Where to Buy Wood Body for Denon Dl103r

Uwe Bretschneider's Wood Bodies for Denon 103 and 103R Cartridges

As Good as Koetsus?

[Italian version]

Product: Cartridge Body made from Wood for Denon 103 and Denon 103R
Maker: Uwe Bretschneider - Federal Republic of Germany
Video with modification
Aviator with information
Approx cost: from 100 EUR (exact sale) depending on choice of wood
Reviewer: Hartmut Quaschik - TNT Germany
Reviewed: December, 2010

These wooden bodies are to replace the original plastic bodies of the Denon 103 and 103R cartridges. I became aware of this modification, when I adage rave reports on some net forums (audiogon, vinyl asylum, please research yourself), that the "Uwe body" elevates the Denon 103 to Koetsu take down. When I met Uwe Bretschneider in person at the Continent Triode Fete in 2007, I bought or s wood bodies for Denon 103 direct from his work force, but it took some more time to try them out. As I have had none Denon in my cartridge collection for years, I had to buy some Denon 103 for this purpose. I had the good sense to buy a used point for my ordinal attempts in modying the cartridge.
I bought three woody bodies in unconditioned, one Panzerholz, and two serious wood bodies, one is African Rosewood (called Wenge in Deutschland), the other is Grenadill.

Doing the Modification

Despite the video, I managed to kill some Denons. At one Denon, I came to touch the tiny tiny wires leading from coils to pins, and broke them. These are very delicate, and just about invisible. Don't you never ever touch the raw Denon cartridge at the area betwixt coils and back plate. BTW, the Denon 103R has substantially thicker wires, so might be more robust. Other favourite kill of mine was snapping off the cantilever when removing the plastic body. This second danger bottom be reduced a good deal aside lancinating the plastic body to enlargen the opening for the cantilever (have a deal the endorse plastic body on the first picture).
So, if you are non really surely you can handle the cartridge well or do by the financial loss of a knocked-out Denon, I simply advice to buy a terminated Denon+Body package. Please, don't you blame Pine Tree State when you kill your Denon!
Changing wooden bodies later is much easier. I used a screw driver to push the Denon extinct remove the body, past pushed the Denon into the adjacent physical structure. Please force gently!

Some technical notes

Spell a plastic body has about 1.5g weight, a naked Denon 103 7.2g and a sheer Denon 103 8.7g, the wooden bodies are a bit heavier: all but wood bodies have 3.5g, Panzerholz has about 4.8g, sol the total cartridge weight changes from 8.7 to something betwixt 10.5 and 12g, around. So your tonearm needs to balance some extra pickup weight. Although 10 to 12g might not comprise uttermost, you have to check your tonearm if it ass handle this.

The back plate of the Denon does not flush with the dead body. When I clip 2mm at the front edge of the plastic plate from the Denon, it will flush.

The 2.5mm holes for the cartridge screws are threaded directly into the wood, and thus are not meant to withstand a LP12 lover who wants his cartridges Linn-close.

Sound

Of course I had to listen first to the unmodified Denon 103 and 103R. This was through with before any modifications were performed. While the standard 103 has some attractive well-fixed sides, its gross complete is very vintage: it has a comfortably warmish character, resolution is under, treble is grainy, and there is also a elastic flavour all over the midrange. The Denon 103R shows a lot Thomas More impingement, resolution and clarity, approaching a Lyra, but along with the way better resolution the plastic flavour becomes even more manifest.
I found no more monstrous differences between the two square bodies, but it was the Panzerholz which sounded different from solid wood.
What I tried first was the Denon 103 with Panzerholz body. The plastic grapheme vanished immediately, and visualise was a bit to a greater extent precise, but the grainy treble was more evident. While this was a lot better than original, it was not equal at all.
Next try: I changed the trunk to unanimous wood body. Now this results in a more symmetrical package. The plastic flavour was absent as well (as supposed), but the grainy triple vanished with this body. The bass was a routine softer than with the Panzerwood, but I found this combo convincing. I could understand what some assembly posters experienced who see this jazz group alternatively to a Koetsu.

Really a Koetsu? Yes and No. The Denon 103 is quite a cheap industry canonic for a MC magazine, with midget variations from one sample to the former. The Koetsu cartridges are manufactured by hand and show off a great deal of sample variation. So I had some new and old Koetsus playing a bit fuzzy and soft. A Denon 103 in a solid Sir Henry Wood Uwe body may show up well against such Koetsu cartridges. So this cheap combo of a standard Denon 103 within an Uwe three-dimensional wood body may be an alternative to a a previously white-haired bargained Koetsu bought s/h or a new Koetsu manufactured on a repentant day.
Just I also had Koetsus playing on a very much higher level, with considerably more impact, resolution and "justness". Our standard Denon 103 in an Uwe solid Grant Wood body cannot compete with a top notch sampling Koetsu, or an excellent third party rebuild of a Koetsu.

Past I tried the Denon 103R, once more first with Panzerholz body. Now this had a unwavering bass, superfine midrange and fine treble. Lots of details on par with a Lyra, but very raw. Changing to solid wood body made the bass softer, and the sound off became a bite "woodier", with less fine detail, and Thomas More rounded. Different from the standard 103, with the 103R I preferred the Panzerholz body. I found this identical attractive for listening, and it became my favourite combo of this follow.

Decision

If you have it off the Denon 103 sound, then it is very likely that you also love the sound of a Denon 103 in a solid wood body from Uwe. Its sibling, the 103R sounds completely different, and pushed into a Panzerholz body, it could live reactionist for you, if you like high solving, but still want to revel a natural timbre.
Nowadays, not only Uwe Bretschneider supplies wooden bodies. There are besides aluminium bodies and black lead bodies available. Alas, all the alternatives I have seen until now are Sir Thomas More expensive than the wooden bodies from Uwe Bretschneider.

Where to Buy Wood Body for Denon Dl103r

Source: https://www.tnt-audio.com/sorgenti/uwebody_e.html

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