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Benz Micro

The Benz Micro story

Swiss moving-coil cartridges wound by hand on ruby and iron, rested two weeks and auditioned one at a time since 1994.

Founded 1970 in Canton of Schaffhausen, Switzerland; since 1994 in Neuhausen am Rheinfall, where every cartridge is built and auditioned by Ernst Benz; owned and directed by Albert Lukaschek since 1994 · benz-micro.com

The history and technologies of Benz Micro of Neuhausen am Rheinfall, Switzerland, and what Pearl Audio keeps on the floor.

Ernst Benz was born in the canton of Schaffhausen, Switzerland, in 1932 and trained as a transducer engineer. In the 1960s he worked at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, then came home. His first business was not cartridges but the diamonds on their tips: through the 1970s he ran a diamond-stylus company of about forty people that supplied needles to other manufacturers, and the high-temperature vacuum oven he built for bonding diamond to steel led to a line of diamond cutting tools. He flew gliders and designed aircraft chronographs, and he later put his name on watches. The company's current US distributor dates the founding of Benz to 1970; cartridges under the Benz name came in the early 1980s. Benz also bought Empire, the Long Island maker of cartridges, turntables and loudspeakers, and moved it to Switzerland.

The compact disc pushed Benz from styli into cartridge making. In the 1980s he designed the first Benz-Micro moving coils, the MC-3, MC-100 and MC-200, and developed designs with Sony in Japan and A.J. van den Hul in the Netherlands that were sold under the Benz name and, through Madrigal, as the Carnegie 1. The Carnegie 2 was the first Benz with a ruby core in its generator. In 1991 Benz appointed Garth Leerer's Musical Surroundings of Oakland as US distributor, and together they developed the Benz Reference and the Benz Ruby, with advanced coil winding and vented Bruyere wood bodies; the Ruby under Benz's own name put out 0.18 mV. In 1993 the two created the Glider, an affordable hand-made Swiss cartridge, which Stereophile would later review at $795.

On April 1, 1994 Albert Lukaschek, an Austrian-born engineer, record collector and friend of Benz who had designed the Benz-Micro PP-1 phono stage, bought the cartridge division. It had two employees and almost no stock. Benz retired but stayed on as an advisor; Lukaschek built a new factory in Neuhausen am Rheinfall and added models, among them the ACE. The generations followed: Ruby 2 and Ruby H in 1997, Series 2 in 2000, the ebony-bodied LP in 2002, Series 3 in 2004 and the S Class in 2008, which revised the Wood, Glider and ACE and added the LP-S and the Gullwing SLR. In the summer of 2009 the Gyger S stylus gave way to the Micro Ridge across the S Class, and in 2012 the zebrawood Ruby Z replaced the Bruyere Ruby 3. Ernst Benz died at home in Neuhausen am Rheinfall on July 5, 2014, aged 82.

Between 2018 and 2020 no new Benz cartridges reached the United States, after Musical Surroundings stopped carrying the line, and the gap fed rumors that the company had closed. Production in Switzerland continued. In 2020 Michael and Sylvia Fajen founded Sierra Sound in Wilton, California, and became the official US distributor; the lineup was pruned to the hand-made upper end, with the ACE and the MC Silver and Gold discontinued and the Zebra Wood introduced as the successor to the Wood SL. Lukaschek still owns and directs the company, which also builds cartridges and sub-assemblies for more than ten other audio companies, and he still auditions every cartridge himself. Stereophile keeps the Gullwing SLR in its 2026 Recommended Components, and The Absolute Sound named the LP-S an Editors' Choice in 2023. Pearl Audio carries the full current range in Portland.

