In celebration of music: The Sumiko Celebration 40
The original Celebration cartridge was designed by Sumiko as a "celebration of music." The design has undergone improvements over the years, but today we have something special to celebrate: To mark the 40th anniversary of our outstanding analog products, Sumiko is delighted to introduce the latest evolution of the multi-award-winning Pearwood Celebration II – the new Celebration 40! We've retained the proven design elements that ensure maximum rigidity and minimal unwanted resonance: a long-fiber boron cantilever, a milled Teflon backplate, and the same MC generator securely attached to our low-resonance, machined aluminum mount. What we bring to the table, however, is a radically improved sound.
The Celebration 40 now features the same ultra-low-mass 75µm x 2.5µm Microridge stylus as our flagship Palo Santos Presentation. The Microridge Diamond is a revelation when it comes to micro-detail and spatiality. Like its predecessor, the Celebration 40 is fatigue-free, allowing you to immerse yourself in listening for hours. The predominant characteristics are rich, smooth, and warm, without any analytical tendencies that can be irritating to the ear. However, clarity is not sacrificed for this sonic character. The Microridge follows the grooves like few others can. It relentlessly maintains the groove, and tracking is impeccable, so the music is reproduced completely unadulterated. Musicality, emotion, deep and rich bass, and sweet mids/highs are what you can expect.
We selected the magnificent plum wood body for its resonant qualities, which we highly value. Like pear, it is a flowering tree, which we believe best embodies the spirit of the Celebration design. It imparts a sense of euphoria that invites you in and evokes the charm of vintage tube gear. To ensure precision in cartridge alignment, we modified the front of the plum wood cabinet so you can see the entire boom when set up.
To get the most out of your cartridge, we ask that you stay within the specified VTF and loading ranges, but we encourage you to experiment a little. Like any audiophile cartridge, you have some control over how the Celebration 40 sounds in your system, and we want you to find your own sweet spot. Whatever that sweet spot may be, we're convinced the Celebration 40 has something to offer that will open the ears of almost every listener.
Technical Specifications
Output Voltage: 0.5mV
Amplifier Input/Output: Phono MC/100Ω - 1kΩ
Weight: 7g
Dynamic Stylus Compliance, Lateral: 12μm*
Stylus Diamond: MicroRidge (r/r 2.5 x 75μm)
Boron Cantilever
Rosewood Housing
Tracking Force: 2g
* Stylus compliance measured at 100Hz