Ortofon
The oldest brand we stock and the name most vinyl listeners already trust. Cartridges spanning a first serious upgrade through to genuine high end, still made in Denmark.
About Ortofon
Quick Access
A century of Ortofon, from film sound to cartridges
Ortofon started in 1918 as Fonofilm Industri, working on sound for cinema. The move into record playback came later, and in 1948 the company produced the first commercially available moving coil cartridge. The MC principle is now used by most high-end cartridge makers, and it originated here.
That continuity is the point. Very few audio companies have been making the same category of product, in the same country, for more than a hundred years. It shows in how the range is laid out: methodically, with each step doing one identifiable thing, and with replacement styli and parts supported far longer than the industry norm.
Manufacturing is still in Nakskov. Cartridge assembly is close work, done by hand under magnification, and Ortofon train their own assemblers rather than buying finished generators in. Alongside that hand work sits Selective Laser Melting, a process Ortofon pioneered for cartridge bodies, welding fine particles of titanium or steel layer by layer into a single piece with no joints and precisely controlled density. The stylus profiles are their own too, including the Replicant 100, a line contact diamond cut to approximate the shape of the lathe stylus that cut the record in the first place.
Ortofon also make headshells, headshell leads, step-up transformers, alignment tools and cleaning products, which between them cover most of what sits around a cartridge.
Shop by Range
Ortofon split into moving magnet and moving coil before anything else, and that decision comes before any question of level. 2M is the moving magnet range, works with any phono stage, and the stylus can be changed by the owner. Quintet, Cadenza, MC and SPU are moving coil, need a phono stage that supports them, and are retipped by Ortofon.
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£112.50Ex. VATDS-3 is a new lightweight compact digital stylus pressure gauge model. The DS-3 is a miniature ultra precision non-magnetic instrument that tunes your tonearm to the highest possible degree.
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£140.83Ex. VAT
Ortofon's 2M Blue is a step-up from the 2M Red, featuring a nude elliptical diamond which retains a close resemblance to the original cutting stylus used to create master records. Ortofon chooses to use a nude diamond starting form the Blue range as this offers greater transient reproduction and reduced mass in the tip of the stylus. These minor changes improve the resolution of the audio reproduction with greater dynamics and a more open soundstage.
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£140.83Ex. VAT
The new 2MR range of cartridges boasts all the features of the standard 2M range, but with a reduced ride height, making it compatible with popular tonearms and turntables that require a lower-profile cartridge.
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£145.83Ex. VATThe LH-9000 Carbon Fiber Headshell delivers superior resonance control for precise, detailed vinyl playback. Made from high-grade carbon fiber resin, it pairs perfectly with top-tier cartridges like the Cadenza Series, MC A95, MC Diamond, and MC Windfeld Ti. Lightweight, rigid, and easy to align, it ensures optimal sound quality. -
£204.17Ex. VATThe SB-2 precision tool kit is a must-have for any turntable enthusiast, allowing for precise fine-tuning of rotational turntable speed.
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£208.33Ex. VATThe Ortofon 6NX-TSW 1010 5 Pin 1.2m Straight SME RCA External Tonearm Cable from Ortofon is a perfect replacement for your Straight SME RCA External Tonearm Cable.
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£224.17Ex. VATThe Ortofon MC X10 is a moving coil cartridge featuring high-purity silver coils, a tipped elliptical diamond stylus, a MIM-moulded honeycomb stainless-steel body, and a newly developed optimised magnet system, offering an accessible entry into moving coil performance. -
£265.83Ex. VATOrtofon's MC Quintet Red is a perfect introduction to the world of Ortofon moving coils. It features an Elliptical diamond which is cut and polished to Ortofon’s standards. This entry-level MC cartridge has very high price-to-performance ratio and is a perfect all-rounder for the newcomers to the world of Moving Coil cartridges.
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£274.17Ex. VATOrtofon's 2M Mono uses a nude spherical diamond as an optimal solution to playback mono microgroove LP vinyl records. By utilising Ortofon's strapped output, both pole pins within the cartridge deliver the same output signal, resulting in a truly mono reproduction possible through any stereo playback system.
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£282.50Ex. VATOrtofon's 2M Bronze improves further on the 2M Blue by using a nude fine line diamond stylus. This stylus utilises a slimmer profile to track the higher frequency information more accurately. On top of this, the 2M Bronze has a specially upgraded engine with silver-plated copper wire to read and preserve as much frequency information as possible. Overall, the performance of your system with a 2M Bronze can improve with greater detail and resolution, preserving more of the original audio signal and ultimately improving your listening experience.
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£282.50Ex. VATThe new 2MR range of cartridges boasts all the features of the standard 2M range, but with a reduced ride height, making it compatible with popular tonearms and turntables that require a lower-profile cartridge.
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£324.17Ex. VATOrtofon's MC Quintet Mono is a new true Mono from Ortofon. It features Nude Elliptical r/R 8/18μm stylus that is a good solution for playing mono microgroove vinyl records. The Quintet Mono will track perfectly through even worn and damaged records and ensure the surface noise control. Quintet Mono uses a strapped output to deliver the same output signal from both sets of pole pins. This effectively eliminates the need for mono-specific equipment, making it possible to enjoy true mono reproduction on any stereo playback system. Quintet Mono is the best cartridge in the Quintet series to play monophonic records.
