As of Jan. 29, 2010 SORAsound does not recommend ZYX Omega. Audiophiles I absolutely trust have listened to ZYX Omega and provided feedback for SORAsound. Instead, I recommend you consider ZYX Airy 3, or ZYX 4D (if it is same or similar to ATMOS which I tend to believe is).

Note: As of Feb. 7, 2010. Table below shows retail (un-discounted) prices in North America, Japan, and three European Countries.

[note. March 1, 2010. As of this date, or about this date, I have noted that ZYX North American retail prices are the same regardless of coil. It would be interesting for someone to explain why they had such absurd premiums for silver and gold coils for the last 10 or 11 months. ZYX Omega now retails $6,500 based on a few websites I have seen. Based on the feedback I have received regarding ZYX Omega, this cartridge still appears to be over-priced.]

ZYX omega is the ZYX with one ball, lovingly referred to as a boil (see below). The ball supposedly serves some purpose. Although some think extraneous stuff on the cartridge body could only cause anguish, it demonstrates Hisayoshi Nakatsuka san’s courage to experiment with new ideas and unchartered waters. We respect  Nakatsuka san’s enthusiasm. We will be providing more information for you here soon.

In year 2009, the north american retail price for this cartridge is $7,500 for the ZYX omega X (copper), $7,850 for ZYX omega S (silver), and $8,300 for ZYX omega G (gold) although distributor costs for each unit is the same regardless of the coil. Judging by my knowledge of other ZYX products, the gold version is possibly the mushiest of all.

ZYX omega 2009 retail price in japan is 399,000 yen ($4,500 given the weak dollar).

comparing 2009 japan retail prices with 2009 retail prices in north america and a few other countries, one can easily deduce that ZYX omega gold in north america costs about $4,450 over ZYX 4D copper in japan ($8,300 for ZYX Omega gold – $3,850 for ZYX 4D copper as shown in the ZYX 4D section  = $4,450).

Another way of looking at it is that ZYX omega in japan retails about $650 over ZYX 4D in japan regardless of coil (please allow for some variance in calculation due to daily exchange rate fluctuations). It appears this gives Japanese audiophiles a good choice between ZYX 4D and ZYX omega at a seemingly “reasonable” price difference.

[Feb. 11, 2010 update. The pricing comparison above now seems like a moot point now when you compare ZYX Omega and ZYX 4D prices in a country in the European Union and you see ZYX OMEGA GOLD IS ONLY $350 MORE EXPENSIVE THAN ZYX 4D COPPER. How can one explain a differential of $350 in a European country, $650 in Japan and $4,450 in North America? Even if the cartridge sounds great, this differential is possibly indicative of other issues.]

Disclaimer: It is important to know that SORAsound is not a ZYX distributor now. I believe however that SORAsound remains your best source for ZYX cartridges. We are qualified to give you our opinions, so you can make informed decisions regarding purchase of a ZYX and possibly comparing it with other options you are considering. You can read a bit more about ZYX omega and ZYX 4D here. also, for further info on ZYX, always check ZYX CHATS, and call us please. we also have a posting specifically devoted to ZYX Omega pricing and its potential value to audiophiles.

[Additional Notes: Jan. 29, 2010. SORAsound does not recommend ZYX Omega now. People we respect very much have listened to ZYX Omega now.]

For further reading, click on ZYX Omega postings.

Note (Feb. 9, 2010): As of this date, ZYX 4D Gold retails $5,100 in North America, in Japan $3,850, in 3 European countries $4,470, $2,345, and $1,990 excluding taxes and VAT.

[note. March 1, 2010. As of this date, or about this date, I have noted that ZYX North American retail prices are the same regardless of coil. It would be interesting for someone to explain why they had such absurd premiums for silver and gold coils for the last 10 or 11 months. ZYX 4D now retails $4,580 based on a few websites I have seen.]

