← The components

Lyra Kleos MC

Cartridge

Relative price

above typical

Among the 89 cartridges in the catalogue, this one is above typical.

A band places a component against its peers and carries no price. It is deliberately the only price indicator on this page: a second one, measured against a different set, would narrow the two together far enough to give the figure away.

What it is

Builds on Delos New Angle with stronger 7075 chassis, narrowed mounting area, pre-stressed construction.

Platinum-plated output pins.

Hi-Fi News: "Kleos SL gave fine results with budget phono stages at maximum gain settings."

Competition record

Assessed against 17 rivals across the sixty systems: 2 head-to-heads won, 63 lost.

Where it gives ground

The dimension the engine names as the weakest link, counted across every head-to-head it lost.

  • bass control ×40
  • quietness at rest ×19
  • low-level clarity ×7
  • rhythmic grip ×5

Who it comes up against

van den Hul The Frog

20 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 Lyra Kleos 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.

shimmering HF transients without edgeAnalog Planet (Fremer) 2014

van den Hul The Crimson

15 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 Lyra Kleos 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.

shimmering HF transients without edgeAnalog Planet (Fremer) 2014

Goldring Eroica HX MC

4 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 Lyra Kleos 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.

Hana EL MC

4 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.

On its own merits the Lyra Kleos 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.

It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the cartridge position.

Sumiko Blue Point No.3 Low MC

4 lost · Artisan, Cavity-Native, PRaT, Reference

Against the Artisan brief, the Sumiko Blue Point No.3 Low MC keeps the slot clearly.

With the ProJect Tonearm 8.6 Carbon (Debut PRO), the pairing gives up most on bass control.

On its own merits the Lyra Kleos 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 Artisan weighting.

It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the cartridge position.

shimmering HF transients without edgeAnalog Planet (Fremer) 2014

van den Hul The Colibri

3 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 Lyra Kleos MC is the weaker cartridge for that brief.

Linn Kendo MC

2 lost · Twin Arms

Against the Twin Arms brief, the Linn Kendo MC keeps the slot decisively.

On its own merits the Lyra Kleos 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.

Etsuro Urushi Gold MC

2 lost · Vocals-First

Against the Vocals-First brief, the Etsuro Urushi Gold MC keeps the slot by a whisker.

On its own merits the Lyra Kleos MC is the weaker cartridge for that brief.

It sits well below the share of the budget this brief aims at the cartridge position.

Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC

2 lost · Vocals-First

Against the Vocals-First brief, the Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue MC keeps the slot by a whisker.

On its own merits the Lyra Kleos MC is the weaker cartridge for that brief.

van den Hul MC One Special

2 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.

On its own merits the Lyra Kleos 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.

Koetsu Azule Platinum MC

1 lost · Twin Arms

Against the Twin Arms brief, the Koetsu Azule Platinum MC keeps the slot decisively.

On its own merits the Lyra Kleos MC is the weaker cartridge for that brief.

It sits well below the share of the budget this brief aims at the cartridge position.

Koetsu Onyx Platinum MC

1 lost · Twin Arms

Against the Twin Arms brief, the Koetsu Onyx Platinum MC keeps the slot decisively.

On its own merits the Lyra Kleos 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 below the share of the budget this brief aims at the cartridge position.

Goldring 1042 MM

1 lost · Twin Arms

Against the Twin Arms brief, the Goldring 1042 MM keeps the slot by a whisker.

On its own merits the Lyra Kleos 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.

Rega Nd3 MM

1 lost · Silent Path

Against the Silent Path brief, the Rega Nd3 MM keeps the slot by a whisker.

On its own merits the Lyra Kleos MC is the weaker cartridge for that brief.

It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the cartridge position.

Linn Koil MC

1 lost · BBC Sound

Against the BBC Sound brief, the Linn Koil MC keeps the slot clearly.

With the ProJect Tonearm 8.6 Carbon (Debut PRO), the pairing gives up most on bass control.

On its own merits the Lyra Kleos 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 BBC Sound weighting.

It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the cartridge position.

rounded bassPROXY: AT-OC9 platform

Goldring Eroica LX MC

0 lost· 1 won · Twin Arms

Against the Twin Arms brief, the Lyra Kleos MC takes the slot decisively.

On its own merits the Lyra Kleos MC is the stronger cartridge for that brief.

It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the cartridge position.

Ortofon MC Quintet Black S

0 lost· 1 won · Vocals-First

Against the Vocals-First brief, the Lyra Kleos MC takes the slot by a whisker.

On its own merits the Lyra Kleos MC is the stronger cartridge for that brief.

It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the cartridge position.

What the reviewers said

Skala-derived family within Lyra MC range Lyra positioning + Stereophile coverage (vs Skala/Helikon)· Spatial resolution
fine, low level detail above... dark noise floor Analog Planet (Fremer) 2014· Micro-dynamic resolution
rich, generous but not cloying midrange Analog Planet (Fremer) 2014· Harmonic texture
shimmering HF transients without edge Analog Planet (Fremer) 2014· Transient attack
wide and deep stage... 3D images Analog Planet (Fremer) 2014· Spatial resolution
35dB channel separation at 1kHz SPEC: channel separation 35dB @1kHz (manufacturer)· Spatial naturalness

How it scores

Clarity

  • Spatial resolution 77 from listening evidence

Voice

  • Harmonic texture 76 from listening evidence
  • Spatial naturalness 74 from listening evidence

Rhythm

  • Transient attack 76 from listening evidence

LowerVolume

  • Micro-dynamic resolution 82 from listening evidence

Specifications

cartridge typeMC
output mv0.5
internal impedance ohm5.4
recommended load ohm91
tracking force g1.7/1.8
compliance dynamic um per mn20
weight g8.8
stylus profileLyra-designed line-contact
cantilever materialOgura solid boron
body materialaluminium 7075
frequency response hz10/50000
channel separation db35.0
notes