Hardware Reviews

Zinamp Z-Act for better vinyl sound

Zinamp Z-Act MM cartridge enhancement system review https://the-ear.net

Zinamp Z-Act MM cartridge enhancement system

A good number of us absolutely love vinyl replay. It’s not only that the sound is so good, but also there’s something comforting about the ritual of putting a record on, of tailoring the sound to suit your ears with the vast range of different cartridge types or choice of phono stage – and then of course there’s the fun of playing with cables, or stylus tip types… the list goes on.

The two most common record players tend to sport either a moving magnet or moving coil cartridge. The latter tends (not a universal truth) to be perceived as higher-end, offering slightly more air and space, perhaps an extended upper treble performance, and ostensibly a more transparent (sometimes referred to as ‘cooler’) presentation. The moving magnet is usually a slightly warmer sort of sound, suits the budget-conscious a little more readily and has the benefit of (in the main) a user-replaceable stylus assembly, which also often offers a performance upgrade path via ‘better’ stylus shapes.

Where are we going with this?

Because of their low impedance, MC cartridges are more immune to the vagaries of cable capacitance etc. As a result their performance tends to be more consistent across a range of connectivity scenarios. MMs on the other hand can suffer quite markedly – or rather, have their performance envelope altered and cable choice in some circumstances can make or break how a cartridge sounds. This can clearly be heard, and as an MM cartridge’s output vs frequency varies too, predominantly because their internal inductance is higher (bigger coils, more turns) which in turn leads to the slightly different sound of an MM cartridge compared with an MC.

Zinamp Z-Act MM cartridge enhancement system review https://the-ear.net

Adding varying amounts of capacitance to an MM can, in some circumstances, help to even things out, but cable capacitance also plays a part and is in most cases an unpredictable and unknown quantity. Just because you need 50pF of capacitance doesn’t mean you can add that via a phono stage – as the cable capacitance may well be (and probably already is) higher than that already.

Enter Zinamp’s Z-Act, which could be seen as providing the ultimate level playing field for MM cartridges. Its function is to nullify the unwanted effects of cables. The cunning part is a small circuit board which fits into the headshell and receives phantom power via a dedicated device. In our case, this was Zinamp’s solid state phono stage with the Z-Act option built in, but Z-Act can also be used with a unit called the Phantomiser. Both do the same thing; they provide a very low impedance output for our normally high impedance MM cartridge.

At a stroke the effects of the cable are practically nullified, the ability to drive long cable lengths becomes a practical reality, but above all, things like transparency, noise and soundstage definition become seriously better. Zinamp provided their own headshell (though the circuit board can be fitted into virtually any cartridge or headshell) which fitted my venerable SME 3009 and 3012 arms.

Zinamp Z-Act MM cartridge enhancement system review https://the-ear.net

The power behind the system lies in the Z-Act phono stage (a black box with a smart aluminium front panel) sporting source select and volume knobs, a crossfeed switch and power on. It has a dedicated power supply, and which, via the Z-Act connection powers the headshell circuit board.

Sound quality

MM Cartridges put through their paces with the Z-act consisted of: Ortofon Black, Shure V15 MkIII, Stanton 890FS and a Nottingham Analogue Tracer III. Swapping out cartridges, with and without the Z-Act took some time, and a whole variety of records were used, ranging from my preferred classical and jazz through to some Meat Loaf, Frank Zappa, Lindisfarne, Mary Black and The Jayhawks.

Suffice it to say, while the Z-Act offers what might be termed a level playing field, the sonic differences (each cartridge’s unique sound) between the cartridges was not lost. The overriding common trait was that the very slight upper-bass warmth which many MM cartridges exhibit was lessened slightly, and as a result the transparency in that region was hugely improved. At the upper end of the scale there was much more openness across the board, giving the recordings much more air and space in the way they were presented. Lead-in grooves also seemed notably quieter, and there was generally much more of an evenness of presentation across the frequency spectrum.

Zinamp Z-Act MM cartridge enhancement system review https://the-ear.net

In a nutshell, though none of the cartridges might be termed high end, the Z-Act gave a significant performance uplift across the board. There was genuinely much more of an ease about the way the music was presented, and the cartridges felt much more assured. What I found interesting (and my wife commented from afar too), was that when I took the Z-Act out of the system and went back to the straight cartridge into phono stage everything suddenly became more muddled, less-well defined and perhaps slightly blurry.