ZYX 4D is a cartridge that was originally labeled as ZYX ATMOS in the north american market. For a long time we thought ZYX 4D and ZYX ATMOS are the same. Now we do not know the truth. We have encouraged ZYX CO and its global agent, Sibatech to come forward and make some clarifications posted in ZYX Atmos and ZYX 4d….Never Ending Saga. This is the least they can do for their customers but we have not heard back from them.

ZYX ATMOS does not really exist aside from the remaining SORAsound inventory. For further info on ZYX 4D, ZYX atmos, any possible differences, please check out ZYX 4D postings.

As of 2009, ZYX 4D X (copper) retails $4,580, 4D S (silver) $4,850, and 4D G (gold) $5,100 in north america. Retail prices in japan are 346,500 yen (about $3,850).  SORAsound offer for ZYX ATMOS is $2,495.00.

Also based on 2009 ZYX retail prices, it is important to note that ZYX 4D copper in japan is about $650 lower than ZYX omega copper, silver, or gold in japan. This difference in north america and a few other countries is about $4,450 as calculated in the ZYX omega section of this product list.

You can read a bit more about ZYX omega and ZYX 4D here. Finally, As our postings indicate there have been claims that ZYX 4D cartridges produced after our last purchase order have been “improved.” Given our experience with the product line and involved companies these  so-called “improvement” may have helped or hindered the sound. I do not know because as of this posting I have not listened to a cartridge labeled 4D. A ZYX distributor I respect has listened to multiple ZYX 4D cartridges after installing for customers (not in his own system). He told me he has not heard a difference. My only suggestion is please read the material on this website well, call for questions, and please make your decision to purchase ZYX ATMOS independent of ZYX 4D. Fair?

Click on ZYX 4D postings for all related information.

ZYX diamond appears to be zyx’s top model cartridge in 2009. i have no idea how it sounds. 2009 north american retail prices for ZYX diamond are:

• ZYX diamond gold $16,000 ( Until end of Feb. 2010. Please see March 1, 2010 note below)
• ZYX diamond silver $15,500 (Until end of Feb. 2010, Please see March 1, 2010 note below)
• ZYX diamond copper $14,900

japan 2009 retail price for ZYX diamond regardless of coil is 787,500 yen ($8,750 given the weak dollar) regardless of the coil. SORAsound can offer you many good cartridges and whole systems for the north american retail price of any of these cartridges. better yet, for the north american retail price of ZYX diamond, i go to tokyo with you, show you the city for a few days, buy you the cartridge, and kiss you goodbye.

[note. March 1, 2010. As of this date, or about this date, I have noted that ZYX North American retail prices are the same regardless of coil. It would be interesting for someone to explain why they had such absurd premiums for silver and gold coils for the last 10 or 11 months. Why was Diamond Gold $1,100 higher than Diamond Copper? ZYX Diamond now retails $14,900 based on a few websites I have seen.]

for further info on ZYX diamond, please take see here or ZYX CHATS.

ZYX sigma has the diamond cantilever. when i first met nakatsuka san and bought two cartridges from him, i considered buying a ZYX sigma from him. at the time he told me that ZYX airy (yes — airy. at the time there was no airy 2 or airy 3) sounded better than ZYX sigma. so i opted to buy a ZYX airy copper and one in vintage copper from him instead of ZYX sigma.

given the facts above, when i became the ZYX north american distributor, i never imported ZYX sigma. in fact i once wrote to arthur salvatore that since ZYX airy is better than sigma, we do not import ZYX sigma but of course can special order it. i even once had a customer who wanted a UNIverse in diamond cantilever. i essentially had to beg him to reconsider his idea.

now there is a ZYX airy 3 which is significantly better than ZYX airy. so i assume (i am not sure) that the new zyx sigma 2 is based on the zyx airy 3 only with the diamond cantilever. if this assumption is correct, then i venture to say that ZYX sigma now is better than ZYX sigma before but not as good as ZYX airy 3.