Milestones

  1. 1970 Ernst Benz founds the company A JPL-trained transducer engineer from Schaffhausen, Benz builds a diamond-stylus business of about forty people supplying needles to other cartridge makers, alongside diamond cutting tools and aircraft chronographs.
  2. 1982 The first Benz-Micro moving coils As the compact disc cuts into record sales, Benz designs the MC-3, MC-100 and MC-200 and develops cartridges with Sony and A.J. van den Hul, also sold as the Madrigal Carnegie 1. The Carnegie 2 is the first Benz with a ruby core.
  3. 1991 Musical Surroundings, the Reference and the Ruby Garth Leerer's Musical Surroundings becomes US distributor; together with Benz it develops the Reference and the Ruby, with advanced coil winding and vented Bruyere bodies. The Ruby puts Benz's square ruby plate generator under its own name.Benz Micro Ruby Z Moving Coil Cartridge
  4. 1993 Glider Benz and Leerer create the Glider, an affordable hand-made Swiss cartridge with an open aluminum body and a cross-coil generator in low, medium and high outputs.Benz Micro Glider SL Moving Coil Cartridge
  5. 1994 Albert Lukaschek buys the cartridge division On 1 April 1994 Lukaschek, designer of the PP-1 phono stage, takes over a company of two employees and almost no stock. Benz retires to an advisory role; Lukaschek builds a new factory in Neuhausen am Rheinfall and adds the ACE.
  6. 2002 LP The first Benz in a vented machined ebony body, between the Ruby 2 of 1997, the Series 2 of 2000 and the Series 3 of 2004.Benz Micro Benz LP-S Moving Coil Cartridge
  7. 2008 S Class, then Micro Ridge The current generation: the Wood, Glider and ACE are revised, the LP-S puts the ebony body on a gold-plated brass frame with a redesigned ruby plate, and the Gullwing SLR hangs the same generator in an open brass frame. In the summer of 2009 the Micro Ridge line-contact diamond replaces the Gyger S across the S Class.Benz Micro Gullwing SLR Moving Coil Cartridge
  8. 2012 Ruby Z The fourth-generation Ruby replaces Bruyere briar with machined zebrawood, reviewed at $3,995; the ZH adds a 0.7 mV winding for phono stages with less gain.Benz Micro Ruby ZH Moving Coil Cartridge
  9. 2014 Ernst Benz dies Benz dies at home in Neuhausen am Rheinfall on 5 July 2014, aged 82. The company narrows its focus to its hand-made upper range.
  10. 2020 Sierra Sound and the Zebra Wood After two years without a US distributor, during which Swiss production continued, Michael and Sylvia Fajen's Sierra Sound of Wilton, California takes on the line. The Zebra Wood L, M and H succeed the Wood SL; the ACE and MC Silver and Gold are discontinued.Benz Micro Benz Zebra Wood L Moving Coil Cartridge

Benz Micro at Pearl Audio

Pearl Audio is an authorized Benz Micro dealer in Portland, carrying the current range from the Glider S and Zebra Wood through the Ref-S, Gullwing, Ruby Z and LP-S. Because a Benz comes in several outputs and two generator types, we start by looking at the phono stage and tonearm you own and recommend the winding and body that suit them, from the 3.5-ohm Ref-S for current-drive inputs to the 2.5 mV Glider SH for a moving-magnet input. We install and align the cartridge in your arm, set the loading, and can arrange factory trade-in and rebuild of an older Benz through the US distributor.

Signature technologies

The engineering behind Benz Micro

Benz Micro gives its technologies names because each one solves a specific problem. Here is what each does, where it came from, why it matters in a system, and what you may hear.

Coils on a jewel, not on ironSince 1991

The square ruby plate generator

In the LP-S, Ruby Z and Gullwing the coils are wound on a tiny square plate of synthetic ruby instead of an iron former. Ruby is non-magnetic, so the core adds no eddy currents or hysteresis and the moving mass is very low; the cost is more turns of wire, a coil impedance near 38 ohms and a preference for loading of 500 ohms or more. Read the deep diveClose