Personally, as an organist I am always keen to hear how various artists register (choose the stops) pieces to play; no two organs are the same, so each time you play on a different instrument you have to spend a lot of time getting the sound right. This is particularly important in the lower (pedal) regions as clarity and dexterity are often at odds with depth and volume. One of my favourite recordings is quite venerable now: Messaien’s La Nativite du Seigneur, recorded in 1967 on Supraphon SUA ST-50750. This is a behemoth of a recording, and the final movement Dieu Parmi Nous has some tremendous pedal-work. Ferdinand Klinda really puts the organ through its paces in this fantastical final flourish.

None of the cartridges used here is a slouch in any department. At their price/quality points they all performed in an exemplary fashion, giving a good sense of the acoustic, a good sense of the scale and grandeur of the piece and wonderful bass weight in that last movement. It must also be noted that in quieter moments where Klinda wrung the most souplesse out of the instrument the cartridges performed well too. However, add the Z-Act into the mix and it was if someone had opened all the windows in the venue and the whole place was brightly lit, with every last detail revealed; unsullied, expansive and holistic.

Zinamp Z-Act MM cartridge enhancement system review https://the-ear.net

As a final specific mention, Suzanne Vega’s Solitude Standing album features a laid-bare performance of Tom’s Diner. Close-miked, raw, earthy and full of emotion, this can sound muddied and incoherent if things aren’t set up right. Somehow I’ve always preferred playing it with an MC cartridge. With the Z-Act at play there was a real game-changer in the mix. Suddenly we have the openness, the clarity, the real insight into what’s going on in the recording. The top-to-bottom ease really made a difference to how you are drawn in, how clarity suddenly informed the listening experience.

Just to clarify – none of the cartridges lost their unique flavour. The Ortofon was slightly warmer than the V15, that characteristic still remained, and was consistent across all the cartridges. The gains were in clarity, top-to-bottom seamless even frequency response and an openness which would normally have been attributed to MCs. I did also try connecting two three metre phono leads between the Z-Act and the preamp – with negligible effect when on the Z-Act setting. Things weren’t quite so clear using the cartridge’s own output on cables that long and noise (hum and hiss) increased noticeably.

Conclusion

The Z-Act is not inexpensive, and I guess if you’re fond of swapping out cartridges or headshells you might need more than one of the cunning little headshell-amp circuit boards. However, in terms of helping an MM achieve MC-like performance (with perhaps some trackability gains as well) the Z-Act is going to make a real difference. And of course, with an MM at the sharp end of things you can swap out different stylus profiles should you feel the urge – and get the benefit of hearing what they really can do.

Zinamp Z-Act MM cartridge enhancement system review https://the-ear.net

Is there a downside? Well, partly. To date, only Zinamp has the Z-Act capability. It’s built into this rather neat box of phono-stage tricks which sports two outputs (one via a volume control, one direct), MM, MC and Z-Act inputs. MM and MC work as you’d expect, and the Z-Act does what I’ve attempted to describe above. Or you can use the Phantomiser with your existing phono stage. As with anything, hearing is believing, so I’d suggest you head for the next hi-fi show, or contact Zinamp and take the time to audition one. You won’t be disappointed.

Specifications:

Type: MM cartridge enhancement system
Phono stage requirement: any standard MM phono stage
Cartridge requirement: any standard MM cart
Crosstalk reduction: -5dB
Noise reduction: -8dB
Output impedance: 300Ω
Additional mass: 0.9g
Recommended load: 47k Ohm with 100pF or less
Phantom power: 0.7v @ 150uA
Supply voltage: 18v – 30v DC
Phantomiser weight: 260g
Phantomiser size (HxWxD): 24 x 110 x 88mm
Warranty: 2 years

Price when tested:
Z-Act Phantomiser and headshell (for any phono stage) £449
Z-Act as an option with Zinamp phono stage £299
Additional headshell with buffer-amp fitted £89
Custom board for MM cartridge £89
Manufacturer Details:

Zinamp
T+44(0)20 8405 4245
zinamp.co.uk

Type:

MM cartridge enhancement system

Author:

Chris Beeching

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