3.
SWITCH-SELECTABLE CARTRIDGE LOAD IMPEDANCE
An effective means of varying the load seen by the MC cartridge has been included in the form of
a 5-position rotary switch. This switch selects various taps on a specially manufactured dual-primary bi-
fi
lar wound, high-bandwidth low-resistance and multiple-shielded nickel-core step-up autoformer. A drama
to make, the autoformer permits the minute MC cartridge signal power to be ef
fi
ciently and transparently
transformed from low-volts/high-current to high-volts/ low-current. By avoiding conventional parasitic
cartridge termination resistors, none of the MC cartridge’s tiny signal power is thrown away before am-
pli
fi
cation. This results in improved system signal-to-noise ratio. Quite worthwhile provided, as in the
STEELHEAD, the autoformer has the necessary performance for the job. This pivotal component has had
engineering attention lavished upon it in the only way possible or practical: The Manley Labs magnetics
department. In-house transformer prototyping and manufacturing capabilities permit realization of extraor-
dinary transformer designs.
You may now audition your MC cartridge at or near the manufacturer’s speci
fi
ed loading resist-
ance without sacri
fi
cing any signal power through a parasitic load resistor. And explore the interesting
tonal shifts caused by intentional mild or severe mis-termination of the cartridge. The “right” setting will
ultimately depend on the cartridge in use, type of music being heard, other downstream equipment and,
most importantly, your personal preference. There will no doubt be moments when a technically “wrong”
setting will be musically “right” for a given situation. Do rest assured that, in this instance, a technically
wrong setting is completely harmless for all equipment involved.
In the case of the MM input, the typically higher cartridge output levels allow
fi
xed resistor termina-
tion, with clockwise-most switch setting being the standard 47k Ohm load resistance. Those MM cartridges
capable of properly driving low impedance loads between 25 and 400 ohms should be auditioned through
both the MM and MC inputs. By doing so you may
fi
nd the most appropriate sonic character through the
use of unconventional input arrangements. In short, experiment; don’t let the control labelling stop you. On
the contrary, we invite you to tweak away!
4.
SWITCH-SELECTABLE CARTRIDGE TERMINATION CAPACITANCE on the front
panel yet!
Termination capacitance may be applied to each channel independently in 10 pF steps, up to 1100
p
ico-
F
arads. The termination capacitance is present at the gain-stage inputs, and is not affected by input selector
or gain switch changes. For best accuracy consult your phono interconnect cable literature or manufacturer to
determine how much of the termination capacitance may be attributed to the cable. Then subtract at least that
amount from the target capacitive termination value.
If the interconnect manufacturer does not know the amount of capacitance per unit length that their wire
presents (!), then refer to the following example for a starting point: Typical phono interconnect cables will
exhibit self-capacitance on the order of about 30 pF per foot. If the interconnect cable is 3 feet (~ 1 meter) in
length, you may expect about 90-100 pF of input capacitance to be present due to the interconnect cable alone.
If the cartridge manufacturer speci
fi
es a load capacitance of 150 pF then it is best to subtract the cable’s por-
tion, i.e., 90 pF. This yields a balance of 60 pF. Thus, the audition should start with the termination capacitance
switches set to 60 pF.
6
