Ortofon 2M Blue Cartridge

The Ortofon 2M Blue sits at the second tier of Ortofon’s acclaimed 2M moving magnet cartridge series, positioned above the entry-level 2M Red and below the 2M Bronze and flagship 2M Black. All four models share the same body — designed in collaboration with Danish industrial design house Møller Jensen Design — but differ in their stylus assemblies, making upgrades within the range a simple stylus swap without removing the cartridge from the headshell.

Nude Elliptical Stylus

The defining upgrade over the 2M Red is the 2M Blue’s nude elliptical diamond stylus. Where the Red uses a bonded elliptical tip — a small diamond chip cemented to a metal shank — the Blue’s stylus is a whole diamond ground to an elliptical profile (8/18 µm radii) and bonded directly to the cantilever. This reduces the moving mass at the tip, improving high-frequency tracking and transient response. The elliptical contact patch creates a wider groove contact area than a conical tip, retrieving more detail from the record groove while simultaneously reducing record wear.

Split Pole Pin Engine

Like all 2M cartridges, the Blue uses Ortofon’s split pole pin generator. This patented magnetic circuit design enables the moving magnet motor to achieve a flat frequency response across the audible band — a characteristic more commonly associated with moving coil designs. The result is a 20–20,000 Hz response within +2/–1 dB, with usable output extending to 25,000 Hz at the –3 dB point.

Practical Considerations

Output voltage is a healthy 5.5 mV at 1 kHz (5 cm/sec), which is higher than average for a moving magnet cartridge and ensures compatibility with virtually any MM phono stage without gain concerns. Recommended tracking force is 1.8 g within a 1.6–2.0 g range, and dynamic lateral compliance of 20 µm/mN suits medium-mass tonearms found on most popular turntables. The recommended load capacitance of 150–300 pF should be factored in when selecting phono stage settings and interconnect cables.

Channel separation is 25 dB at 1 kHz and 15 dB at 15 kHz, with channel balance within 1.5 dB. At just 7.2 g, the 2M Blue is light enough for virtually any tonearm and headshell combination.

What the Press Says

• “A steady hand that lets the heart of the music shine through.” — What Hi-Fi? ★★★★☆ (April 2017)
• Stereophile Recommended Component