Sugano Yoshiaki began making cartridges as a favor to his friends as part of his love for the hobby of high-end audio. He'd had a long, successful career in the Japanese automobile industry (at Toyota Motors) and approached cartridge design as an artisan, perpetuating the tradition of excellence he'd learned from the example of the famed Hon'ami Koetsu, who came from a family of highly-honored appraisers of Japanese swords and went on to become a multi-disciplined craftsman with skills in the arts of painting, calligraphy, lacquerware, and ceramics.  Sugano became heir to this legacy of superb craftsmanship in service to art and named his cartridge company after the master Koetsu (the Japanese characters for which translate as "light" and "pleasure"). The manufacture of Koetsu cartridges became a family business, involving Sugano's sons in the painstaking and exacting process of carrying out their father's uncompromising designs and workmanship.

     The remarkable quality of Koetsu cartridges flew in face of the mass-market mediocrity that prevailed in the audio industry at the time, and they quickly attained "cult" status among knowledgeable music lovers around the world. And why not? There simply was nothing else like them in the high end marketplace. The Koetsu cartridges brought audiophiles so much closer to their music that descriptions like, "holographic", "exquisitely musical", and "magic" were commonplace. In the early 1990's, Sugano himself was of an age where he could no longer make the cartridges himself, so production was entirely on the shoulders of his sons (under Sugano's supervision). Demand for the Koetsu cartridges was higher than ever. In a bold move, it was decided that, rather than compromise the quality of their product to meet the quantity necessary for the demand, they would simply remove themselves from the world market, concentrating on producing the finest cartridges possible for sale only in Japan. Koetsu continued to refine their product, though fans of the Koetsu outside of Japan could only wait and wonder.

     In the late 1990's, Sugano Yoshiaki and his sons felt the time was right to distribute Koetsu cartridges on a global basis once again, to the world-wide delight of those who still love the analog LP. Sadly, Sugano-san passed away in 2002, but his legacy lives on in his son, Sugano Fumihiko, who, like his father, is committed to producing nothing less that the world's finest cartridge.

     Koetsu cartridges have no peer thanks to Sugano-san's creative genius and dedication. All materials must pass a stringent test for purity and musicality. When combined with the art of hand-wound coils, innovative construction techniques, and the centuries-old tradition of hand craftsmanship in the arts of woodworking and painting, all become one to create his masterpiece: the Koetsu Cartridge.

We are sorry, but we NO LONGER SUPPORT the KOETSU Line of Phono Cartridges.  There is a huge influx of counterfeit cartridges that are streaming out of China.  These cartridges may look similar, but the performance is very poor at best.
If the price online is too good to be true...  It is!

It is highly suggested that you purchase KOETSU CARTRIDGES from an Authorized Dealer in your local area.  That way...  If the performance is not as it should be...  You can take the cartridge back and get a REPLACEMENT FULL or a REFUND. 

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

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