Hana Umami Red Moving Coil Cartridge Reviews

4.9 Rating 34 Reviews

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909.931.9686

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joel.m@upscaleaudio.com

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Ozzie Garcia

Verified Reviewer

Incentivized

“Had the entry level Hana on my VPI. Time came to replece or upgrade. I was happy with The Hana and thought about going blue, but went Red. I was expecting a few mild suttle improvements here and there. What I got was a different world. It was one of those "play all your records again" moments. From top to bottom the musical spectrum was more detailed and palpable. Soundstage was deeper and much more defined. Instruments had a better level of reality than before. I know for most a cartridge at this cost is a bit much but once you have it you know its a investment on your listening experince. I have to give a shout out to Sean-Paul at Upscale Audio, his knowledge of all things vinyl is vast and deep. This Hana Unami Red is my desert island cartridge. I understand why its a "A" rated product by Stereophile. Highly recomended.”

1 Helpful Report

Posted 3 weeks ago

John Johnson

Verified Reviewer

“The Hana Umami Red has many glowing reviews in several publications which after hearing, I wholeheartedly agree with. the Red sounds great and is getting better as burn-in continues. On a side note* I especialy want to thank Sean-Paul Williams | Analog Manager for his help and customer service. He answered all of my questions and Sean-Paul and/or his team did great work installing the Red on my Dr. Feickert, moved my Umami Blue to my other TT, and repaired the wire harness connected to the Feickert. I cannot recomend the Umami Red and the analog team high enough...”

1 Helpful Report

Posted 2 months ago

“Great cartridge as is generally known.”

Helpful Report

Posted 3 months ago

William Koski

Verified Reviewer

“While I only have about 10-15 hours on it, the cartridge sounds great! (Summer vacation and activities have limited my listening time some.) It replaces a Hi-Out Sumiko Blackbird. I was always pleased with the Blackbird with the exception of wanting a bit more heft in the bottom end but it was getting old (about 13 years). It was still performing well but I thought it was getting time for an upgrade. I heard the Umami a couple years ago at Axpona in a room where the cabling cost more than my first house. I fell in love with it. I was worried that maybe I was going overboard buying a cartridge that was worth about 2x my turntable (MMF9.1). On the first needle drop my concerns melted away! First the additional grunt in the bottom end was there now. Soundstage got bigger, like you've moved a couple rows closer to the stage. And instrument placement is even more focused. Surface noise seems to be almost non existant on the best pressings and much lower on less than perfect vinyl. Even albums that were recorded in overly dampened studios seem to have a bit more life and air to them. It can't fix a bad recording but it can make one easier to listen to and it can make a good recording really pop! Very detailed but not bright by any means. I would classify it very close to neutral to maybe just slightly on the warm side. I spent a couple years trying to talk myself into spending that much on a cartridge. After talking to the guys at at Axpona this year I finally pulled the trigger! I sure whish I had spent about 103 weeks less on making that decision! Thank you to the folks at Upscale for your advice, knowledge and taking care of my order.”

1 Helpful Report

Posted 5 months ago

Andrew Berry

Verified Reviewer

Author didn't leave any comments.

Helpful Report

Posted 6 months ago

Philip Nichols

Verified Reviewer

“Pretty straight forward to mount, no issues. It needs to run awhile before it shows its full potential, at first it wasn't that much an improvement over my previous cartridge, but once it opened up, it sounds beautiful and revealing (20-40 hours to break in). Highs sound more musical, bass is full and managed well. Another one of these upgrades where you will hear sounds you haven't experienced before coming off vinyl.”

3 Helpful Report

Posted 1 year ago

Cody Grayland

Verified Reviewer

“All the fantastic things said about the Red are true. A detailed and musical cartridge. Highly recommended.”