Ortofon - Omega 1E MM Phono Cartridge

Ortofon’s Omega — an OM-family elliptical moving magnet, now a legacy product.

The Omega is a standard half-inch mount moving magnet from Ortofon’s OM family, with an elliptical diamond at r/R 8/18 µm and a healthy 4mV output. Ortofon positioned it as a cost-effective upgrade for standard USB turntables and for both modern and vintage decks — the sort of cartridge that transforms an entry-level player for very little money.

The signature of the OM body is the removable weight-plate in the mounting bracket. Ortofon’s own instruction: if your tonearm is a standard tonearm, just leave the weight-plate in place; if it is one of the low mass types, simply remove the weight and the cartridge drops to a mere 2.5g. That is a genuinely useful trick, and it is why the OM has stayed in the catalogue for so long — one cartridge covers arms that would otherwise need two.

Two points of housekeeping worth being straight about. First, Ortofon has never called this cartridge the Omega 1E — its own name for it is simply OMEGA, and the 1E appears to be a dealer SKU convention rather than a model designation. Second, Ortofon now flags the Omega as a historical product on its own site. What we have is what remains available, so treat it as a run-out rather than a current line.

Its published generator figures — 750 ohms, 450mH, 4mV, 22dB separation at 1kHz and 15dB at 15kHz — are identical to the OM 5E, which makes this effectively an OM 5E-class engine. The one published difference is a frequency response quoted at 20Hz to 21,000Hz, a figure Ortofon gives for no other model in the family.

Features

• OM-family moving magnet with an elliptical diamond, r/R 8/18 µm
• 4mV output — comfortable for any moving magnet phono stage
• Standard half-inch mount with the OM removable weight-plate: 5g fitted, 2.5g removed
• Takes the full OM stylus ladder, so it can be upgraded without changing the body
• Legacy product — Ortofon lists it as historical, so this is a run-out

Specifications

• Type: Moving magnet stereo cartridge, standard half-inch mount
• Production Status: Legacy. Ortofon flags this as a historical product on its own site
• Output Voltage: 4mV at 1kHz, 5cm/sec
• Channel Balance at 1kHz: 2dB
• Channel Separation at 1kHz: 22dB
• Channel Separation at 15kHz: 15dB
• Frequency Response: 20Hz – 21,000Hz
• Stylus Type: Elliptical
• Stylus Tip Radius: r/R 8/18 µm
• Tracking Force Range: 1.5 – 2.0g (15 – 20mN)
• Recommended Tracking Force: 1.75g (17.5mN)
• Tracking Angle: 20°
• Internal Impedance, DC Resistance: 750 Ω
• Internal Inductance: 450mH
• Recommended Load Resistance: 47k Ω
• Cartridge Weight: 5g including the additional weight-plate
• Weight-Plate: The signature of the OM body is the removable weight-plate in the mounting bracket. Ortofon’s own instruction: if your tonearm is a standard tonearm, just leave the weight-plate in place; if it is one of the low mass types, simply remove the weight and the cartridge drops to a mere 2.5g. That is a genuinely useful trick, and it is why the OM has stayed in the catalogue for so long — one cartridge covers arms that would otherwise need two.
• Interchangeable Styli: 3E, 5E, 10, 20, 30, 40 and 78, plus the D 25 M — Ortofon’s own published list. The stylus assembly pulls straight off, so the body is an upgrade platform rather than a dead end
• Cleaning: Ortofon does not recommend solvents of any kind for cleaning either the record surface or the stylus, warning that they may damage the stylus cement and that interior parts of the cartridge can be seriously affected by solvent intrusion. Ortofon states that its warranty will not be valid where such treatment has caused a cartridge to malfunction. Use a dry fibre stylus brush, drawn from the rear of the cartridge forward toward the tip
• Origin: Not published. Ortofon states elsewhere that its cartridges are designed and crafted in Denmark, but publishes no country of manufacture on this product
• Warranty: Ortofon’s own webshop terms specify a two-year limited warranty against defects in workmanship and materials. Ortofon Inc. covers cartridges bought from an authorised US dealer for one year, excluding expendable items. A US dealer purchase falls under the one-year terms
• Not Published: Compliance; tracking ability at 315Hz; cantilever material; recommended load capacitance; cartridge body material; colour; the replacement stylus designation. Note that Ortofon does publish compliance and tracking ability for the OM 5E but not for the Omega, and we have not borrowed those figures across
• Note: Ortofon’s own name for this cartridge is OMEGA. The “1E” that appears in dealer listings is not an Ortofon model designation