What it does

A moving-coil generator is a pair of coils on a former, swinging in a magnetic gap as the stylus traces the groove. Most formers are iron, which concentrates flux and gives output from few turns, but iron also stores and releases magnetic energy as the coil moves. Benz's alternative is a plate of ruby two millimeters square and 0.6 mm thick, carrying two layers of 19-micron copper wire. Ruby is a non-ferrous crystal, so it contributes nothing to the magnetic circuit and nothing to its losses; what the coil puts out is what the stylus did. The plate is light, which helps the assembly follow fast modulation, and because there is no iron to multiply the field, more turns are needed for usable output. That is why the ruby-plate models measure about 38 ohms, why their outputs are 0.34 mV (LP-S, Ruby Z, Gullwing SLR) or 0.7 mV (Ruby ZH, Gullwing SHR), and why Benz and its US distributor recommend loads from 500 ohms up to 47k. The first ruby-core Benz was built for Madrigal as the Carnegie 2 in the 1980s; the Ruby under Benz's own name followed in the early 1990s, and the 2008 LP-S brought a redesigned plate, improved coil winding, stronger magnets and refined pole pieces. The Gullwing pairs the plate with a large neodymium magnet.

Why it matters in a system

The generator is the part of a cartridge that turns motion into signal, and a core that stores no magnetic energy is one that adds no smearing of its own. The trade-off is practical: 38 to 40 ohms is a poor match for current-drive and transimpedance phono inputs, which want a few ohms, so a ruby-plate Benz belongs on a voltage-gain stage with its loading set around 500 ohms or higher. Benz's cross-coil models cover the other case.

What you may hear

Wayne Garcia of The Absolute Sound described the ruby core as lightweight, which aids speed and responsiveness, and non-ferrous, which makes magnetic interference a non-issue. Herb Reichert of Stereophile ran the Gullwing SLR at 500 to 550 ohms and found textures reproduced with a tactile, right-there intensity.

Glider, Zebra Wood and Ref-SSince 1993

The pure iron cross-coil generator

Benz's other generator winds the coils on a cross-shaped former of pure iron. The iron concentrates the flux, so fewer turns give the same output, impedance drops to a few ohms or a few tens of ohms, and the same design can be wound for low, medium or high output. All the coils are wound in Benz's own workshop. Read the deep diveClose

What it does

Where the ruby plate removes iron from the generator, the cross-coil puts it to work. The former is a small cross of pure iron, with a coil on each arm, sitting in the field of the magnet; because the iron carries the flux through the coils, a short winding produces a healthy signal. In the Glider S and Zebra Wood that means 0.4 mV from 12 ohms, 0.8 mV from 24 ohms or 2.5 mV from 95 ohms, and in the Ref-S, which Benz describes as a more sophisticated, low-impedance version of the cross-coil generator, 0.26 mV from about 3.5 ohms. Albert Lukaschek's work on the Ebony H, L and TR was, in a dealer's account, research into increased performance and uniformity of his cross-coil designs; a grooved rear pole piece that countersinks into the o-ring damper, first used on the ruby-plate cartridges, was carried over to the cross-coil models. The Ref-S Copper revision added a modified boron cantilever and reworked pole pieces, which Benz says improve the magnetic circuit, linearity and damping. Every part is made in-house and the coils are hand-wound; Dagogo's Jack Roberts noted that Benz designs and winds all of these different coils itself rather than buying generators in.

Why it matters in a system

Low impedance is what makes a cartridge easy to use with the widest range of phono stages. The Ref-S at 3.5 ohms is the Benz for transimpedance and current-mode inputs, fixed-load stages and step-up transformers, exactly the inputs the 38-ohm ruby-plate models do not suit; the 12 and 24 ohm Glider and Zebra Wood windings run into almost any moving-coil input from 100 ohms up.

What you may hear

Neil Gader of The Absolute Sound liked the musical synergy he achieved with the Glider more than anything he had auditioned recently. Jack Roberts of Dagogo called the cross-coil Ebony TR one of the world's very best phono cartridges.

L, M and H windings for the phono stage you ownSince 1993

Low, medium and high output versions

Most Benz models come in more than one output. The Glider S and Zebra Wood are wound as L (0.4 mV, 12 ohms), M (0.8 mV, 24 ohms) or H (2.5 mV, 95 ohms), and the ruby-plate Ruby and Gullwing as L (0.34 mV) or H (0.7 mV), so the cartridge is matched to the gain and loading of the phono stage rather than the other way around. Read the deep diveClose