ZYX sigma 2009 north american retail price (until end of Feb. 2010) is

• ZYX sigma 2 copper: $14,000
• ZYX sigma 2 silver: $14,500
• ZYX sigma 2 gold: $14,900

[March 1, 2010. As of this date, I have seen on a couple of websites that ZYX Sigma appears to retail at $12,500 (i have seen multiple prices). If someone is willing to buy this cartridge and can afford, they might as well pay the retail price for it]

the above prices are pretty close to ZYX diamond prices. it is interesting to know why ZYX omega (which i assume ZYX diamond is based on it) is so much more expensive than ZYX 4D (up to $4,450 in north america, but about $650 in japan), it would be good to know the difference between ZYX sigma 2 and ZYX diamond. so my recommendation is that if you really want a ZYX sigma, ZYX diamond may be the better choice (again, i have not heard the cartridge. i am just going by the numbers and what i know of ZYX given my past experience as the north american distributor for ZYX cartridges).

for further info on ZYX sigma 2, please take see here or better yet, take a look at  ZYX CHATS where we have the most comprehensive archives of our postings related to ZYX cartridges.

we also have at your disposal ZYX 2009 retail prices in japan and in north america.

important: please bear in mind that SORAsound is no longer a ZYX distributor. also i have not heard any of the ZYX sigma or ZYX diamond cartridges. i am just expressing my opinion which is based on the above assumptions. if my assumptions are correct, then it makes sense for you to save your money and take your better half to a good trip, or find yourself a better half.

IMPORTANT: YOU REALLY NEED TO REVIEW ZYX CHATS. so click on ZYX CHATS!

ZYX UNIverse. this is ZYX CO’s best cartridge. ZYX UNIverse is nakatsuka hisayoshi san’s masterpiece. when he built it, he told me it was God’s will that i asked him to build the UNIverse. in 2009, SORAsound sold ZYX UNIverse for $3,995.00.

ZYX UNIverse is best for classical music and Jazz. how about rock? well, we enjoy rock music with it too, and we have plenty of rock from super tramp to nina hagen. in general, we recommended and sold ZYX UNIverse X-SB to our customers, although to people who prefered a warmer sound we suggested the silver version.

there are many reviews of (and comments about) ZYX UNIverse available on the web, most notably the reviews in 10audio.com and audiogon (doug deacon).

now, you really need to go over the ZYX CHATS. ZYX ATMOS phono cartridge is the younger brother of ZYX UNIverse. it is somewhat easier to install and manage on different systems. ZYX ATMOS body shape is different from other ZYX cartridges. this is the ZYX that rocks.

There are a few reviews of ZYX ATMOS, most notably one on audiogon by doug deacon, and another on soundstage. until recently (mid 2009), we used to say ZYX ATMOS and ZYX 4D were the same. then we heard some comments that said they are different. now, we are confused (read more if you enjoy soap operas). no idea what the difference is, when they started to become different, and whether one sounds better than the other. at the end of the day, we felt it is best to tell our customers to think of ZYX ATMOS and ZYX 4D as two different cartridges. anyways, our price is about half the north american retail price.  finally, it is to your advantage to read the ZYX CHATS section of this website well before making any decisions, including a purchase from us. SORAsound offers ZYX ATMOS at $2,495.00 which is about the 2009 north american retail price of ZYX R100 Fuji.

[Note. Feb. 9, 2010: As of this date, Table below shows ZYX Retail (un-discounted) prices in North America, Japan and three European countries.For further info, and possible purchase, please contact SORAsound.]

[Note (Feb. 20, 2010). I am told that ZYX Company and its global agent, Sibatech now give their North American distributor extra discounts to better compete with SORAsound. Furthermore, I am told ZYX North American dealers now get a 60% margin. If this is correct, table below shows their estimated costs.

Question marks indicate that I have no idea if the dealer costs are based on 60% off the North American retail for ZYX copper coil cartridges or silver and gold are priced based on their respective retail prices. At this point, SORAsound offers ZYX Airy 3-SB for $1,895. We may have to bring our prices lower in the future. Please make your decision to purchase from SORAsound keeping this in mind.]

