The Ortofon 2M Bronze cartridge offers detailed, textured sound with impressive bass depth and a vivid soundstage, making it ideal for audiophiles. Featuring a nude fine-line stylus, silver-plated copper coils, and a robust Hopelex body, it delivers a balanced and homogeneous sound with tight, contoured bass and excellent high-frequency control. This high-quality system enhances music reproduction across various genres.
Contents
Intro
With the Ortofon 2M Bronze, the traditional Danish manufacturer offers a cartridge system for record lovers whose sound demands have increased over the years and who now want to dig a little deeper into their pockets to enjoy higher resolution and greater transparency.
The Ortofon 2M Bronze is a nude-mounted stylus that uses the same fabrication approach as the 2M Blue. If you remember, the diamond styli are directly mounted to the cantilever and the entire stylus is diamond. The form of the stylus distinguishes the Bronze from the Blue. The bronze stylus is a nude fine line, whereas the blue stylus is a nude elliptical. It’s also worth noting that the Red and Blue styli aren’t compatible with the Bronze cartridge, but the 2M Black is. The coils and magnets of the Red/Blue cartridges differ from those of the Bronze/Black cartridges, hence they are not compatible even though they would suit each other. Here you can find Ortofon 2M Black Review.
Ortofon 2M Bronze Review – Unboxing & Features
Ortofon’s 2M Bronze comes in the same plain white box as the Red and Blue. Here, too, a plastic blister appears, from which I take out the 2M Bronze as well as a bag with a needle brush, a mini slotted screwdriver, and two M2.5 mounting screws with a length of 5 mm and two M2.5 screws with a length of 7 mm.
Ortofon 2M Bronze Package
All 2M cartridges have the spacy shape of the chassis in common. However, the cartridge body of the 2M Black and 2M Bronze is manufactured from Hopelex, a material that ensures high rigidity while eliminating unwanted resonances. In contrast to the cheaper 2M representatives Red and Blue, the 2M Bronze, as well as the 2M Black, got silver-plated copper coils. Both the 2M Black and the 2M Bronze use a bare aluminum tube as the cantilever, with a bare diamond set at the end. The diamond is provided with a Fine Line needle cut. According to the manufacturer, the 2M Bronze already achieves a scanning capability of 80 µm at 315 Hz with the recommended tracking force of 15 mN. Since the permissible tracking force range is between 1.4 g and 1.7 g, this could be increased.
Here you can find Ortofon 2M Red Review.
The Danish manufacturer specifies the maximum output voltage at 1 kHz as 5 mV, which should easily be enough to elicit a good-sounding tone even from weaker preamplifiers. According to the website, the channel deviation (L/R) should not exceed 1 dB over the entire transmission range. That would be respectable!
According to the manufacturer, the crosstalk attenuation at 1 kHz is 26 dB. Ortofon provides two specifications for the notorious “frequency response”: With a maximum deviation of +/-3 dB, the Danes put the transmission range at 20-29,000 Hz (!). At +2 dB/0 dB, it’s still 20-20,000 Hz, which should delight high-end freaks. All in all, the characteristics easily reach the professional studio level.
Ortofon 2M Bronze Review – Assembly & Adjustment
All 2M systems feature a metal mounting plate that features two 2.5mm threaded holes to mount the chassis under an SME headshell without fiddly nuts. The supplied screws fix the mounting plate from above through the slotted holes of the system carrier. The adjustment is also relatively easy because the chassis offers enough straight edges to effectively minimize the tracking error, both in the vertical and horizontal alignment.
Ortofon 2M Bronze on a high-end Nagaoka headshell
With a net weight of 7.2 g, the 2M Bronze is in the upper midfield of the MM systems. Needle compliance is 22 µm/mN, so the 2M Bronze should be equally suitable for medium-heavy and light tonearms.