What it does

A moving-coil cartridge's output is set by how many turns are on the coils, and more turns mean more signal, more moving mass and higher impedance. Rather than pick one compromise, Benz winds the same generator and body three ways. On the Glider S and Zebra Wood the L version gives 0.4 mV from 12 ohms and asks for a low-noise moving-coil stage loaded between 100 ohms and 47k; the M gives 0.8 mV from 24 ohms, enough for most moving-coil inputs; and the H gives 2.5 mV from 95 ohms, which drives an ordinary moving-magnet input at 47k ohms. The ruby-plate models are offered as the 0.34 mV Ruby Z and Gullwing SLR, loaded at 500 ohms or more, and the 0.7 mV Ruby ZH and Gullwing SHR for stages with less gain, the SHR preferring 47k. The Ref-S stands apart at 0.26 mV and about 3.5 ohms, for current-mode stages and transformers, loaded anywhere from 50 ohms up. Benz's own description of the Wood S was an excellent medium-priced alternative to its best low-output pickups, offered to suit the needs of as many music lovers as possible, and Garth Leerer of Musical Surroundings put the reasoning in a sentence: in high-end audio one size does not fit all.

Why it matters in a system

The right output turns a good cartridge into a quiet one. A 0.4 mV winding into a phono stage with too little gain means hiss and a volume control near its stop; a 2.5 mV winding into a 60 dB moving-coil stage overloads it. Choosing the L, M or H version lets a Benz go into a system that already has a phono stage, or a moving-magnet-only integrated amplifier, without replacing anything.

What you may hear

Properly matched, a Benz sounds quiet and unforced at normal gain settings. Neil Gader of The Absolute Sound noted that the Glider's 0.8 mV is not so demanding that it will require the quietest phono preamplifier on the block.

The Dynascan assemblySince 2009

Boron cantilever and Micro Ridge stylus

Every current Benz carries a 0.28 mm solid boron cantilever tipped with a nude line-contact diamond cut to the Micro Ridge profile, 3 by 60 microns. Benz literature calls this cantilever-and-stylus assembly the Dynascan. The boron rod is stiff and light; the Micro Ridge tip reaches deeper into the groove and wears records less. Read the deep diveClose

What it does

The cantilever is the lever between the groove and the coils; it must be stiff enough not to flex at high frequencies and light enough not to lag. Benz uses a solid rod of boron, 0.28 mm in diameter, cut to a length that gives the right elasticity, which sets the compliance (15 micrometers per millinewton on current models) and the tracking ability (80 microns at 315 Hz and 2 grams). At its tip sits a nude diamond, a whole stone rather than a chip bonded to a metal shank, shaped to the Micro Ridge line-contact profile with contact radii of 3 by 60 microns. A line-contact tip touches the groove wall along a tall, narrow strip, so it follows the finest modulation cut by the mastering lathe, spreads its pressure over more of the vinyl, and rides deeper than a worn elliptical would. Benz fitted the Gyger S stylus from 1998 to 2008 and moved to the Japanese-made Micro Ridge in the summer of 2009, first on the LP-S and then across the S Class. Benz's own literature calls the assembly the Dynascan, as in the Glider S Class's Dynascan with Gyger S stylus or the Wood S's Dynascan with Contact Line stylus. Vertical tracking angle is 20 degrees and the recommended force 1.7 to 2.0 grams.

Why it matters in a system

The stylus profile decides how much of what is in the groove reaches the cantilever, and it decides what the record looks like after a thousand plays. A Micro Ridge diamond on a boron rod gives a cartridge low distortion on inner grooves and high frequencies and long life for both tip and record, but it also demands careful alignment, which is why Benz sets each one square at the factory and why setup matters when it is installed.

What you may hear

Clean, extended treble and quiet inner grooves. Herb Reichert of Stereophile examined the Gullwing SLR's line-contact diamond under a USB microscope and found it set square to the cantilever; 10audio heard cymbals ring like real metal, with a long harmonic trail into silence.