First, for anything related to ZYX, you absolutely want to read the ZYX CHATS section of our website. ZYX Airy 3X and 3S (Copper and Silver coils) have been around for a while. these moving coil phono cartridges have brought pleasure to many of our customers. Each cartridge weights about 5 grams like all ZYX cartridges. To make ZYX Airy 3 more flexible and easier to use on a variable tone-arms, we provide the Silver Base (SB) option as a gift to our customers.

Sometime in 2006 I believe, based on a request from a customer of mine from Corpus Christi, Texas, I asked Hisayoshi Nakatsuka san to make the gold version of ZYX Airy 3.

ZYX Airy 3 is the older, more mature brother of Airy 2.

2009 North American retail prices for ZYX airy 3 cartridges are:

• airy 3x $3,450
• airy 3s $3,650
• airy 3g $3,950
• airy 3 mono $3,950

[March 1, 2010. ZYX North American retail prices for Airy 3 are now $3,450 regardless of the coil. Would be nice for someone to explain the reason for the change of heart. Also, do some of these people still claim Airy 3 Gold is better than Airy 3 Copper now that prices are the same?]

SORAsound is offering its inventory of ZYX Airy 3X-SB at $1,895.00. We still have certain allowances for further discounts, in particular in case of package purchases. We do not have any ZYX airy 3 mono in stock but at the time we stocked them, we used to sell them about $1,200.

please read ZYX CHATS first. ZYX Airy 2 phono cartridge comes as Airy 2X and Airy 2S (Copper and Silver coils). like all ZYX cartridges it is very neutral, so system matching is very important. zyx airy 2 has been discontinued and replaced by zyx airy 3.

ZYX R100 Fuji. made famous by arthur salvatore, long before my time and well in the time ZYX was relatively unknown (see ZYX CHATS). ZYX R100 fuji moving coil cartridge is a very good mid range cartridge. for a long time, this was arthur salvatore’s reference cartridge, demoted to class B after he listened to ZYX airy 3.

SORAsound retail price for R100 fuji was $2,000, our daily price around $1,300 to $1,400. our cost under $700 including shipping, and the Zn upgrade. our offer $1,195.00 with an extra $60 for the silver base. 2009 north american retail prices $2,500.

ZYX R100 yatra comes in low and high output like all ZYX cartridges. the specifications are similar to other ZYX R100 series. i really like ZYX yatra. it was originally made because of some european distributor’s request. my understanding is that it was seldom ordered in other countries. as for me, i ordered a good number of them. i did not order them in red because i thought the color differentiation was just a marketing gimmick and the clear version had the best sound. how about ZYX R100 MK II (north american 2009 retail price of $2,000)? i think you have many better option in the market for $2,000. we had imported a few yatra MK II versions but found the difference minimal to warrant any price differentiation. ZYX R100 yatra is a good cartridge but paying $2,000 for it is nuts. it is best to review ZYX CHATS before making a decision and contact SORAsound to discuss other options.

ZYX R100 phono cartridges, more commonly referred to as R100 H (with H designating High Output), is a very good entry level cartridge. Scot Markwel has written an informative review of ZYX R100. again, we recommend clicking on ZYX CHATS for more comprehensive information on ZYX.

ZYX R50 Bloom phono cartridge, more commonly known as ZYX Bloom is the replacement for ZYX R10, ZYX R20 and ZYX R30. this is a nice sounding entry level cartridge. while in general i prefer lower output cartridges, i think it may make sense to acquire ZYX entry level cartridges in high output. of course, as always these are all system dependent. in the first few years ZYX R50 Bloom was made by nakatsuka san himself. now, sometime in 2008 his nephew started making those. a very nice and talented individual. see ZYX CHATS.

our cost for Bloom H with Zn upgrade and shipping was under $300. SORAsound retail price for ZYX R50 bloom was $600, selling at $445.00 for the high (or low) output version with the Zn upgrade. 2009 north american retail prices are $1,000.

