{"product_id":"goldnotedonatellogold","title":"Gold Note Donatello Gold MC Cartridge","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe Gold Note Donatello Gold is a low-output moving-coil cartridge that, at just 7 grams, carries a Micro-Elliptical diamond on an aluminium cantilever inside a titanium sleeve.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSeven grams sounds like a footnote, but it's the real trick: hardly any MC cartridge is this light, and that's exactly why the Donatello Gold can be balanced cleanly on almost any tonearm – even ones that would struggle with heavier heavyweights.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eWhy the Donatello Gold?\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBecause Gold Note deliberately invested here in the places you actually hear. The Micro-Elliptical diamond was developed together with Adamant-Namiki, the aluminium cantilever sits inside a telescopic titanium tube for extra stiffness, and the copper coils work over a samarium-cobalt magnet. Long, gold-plated connector pins ensure secure contact with the tonearm cables, while the solid duralumin body keeps resonances away from the generator.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eWhat you hear\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePace, precision and a very quiet background. The Donatello Gold tracks fast and honestly, draws the stage cleanly and pulls details out of the groove you'd previously overheard. It's not a warm flatterer: rock and electronic music get just as much drive as a string quartet gets air.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eWho is the Donatello Gold suited for – and who isn't it for?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor anyone making the jump to moving coil who has, or wants to get, an MC-capable phono stage. Plain talk: at 0.5 mV it's a low-output MC and belongs on an MC input with around 470 Ω loading, or on a step-up transformer. If you only have an MM input, go for the Donatello Red instead. And it wants a smoothly running turntable – on a wobbly attic find you'd be wasting its talent.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eOur verdict\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA surprisingly mature MC cartridge: fast, honest and, thanks to its 7 grams, uncomplicated when it comes to tonearm choice. The rest is down to setup – we at HD Zürisee in Wädenswil mount it, align overhang, azimuth, tracking force and VTA, and match your phono stage's loading to it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWhat the trade press says:\u003c\/em\u003e \"It's an excellent cartridge.\" – Greg Simmons, Stereo Times, 2020.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eTechnical data\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePrinciple: Moving Coil (MC), Low Output\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOutput voltage: 0.5 mV\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eInternal impedance: 40 Ω\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eRecommended load impedance: 470 Ω\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eRecommended tracking force: 1.8–2.1 g\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eStylus (diamond): Micro Elliptical, developed with Adamant-Namiki\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCantilever: aluminium in a telescopic titanium sleeve\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCompliance: 12 × 10⁻⁶ cm\/dyn\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFrequency response: 10–40,000 Hz\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eChannel separation: 24 dB · channel balance under 1 dB\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCoil wire: copper · Magnet: samarium-cobalt\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eConnection: long, gold-plated pins\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMounting: standard 1\/2 inch, 9 mm hole spacing\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBody: duralumin, gold finish with black logo\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWeight: 7 g\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eScope of delivery: cartridge, mounting screws, installation and alignment accessories, data sheet with serial number, storage case\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eFrequently asked questions\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eCan I run the Donatello Gold on an MM input?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNo. The Gold is the low-output variant with 0.5 mV and needs an MC phono input with around 470 Ω loading, or a step-up transformer. For direct use on a 47 kΩ MM input, Gold Note offers the Donatello Red – also an MC, just with a higher output level.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat really distinguishes Donatello Gold from Donatello Red?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOnly the generator tuning. Stylus profile, cantilever, compliance, tracking force and weight are identical. The Gold outputs 0.5 mV at 40 Ω and reaches up to 40,000 Hz, the Red 1.8 mV at 140 Ω up to 35,000 Hz. Add the body colour – and that's it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eWhich tonearms does the Donatello Gold fit?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThanks to its 7-gram weight and standard half-inch mounting with 9 mm hole spacing, it fits almost any tonearm, including light ones. What matters is clean alignment of overhang, azimuth and tracking force between 1.8 and 2.1 grams – we take care of that for you.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eCan the stylus of the Donatello Gold be replaced?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNo. On an MC cartridge the cantilever is permanently connected to the coils; a plug-in stylus assembly like on MM cartridges simply doesn't exist by design. Gold Note also doesn't list a replacement stylus for the MC models. If the diamond wears out, we'll sort out the options with the distributor.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eDoes the Donatello Gold need a break-in period?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYes, and not a short one. In a 2024 TNT-Audio review, the Gold Note cartridges needed around 150 to 200 hours before showing their full potential. At first the Donatello can sound a bit reserved – give it time and don't judge it after the first side.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eWhy buy the Donatello Gold from HD Zürisee?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBecause a cartridge stands or falls with its setup. We mount the Donatello professionally on your tonearm, align it to the millimetre, and set gain and loading on your phono stage correctly. In Wädenswil we give you honest advice and, with our own technician, we're there for you even after the purchase.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eGoes well with\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA precisely adjustable \u003ca href=\"\/en\/collections\/tonarme\"\u003etonearm\u003c\/a\u003e and a quiet-running \u003ca href=\"\/en\/collections\/plattenspieler\"\u003eturntable\u003c\/a\u003e form the basis, and an MC-capable stage from our \u003ca href=\"\/en\/collections\/phono-vorverstarker\"\u003ephono preamplifiers\u003c\/a\u003e provides the right gain. Find everything around the groove under \u003ca href=\"\/en\/collections\/alles-vinyl\"\u003eAlles Vinyl\u003c\/a\u003e, and more cartridges under \u003ca href=\"\/en\/collections\/tonabnehmer\"\u003eTonabnehmer\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gold Note","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52989508845904,"sku":"304397","price":1090.0,"currency_code":"CHF","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0932\/3262\/8048\/files\/gold-note-donatello-gold-mc-tonabnehmer-schraegansicht.jpg?v=1785925292","url":"https:\/\/hdzuerisee.ch\/en\/products\/goldnotedonatellogold","provider":"HD Zürisee AG","version":"1.0","type":"link"}