Goldring E3

Cartridges live long lives, often lasting decades with only small tweaks. So it’s a big event when a manufacturer such as Goldring introduces a new family of products, such as the E Series.

The cartridge body design is shared through the range, with the models differentiated by the colour of the bottom edge. The top-of-the-range E3 model is a rather nice shade of violet.

The dense plastic body is nicely shaped and plenty of thought has gone into trying to make the E3 easy to fit. There are captive nuts to make attaching the mounting bolts simple, and a straight edge along the front helping to make alignment quick and easy.

Physically, the E3 is conventional. It’s not particularly heavy at 6.9g and tracks at a typical 2.0g. We can’t think of a price-appropriate deck that won’t suit this moving-magnet cartridge.

We fit and align the E3 onto our testing room turntable, the Rega Planar 2. Once bedded in, this Goldring is an impressively rounded performer. It sounds clean and precise, delivering the bombastic opening to Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony with all the clarity and power it demands.

While majoring on control and composure, the E3 still has enough in the way of dynamic punch and scale. It’s an organised sound, one that can keep track of myriad instrumental strands without losing its way.

This cartridge is nicely balanced, delivering enough in the way of treble extension and low-frequency weight to satisfy. There isn’t quite the forcefulness of more expensive alternatives – the E3 prioritises control – but it’s a cohesive and musical presentation. The sound it helps deliver is clear, informative and still fun. We can’t ask much more than that at this level.

If you have a good mid-priced deck that’s in need of an upgrade to the cartridge, we can’t think of an alternative that’s so capable. Simply, the E3 is a great buy.