Tuning resonance with the bodySince 2002

Ebony, zebrawood, brass and open frames

Benz voices its cartridges as much with the body as with the generator: vented machined ebony on a gold-plated brass frame for the LP-S, vented zebrawood for the Ruby Z and Zebra Wood, an open free-floating brass frame for the Gullwing and an open aluminum body for the Glider. Same generator, different wood or metal, different weight and balance. Read the deep diveClose

What it does

A cartridge body holds the generator rigidly to the headshell and decides which vibrations are stored and which drained away. The LP of 2002 introduced a body machined from ebony, vented so the generator is not sealed in a resonant chamber, and the LP-S of 2008 mounted that ebony on a frame of gold-plated MR58 brass chosen, in Benz's words, for mass and density without overdamping; the brass frame's electrical-magnetic and resonant properties are said to enhance dynamic range, linearity and definition. The result weighs 16.4 grams and suits medium- to high-mass tonearms. The Ruby Z of 2012 replaced the vented Bruyere briar of the earlier Ruby, Reference and Wood with machined zebrawood, which a UK dealer ranks second only to ebony for resonance, at 10.7 grams; the Zebra Wood L, M and H put the same timber over the cross-coil generator at 9.6 grams. The Gullwing takes the LP-S generator out of the wood and hangs it in an open, free-floating brass frame at 12.2 grams, four grams lighter, in what Benz calls a streamlined, stripped-down version of the flagship. The Glider is the open-body idea in aluminum at 6.8 grams, the Ref-S a 9-gram vented wood body with copper parts. Behind every generator sits a rear pole piece with a countersunk soft butyl rubber damper.

Why it matters in a system

Body material and weight decide what tonearm a cartridge suits and what balance it strikes between warmth and air. The 16.4-gram LP-S wants a medium- to high-mass arm; the 6.8-gram Glider and 12.2-gram Gullwing suit low- to medium-mass arms. Benz describes the zebrawood Ruby Z as warm with a rich midrange and the open-frame Gullwing as airy and transparent on the same generator.

What you may hear

10audio found the Gullwing's bass power and depth fell short of the ebony-and-brass LP-S, and the LP-S itself earned The Absolute Sound's description of a very high-resolution, very low-noise cartridge with a remarkably sweet and lifelike treble.

Two weeks of rest, then Albert Lukaschek listensSince 1994

Hand assembly and the final audition

Every Benz is assembled by hand under microscopes in Neuhausen am Rheinfall, rested for two weeks so the suspension settles, then played by Albert Lukaschek, who adjusts azimuth and suspension through the tension wire until it passes. Output is limited to about 3,000 cartridges a year, and the US distributor runs a trade-in program that returns old Benz cartridges to Switzerland for rebuilding. Read the deep diveClose

What it does

Benz Micro is a small company by choice. A Swiss newspaper feature translated on What's Best Forum described nine women assembling cartridges in a workshop that resembles a watchmaker's, with output held to about 3,000 pieces a year. Every part is made in-house and the coils are hand-wound. Once a cartridge is built it is set aside for two weeks so the suspension can settle; only then is it auditioned. Lukaschek does this himself, on the same 1977 jazz LP, a 1986 gift from Ernst Benz, and the feature estimated he had checked more than 42,000 cartridges on it. He sets azimuth and suspension through the tension wire, and The Absolute Sound reports that any cartridge that does not meet his criteria goes back for adjustment. The owner's part is a 40-hour break-in, under a two-year warranty. Lukaschek's other design is the PP1 phono stage, built at Ernst Benz's request for the MC Ruby: moving-coil only, with 62 dB of gain, a 22k ohm input, two transistors per stage, a 10 Hz rumble filter and an external power transformer. When a Benz wears out, the US trade-in program credits it against a new one; the old cartridge goes to Switzerland for refurbishment and returns as an exchange unit priced at about the cost of a repair.

Why it matters in a system

A moving-coil cartridge is the smallest precision instrument in a system, and the one most dependent on who built and checked it. Two weeks of rest and a personal audition mean the cartridge that arrives is the one that was approved, with its azimuth and suspension already right; the rebuild program means the investment in a Benz is not lost when the stylus is.

What you may hear

Consistency from one cartridge to the next and a cartridge that is in specification out of the box. Herb Reichert of Stereophile found the Gullwing SLR's diamond set square under a microscope, and wrote that it was a cartridge he could live happily with forever after.

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