Sumiko's open-body reference moving coil, with a boron cantilever and MicroRidge stylus, and a spacious, even-handed sound.
The Starling is the top of Sumiko's Reference Series. Like the Songbird, it has no outer housing. The generator sits on a CNC-machined aluminum mounting plate, and much of the design effort went into how that plate couples to the motor to control resonance. A 0.28 mm long-grain boron cantilever, much stiffer than aluminum, carries an ultra-low-mass nude MicroRidge line-contact diamond. Alnico magnets and pure copper coils make up the generator, and the synthetic rubber suspension is tuned for controlled performance and long life. It has threaded mounting holes and ships with a fitted stylus guard.
SoundStage! Ultra heard a clear, spacious presentation with a strong sense of the recording venue, weighty bass, full and well-defined images, and quick transients over a dark background, with a slightly warm midrange. HiFi News called it a very even-handed cartridge, strong on detail, soundstage, midrange clarity and air, and kind to well-worn records. Both noted that setup takes care. It needs a quiet MC phono stage with plenty of gain (about 65 dB worked well in review) or a step-up transformer. SoundStage! preferred loading around 100 Ω. Its pins are slightly smaller and tapered, so tonearm clips need to grip firmly.
| Type | Low-output moving coil (MC), open body |
| Output | 0.5 mV |
| Internal impedance | 28 Ω |
| Recommended load | Greater than 100 Ω; 100–200 pF |
| Tracking force | 1.8–2.2 g (2.0 g recommended) |
| Compliance | 12 × 10⁻⁶ cm/dyne at 100 Hz |
| Tracking ability | 70 µm at 315 Hz |
| Weight | 9.5 g |
| Stylus | Nude MicroRidge line-contact diamond |
| Cantilever | Boron rod, 0.28 mm |
| Frequency response | 12 Hz – 50 kHz |
| Channel separation / balance | 35 dB at 1 kHz / <0.5 dB |
| Body | Open architecture on CNC-machined aluminum plate, threaded mounting holes |
Pearl Audio is an authorized Sumiko dealer. Call or visit our Portland showroom to talk about matching a cartridge to your tonearm and phono stage.