again, we encourage you to click on ZYX CHATS first. i really like ZYX ARTisan phono stage. it is simple, compact, and comes in simple wooden boxes. i personally prefer the red color but when i look at them long enough, i have hard time deciding if i should go with the red or the black one. well, maybe i still would go for the red one, as it is a very japanese color.

back to the sound, ZYX ARTisan phono stage is very neutral, and of course system dependent. it comes with inputs for both moving magnet and moving coil cartridges.

for those of you who want high quality phono stages, at about the price of ZYX ARTisan phono stage ($2,495.00 SORAsound pricing), i suggest you consider the following phono stages seriously:

• RCM Audio SONOR prelude IC phono stage ($2.950.00)
• tom evans phono stages
• 47 labs shigaraki and reference line of phono stages

ZYX CPP-1 is a pre-preamp. it is not a step up. nakatsuka san used to make some very popular and good step ups which had to be discontinued. ZYX pre-preamp is very good and needs to be mated with the right system to fully take advantage of it. statements below are from nakatsuka san:

The input resistor is a very important part of the pre-pre amplifier. It is the first load of the generated signal of MC cartridges. The minute signals should go into the resistor without any influences from resistor noise and inductance. So that we recommend the made of pure copper wire.

CPP-1 uses the world’s first cryogenically purified crystal copper wire which is the same one as the coil wire of our R1000 series X type cartridge. The resistor is made by winding the wire to a coil that has no inductance in special process. The our resistor can transfer the output signals with no noise and no inductance at all.

You can hear its impact in the pure sound of the CPP-1. do not forget to go over all the information in the ZYX CHATS carefully.

post note: SORAsound is finally sold out of its stock of ZYX CPP-1 pre-preamp. this is actually good news for you too as we have some great suggestions for you now. during 2009, we offered these units at $995 (SORAsound retail price for ZYX CPP-1 pre-preamp was $1,450). 2009 north american retail prices are $2,499.00.

ZYX LIVE Headshell is a beautiful headshell that comes in silver and black colors. nakatsuka san has told me a few times that he thinks the weak link in a tone-arm is its headshell. this is why he developed ZYX headshell. i prefer the silver color and this is what i normally stock. click on ZYX CHATS.

ZYX SB and ZYX GB. Silver Base (SB) adds about 4 grams to the cartridge and Gold Base (GB) adds about 6 grams weight to the cartridge.

the nature of the sound becomes somewhat different when you use ZYX SB or ZYX GB. overall, i think SB provides the better value and we provide it as a gift (i.e. product feature) to our customers with the purchase of a ZYX Airy 3 or above. we think all ZYX cartridges benefit from the added weight and that the added weight should be included as a feature, hence our offer of this option as a gift  (i.e. feature) for airy 3 and above, or at minimal price for ZYX R100 fuji and below to our customers.

important: please read ZYX CHATS.

SORAsound is committed to offer you the best prices. Below is our ZYX prices for 2009. Expect more discounts on ZYX products! Expect great package prices. Just call us. You will be happy.

[Addition. Feb. 20, 2010. To Compare ZYX Company products prices, check out ZYX 4D Retails from $1,990 to $5,100 and ZYX Omega G Retails from $2,650 to $8,300.

If you paid more than our advertised prices for the ZYX products you purchased from SORAsound, please read about SORAsound Purchase Credit and Trade-in Program.]

ZYX UNIverse made for SORAsound only!

Out of respect to these distributors, we do not sell ZYX Co. products in their assigned territories. We did our best to be their friends while SORAsound was a ZYX Co. distributor. We still want to maintain that good relationship.

The following is a list of non-North American ZYX distributors. This list is valid as of the end of 2009 (source Sibatech, ZYX Co’s global agent website). This list also does not include distributors/representatives in Japan, China, and Hong Kong. A simple google search (preferably google Japan, google China, etc) should provide pertinent information for you.

I understand two of these distributors had complained about SORAsound pricing and Audiogon presence. But I understand and respect their position. Since SORAsound was dropped, we have talked a lot, and they now say the situation with ZYX was much better at our time.

