Analog Relax EX700 MC Phono Cartridge

Description

The body is made with hand-selected tone wood maple, a wood used specifically for violins

The Analog Relax EX700 is a handcrafted moving-coil phono cartridge created for listeners seeking natural resonance, musical texture and exceptional detail from vinyl playback.

A solid boron cantilever, special line-contact solid diamond stylus and high-purity copper coils complete a design focused on precise tracking and organic, expressive reproduction.

Inspired by the flagship EX2000, the EX700 features a body crafted from carefully selected South Tyrolean spruce, traditionally prized as tonewood for fine violins. The body is finished with an exceptionally thin application of traditional-style violin oil varnish, developed specifically to preserve the extremely delicate vibrations handled by a phono cartridge.

Highlights

• Moving-coil stereo phono cartridge
• Finest South Tyrolean spruce body
• Traditional-style violin varnish finish
• Solid boron cantilever
• Special line-contact solid diamond stylus
• High-purity copper coil
• Handcrafted by artisans in Japan
• Recommended tracking force: 2.2 g
• Output voltage: 0.45 mV

South Tyrolean Spruce Tonewood

The EX700 uses premium spruce harvested in the South Tyrol region of Northern Italy, an area renowned for producing exceptional tonewood for string instruments.

The selected spruce is cultivated and managed under strict conditions and carefully controlled throughout the drying process. After being cut for use in instruments such as violins and cellos, the wood is typically aged for approximately 20 years before use.

The same type of carefully selected spruce is also used in Analog Relax’s flagship EX2000 cartridge.

Spruce has long been valued for the soundboards of violins, guitars and pianos because of its excellent resonance characteristics. In the EX700, these qualities contribute to a presentation designed to sound natural, open and musically engaging.

Violin Varnish Finish

Analog Relax wanted the EX700’s spruce body to be treated in the spirit of a traditional violin.

Developing the finish required extensive experimentation. Conventional violin construction can involve more than ten layers of varnish, but this approach proved unsuitable for a phono cartridge. While a violin body experiences strong mechanical vibration, the vibrations transmitted through a cartridge are extremely small.

A coating that was too thick absorbed part of this delicate energy and negatively affected the sound.

After approximately three years of development and repeated listening tests, Analog Relax established a method of applying the oil varnish in extremely thin layers, allowing the spruce body to retain its natural resonant characteristics.

Solid Boron Cantilever

The EX700 is the first Analog Relax cartridge to use a solid boron cantilever.

Boron combines very high rigidity with low mass, making it particularly well suited to accurately transmitting the minute movements traced by the stylus.

Because boron is extremely difficult to machine, mounting a stylus securely can be challenging. Analog Relax addresses this with an ultra-small, ultra-thin metal Stylus Hold Plate positioned at the tip of the cantilever. The plate includes a precisely formed opening that helps reinforce and secure the stylus assembly.

Organic, Musical Vinyl Playback

The EX700 has been developed to reproduce records with a natural sense of resonance and musical flow.

Its combination of spruce tonewood, carefully controlled varnish, boron cantilever and line-contact diamond stylus is intended to preserve fine musical information while presenting instruments and voices with convincing texture and character.

Although the spruce construction naturally complements acoustic and string instruments, the EX700 has been designed for enjoyable playback across all musical genres.

Handcrafted in Japan

Every Analog Relax EX700 cartridge is made by artisans in Japan.

Because the cartridge body is manufactured from natural solid wood, variations in grain, color and weight are normal and make every cartridge unique. The appearance and color of the wood may also develop naturally over time.

Warranty Information

For warranty service and technical support, customers should contact their authorized local Analog Relax distributor.

Analog Relax warranty coverage is limited to the country in which the product was originally purchased by the first owner.

Products purchased through unauthorized online sellers, the grey market, or across borders into territories where Analog Relax has an official distributor may not be eligible for warranty or after-sales support.

Each Analog Relax phono cartridge carries an individual serial number printed on the cartridge body. Products with a removed, altered or intentionally obscured serial number are not eligible for warranty coverage or after-sales service.