Who it comes up against
38 lost · Anchored, Artisan, BBC Sound, Cavity-Native, Characterful, Intimate, PRaT, Reference, Romantic, Twin Arms
Against the Anchored brief, the van den Hul The Frog keeps the slot decisively.
With the Vertere Groove Runner X, the pairing gives up most on bass control.
With the Musical Fidelity M8x Vinyl, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Vertere Groove Runner X gives up bass control under the Anchored weighting.
possibly the quietest cartridge I have ever usedStereophile (Reichert) 2026
ebb and flow of dynamic shading easily discernibleEnjoy the Music (Rochlin) 2007
29 lost · Anchored, BBC Sound, Cavity-Native, Characterful, Intimate, PRaT, Reference, Romantic, Twin Arms
Against the Characterful brief, the van den Hul The Crimson keeps the slot decisively.
With the Vertere Groove Runner X, the pairing gives up most on bass control.
With the Musical Fidelity M8x Vinyl, the pairing gives up most on low-level clarity.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Vertere Groove Runner X gives up bass control under the Characterful weighting.
quite forceful on transientsTAS — Crimson XGW Stradivarius
8 lost · Silent Path
Against the Silent Path brief, the Goldring Eroica HX MC keeps the slot decisively.
With the Whest Audio 60Se Pro, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Whest Audio 60Se Pro gives up quietness at rest under the Silent Path weighting.
It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the cartridge position.
possibly the quietest cartridge I have ever usedStereophile (Reichert) 2026
8 lost · Anchored, Characterful, Intimate, Romantic
Against the Anchored brief, the Hana EL MC keeps the slot decisively.
With the ProJect Tonearm 8.6 Carbon (Debut PRO), the pairing gives up most on bass control.
With the Rega Aria Mk3 MM/MC, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the ProJect Tonearm 8.6 Carbon (Debut PRO) gives up bass control under the Anchored weighting.
possibly the quietest cartridge I have ever usedStereophile (Reichert) 2026
8 lost · Artisan, Cavity-Native, PRaT, Reference
Against the Artisan brief, the Sumiko Blue Point No.3 Low MC keeps the slot decisively.
With the Rega Aria Mk3 MM/MC, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
With the ProJect Tonearm 8.6 Carbon (Debut PRO), the pairing gives up most on bass control.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Rega Aria Mk3 MM/MC gives up quietness at rest under the Artisan weighting.
possibly the quietest cartridge I have ever usedStereophile (Reichert) 2026
dynamicSumiko Blue Point No.3 / Amethyst owner+press consensus
6 lost · Artisan, Reference
Against the Artisan brief, the van den Hul The Colibri keeps the slot decisively.
With the Vertere Groove Runner X, the pairing gives up most on bass control.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Vertere Groove Runner X gives up bass control under the Artisan weighting.
all about speedAudiophilia / vdH range reviews
4 lost · Vocals-First
Against the Vocals-First brief, the Etsuro Urushi Gold MC keeps the slot by a whisker.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the weaker cartridge for that brief.
3 lost · Romantic, Twin Arms
Against the Romantic brief, the van den Hul MC One Special keeps the slot decisively.
With the Technics S-shape magnesium tonearm (SL-1200G), the pairing gives up most on bass control.
With the Rega Aria Mk3 MM/MC, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Technics S-shape magnesium tonearm (SL-1200G) gives up bass control under the Romantic weighting.
possibly the quietest cartridge I have ever usedStereophile (Reichert) 2026
2 lost · Twin Arms
Against the Twin Arms brief, the Linn Kendo MC keeps the slot decisively.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge — but it loses here on fit: the way it sits with the rest of this system under the Twin Arms weighting.
2 lost · Silent Path
Against the Silent Path brief, the Rega Nd3 MM keeps the slot decisively.
With the Rega Aria Mk3 MM/MC, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Rega Aria Mk3 MM/MC gives up quietness at rest under the Silent Path weighting.
It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the cartridge position.
possibly the quietest cartridge I have ever usedStereophile (Reichert) 2026
2 lost · BBC Sound
Against the BBC Sound brief, the Linn Koil MC keeps the slot decisively.
With the Rega Aria Mk3 MM/MC, the pairing gives up most on low-level clarity.
With the ProJect Tonearm 8.6 Carbon (Debut PRO), the pairing gives up most on bass control.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Rega Aria Mk3 MM/MC gives up low-level clarity under the BBC Sound weighting.
rounded bassPROXY: AT-OC9 platform
rounded bassPROXY: AT-OC9 platform
1 lost· 1 won · Vocals-First
Against the Vocals-First brief, the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC takes the slot by a whisker.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge for that brief.
It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the cartridge position.
1 lost · Twin Arms
Against the Twin Arms brief, the Koetsu Azule Platinum MC keeps the slot decisively.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge — but it loses here on fit: the way it sits with the rest of this system under the Twin Arms weighting.
1 lost · Twin Arms
Against the Twin Arms brief, the Koetsu Onyx Platinum MC keeps the slot decisively.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge — but it loses here on fit: the way it sits with the rest of this system under the Twin Arms weighting.
1 lost · Twin Arms
Against the Twin Arms brief, the Goldring Eroica LX MC keeps the slot decisively.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge — but it loses here on fit: the way it sits with the rest of this system under the Twin Arms weighting.
It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the cartridge position.
1 lost · Twin Arms
Against the Twin Arms brief, the Goldring 1042 MM keeps the slot decisively.
On its own merits the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC is the stronger cartridge — but it loses here on fit: the way it sits with the rest of this system under the Twin Arms weighting.
It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the cartridge position.