Glanz S Series Tonearms

The latest Glanz S Series tonearms, consisting of the 9″ MH-900S, 10″ MH-1000S, and 12″ MH-1200S are high effective mass tonearms with quite exquisite build quality.  Glanz increased the price on 31 December 2022, mirroring pretty much everything else at the moment – sadly this is the world that we live in at the moment, and this price increase is actually less steep than other makers have imposed.  Still worth the money, though, since these are by far the best sounding, most beautifully made tonearms that we have used here.

These new arms replace the old MH-94/104/124S models, which are no longer available.  The main differences concern the counterweight arrangement, which is now much shorter, meaning the the counterweight mass can generally be placed closer to the pivot, thereby reducing the effective mass of the arm, compared to the old S-Series.  The arm tubes, main structures and bearings are not changed – there was no need to do that, but very slight tweaks to arm geometry have been made (see the technical specifications table below).

You simply will not find a similar tonearm that is so well constructed, and even the headshell collet is machined by Glanz in stainless steel with an interference fit to the arm tube, so no movement, and no loss as with almost every other removable headshell tonearm.  The arms are approximately 30g effective mass so are very well suited to low compliance cartridges such as Miyajima, Koetsu and Ortofon SPU.  The Glanz arms have a lovely synergy with Ortofon SPUs and even a lowly SPU#1S sounds much more ‘expensive’ when paired with the Glanz.  We have, quite honestly, not yet heard any tonearm that sounds as sublimely musical as these Glanz arms.  They are certainly quite expensive, but they are built like battleships and a Glanz could well be your last tonearm.

This is the premium arm that UK HiFi luminaries have said “it’s the best tonearm I have ever heard” it certainly outruns the industry standard pick-up arms we have used in the past !  Available in 9″ version for European and USA turntables, also in a 10″ version for the Japanese super-decks and a 12″ version for the ultimate turntable.

• To eliminate reverberating sound, we do not use springs in the anti skate bias section. (Springs create an echo).
• We have blocked out reverberating sound with a powerful vibration absorbing/damping structure inside the arm tube and other structures.
• Various parts are joined/connected across the surface, not just at points. The four fulcrums that support the sound quality are supported by four large bearings. In particular, the lower bearing in the direction of the vertical axis utilises high precision thrust bearings; it has a strut structure that allows heavy arms to move with high sensitivity.
• The headshell structure is integrated with the plug section in one single piece, enabling the sound to rise well, resulting in crisp sound quality.
• There are several layers of vibration absorbing/damping structure around the weight, delivering a clear, deep sound quality with little lingering sound.

• Tone Audio review click here
• Six Moons review click here
• HiFi News March 2018 review click here

Specifications:

(*1) : From counter weight shaft end headshell terminal.
(*2) : From centre of tonearm Base to stylus tip.
(*3) : From centre of tonearm Base to centre of turntable)
(*4) : From plinth surface to horizontal height of arm tube
(*5) : Measurement calculated after moving the weight 10mm down from the weight axis.