional presentation, while the fixed-coil generator and fine stylus profile are intended to recover groove information accurately.
Overall Sound
91/100
Jeff Day describes purity of tone, a slightly lush and ultra-smooth presentation, and a well-developed midrange as central to the Carmen mk II's voicing. He also finds it closely matches his preference for a lush, dimensional, musical sound rather than a starkly analytical one.
Tracking Retrieval
89/100
The review explains that the fixed-coil generator's very low moving mass is designed to follow the groove more accurately, and the cartridge uses a nude contact-line/hyper-elliptical stylus. Direct listening comments on difficult inner grooves, sibilance, and heavily modulated passages are limited.
Soundstage Imaging
88/100
Day characterizes the Carmen mk II as dimensional, supporting an engaging sense of space rather than a flat presentation. The review does not provide detailed observations about image specificity, stage width, or depth layering.
FEATURES USABILITY PERFORMANCE 88/100
Tonearm compatibility / system fit.
Tonearm Compatibility
88/100
Its standard half-inch mount, medium-compliance configuration, 1.3-1.6g tracking range, and 2.12mV output make the Carmen mk II relatively practical for many conventional tonearm and phono-stage combinations. Day specifically sought a match for 12-inch Schick and Riggle arms, while the healthy output avoids the need for a step-up transformer; careful arm matching remains sensible with any cartridge of this compliance.
Assessments of Build Quality, Usability, and Overall Propositions.
Build Quality
91/100
The Carmen mk II combines a handmade ebony body, aluminum-alloy cantilever, nude fine-profile stylus, and fixed-coil generator architecture. SoundSmith builds the cartridge by hand in the USA and offers multiple rebuilds at a fraction of the original purchase price, adding meaningful long-term ownership appeal.
Value for Money
89/100
At roughly $1,000, the Carmen mk II is described as an affordable high-performance design. Its hand-built US construction, high output, and rebuildability strengthen its appeal against similarly priced specialist cartridges, although the review does not directly compare it with named rivals.
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Authorized dealers for SoundSmith Carmen mk II
- Absoulute Audio plus Video — in-store — Aiken, South Carolina, United States (website)
- Acoustic Sounds — online and in-store — Salina, Kansas, United States (website)
- Alternative Audio — in-store — Taunton, England, United Kingdom (website)
- Ana Mighty Sound — online and in-store — Paris, Île-de-France, France (website)
- Analogue Seduction — online and in-store — Whittlesey, England, United Kingdom (website)
- Audio & Video Expressions — in-store — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States (website)
- Audio Advice — online and in-store — Raleigh, North Carolina, United States (website)
- Audio Advisors — in-store — West Palm Beach, Florida, United States (website)
- Audio Element — in-store — Pasadena, California, United States (website)
- Audio Influence — online and in-store — Fitzroy North, Victoria, Australia (website)
and 55 more verified dealers