Ortofon 2M Bronze Review – Sound Test
The system is insensitive to fine dust and there are no other weaknesses in terms of tracking, even when strictly adhering to the recommended tracking force of 1.5 g. The 2M Bronze fulfills its promise of sound without reservation. Like the 2M Blue, our test subject proves to be a system that casually plays across all genres. Only in the mids does it lack a little presence and precision here and there, which is never really unpleasant. On the contrary: the restraint in the mid-high tone gives the 2M Bronze a pinch of goodness with records that come across as too obtrusive with other cartridges. The 2M Bronze always retains full control over the spattering S-sounds of some male singers.
- Universal fit for most turntables
- Upgrade to the Ortofon 2M Red and 2M Blue
- The Ortofon 2M Bronze adds even more resolution and details in an evenhanded way
- The 2M Bronze features a Nude Fine Line diamond
- Can be upgraded with an Ortofon Stylus 2M Black
Overall, the sound impression is balanced and homogeneous with a slight tendency to silky overemphasis between 10 and 20 kHz. According to the paper, we should be dealing with a linear range of transmission. However, based on my listening experience, I have my doubts. Nevertheless, what is offered never sounds unpleasant, rather brilliant and silky. The sometimes very good resolution across the entire spectrum and the decent crosstalk attenuation lead to a wide stage, great transparency, and authentic music reproduction with a very pleasant tendency to embellish. In the bass, I find the 2M Bronze more contoured than the 2M Blue.
In addition, it builds up more pressure with deep basses without losing any crispness. Above all, the MM system masters the swinging out of the basses well, which makes it appear very tight and contoured. A fresh DJ200i from Grado serves as a reference, and I used one of the best phono preamps under 500 $ for all recordings.
Have fun listening!
Ortofon 2M Bronze Video Review
Ortofon 2M Bronze Specifications
- Output voltage at 1000 Hz, 5cm/sec.: 5 mV
- Channel balance at 1 kHz: 1 dB
- Channel separation at 1 kHz: 26 dB
- Channel separation at 15 kHz: 15 dB
- Frequency response – 20-20.000 + 2 /: 0 dB
- Tracking ability at 315Hz at recommended tracking force: 80 µm
- Compliance, dynamic, lateral: 22 µm/mN
- Stylus type: Nude Fine Line
- Stylus tip radius: r/R 8/40 µm
- Tracking force range: 1.4-1.7 g (14-17 mN)
- Tracking force, recommended: 1.5 g (15 mN)
- Tracking angle: 20°
- Internal impedance, DC resistance: 1.2 kOhm
- Internal inductance: 630 mH
- Recommended load resistance: 47 kOhm
- Recommended load capacitance: 150-300 pF
- Cartridge color, body/stylus: Black/Bronze
- Cartridge weight: 7.2 g
- Replacement stylus unit – 2M Bronze (interchangeable with 2M Black and 2M Black LVB 250)
- Stylus lifetime: up to 1000 hours with proper care
You can download & view the manual here->Ortofon 2M Bronze Manual
Final Verdict
With the 2M Bronze, Ortofon offers a very good MM cartridge with a convincing price-performance ratio. The “naked” diamond used must of course keep its sustainability promise with as long service life as possible. The longest possible service life (according to Ortofon 1000 hours) is only possible as long as the required needle and record care have been carried out, the set-up has been carried out correctly and the recommendations followed.
After a short break-in period, the 2M Bronze already sounds great. The Fine Line diamond allows phenomenal transparency with very good fine detail across the entire spectrum. The system plays with a nonchalance that is unprecedented for this price range, which could also be attributed to the benevolent mid-range reproduction and the almost silky treble. Like the Blue and the Red, the 2M Bronze proves to be a great all-rounder and is a cartridge that is equally suitable for all genres. Possibly the best value for money among the 2M representatives. Be sure to try it!
Crackling Sound was created to provide straightforward, unbiased reviews of audio products, catering to those who want excellent sound without delving into complex audiophile terms. I aim to simplify the decision-making process for my readers.
As an audio enthusiast and self-builder for over 20 years, I ensure my reviews are honest, highlighting both advantages and disadvantages. I conduct sound tests to deliver comprehensive and reliable information about various audio devices. My extensive experience in DIY projects, experimenting, installing, and using high-end audio gear helps me provide thorough and comparative reviews.