There were frankly a few of the distributors below who exported “gray market” so you may be able to get better prices from them. Given the existing situation, it behooves you to shop around if you really want a ZYX cartridge. Naturally, if you are in North America, SORAsound is still your best source for ZYX Co. products. We can give you our full support with ZYX and many other moving coil phono cartridges.

Korea: Baik Woon Electronic Corp. (Solomon Marketing Corp.) Room 1212, Samku Bldg. Hankangro 3Ga 16-49 Yongsanku, Seoul Korea Woon hong baik solomonz@naver.com

Philippines: Acoustic Dimension R-307 The Power Plant Mall
Rockwell Center, Makati City
Philippines Eric Lopez Lim tel: 63-2-8954719 fax: 63-2-7561579 eric lim@globelines.com.ph

Malaysia: V&V Audio T102, T103, 3rd Fl., City Square Centre, 182 Jalan Tun Razak, 50400 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Cheon Bing Ng tel: 60-3-2162-0351 fax: 60-3-2162-0350 ngcs99@pd.jaring.my

Thailand: NIK’Studio #3017 Fortunetower Bldg. 1 Ratchadapisek Rd., Bangkok 10400 Thailand Nust Montrivasuwat tel: 662-642-1224 fax: 662-510-7354 nik_studio2000@yahoo.com

Australia, New Zealand, Singapore: Puremusicgroup 32/461 St.Kilda Road, Melbourne, 3004, Australia Warwick Freemantle  tel: 61-3-9866-8848 warwick@puremusicgroup.com

South Africa: StereoMusicality Geoff P Fairlamb 33 Sandown Bay, Middlevlei Estate Hermanus 7200, South Africa Mobile: +27 (0)83 260 7840 gpf@stereomusicality.co.za

U.K: GT Audio 5 Upper Road, Higher Denham Buckinghamshire UB9 5EJ England Graham Tricker tel: 44-1895-833099 gtaudio@btinternet.com

Germany: Audioplan Postfach 1107  76308 Malsch, Germany  Thomas Kuehn tel: 49-72-46-1751 fax: 49-72-46-5254 audioplan@t-online.de

Netherlands, Belgium: Music Matters SF B.V. Cort van der Lindenstraat 8h 2288 EV RIJSWIJK ZH The Netherlands Sander Tinnemans Tel. (+31)70 319 39 36 Fax. (+31)70 319 46 70 sander@music-matters.org

France: ARTEN Company 8 rue de Valois, 7001 – Paris France Laurent Moreau Tel: 33-1-4296-1103 laurent.moreau@arten.fr

Italy: Hi-Fi Center sas via monviso n.22 10064 Pinerolo (TO) Italy Giancaro and Mario Sopegno tel: 0121-321-219 fax: 0121-321-272 hificenter@tin.it

Greece: Solid Foundation Laskaridou 86-88 Kallithea 176-76A Athens, Greece Steve Mitsionis tel: 30-210-9570778 fax: 30-210-9325389 eroploes@otenet.gr

Spain:  Musical Connection S.L. Pje De Las Rosas 58 08340 Vilassar De Mar Barcelona, Spain info@musicalconnect.com

Portugal: Imaginaria HiFi Rua Alexandre Herculano No. 12 8000 Faro, Portugal Luis Miguel Ambrosio tel: 351-3898-27789 imaginaria.hifi@netc.pt

Poland: Szemis Audio Import Sprzetu UL Sedziowska Street 2/3A 02081, Warsaw, Poland Wojciech Szemiz tel: 48-22-825-2745 fax: 48-22-825-2745 konsultant@szemiz.pl

Norway: Hifi Stasjonen AS Postboks 132, 2401 Elverum, Norway Unto Paavola tel: 0047-624-16-121 fax: 0047-624-15-747 mobile: 0047-408-508-14 mail@hifi-stasjonen.no

Denmark: Exotic Audio ApS Strandboulevarden 27, 4 TH 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark Henrik Frost Rasmussen h_frost@post6.tele.dk