Goldring Goldring Ethos SE
Deliciously Crispy
Sound Quality
93/100
Build Quality
90/100
Features Usability
86/100
Value for Money
95/100
Goldring Ethos SE brings vinyl alive with a silky extended treble, rich expressive midrange and tightly timed, powerful bass. SoundStage Solo found its wide, cohesive imaging especially compelling, while HiFi News praised its natural flow, atmosphere and refreshingly unfussy loading. This is a refined, detail-rich MC that makes music feel expansive, tactile and effortlessly complete.
Pros
Silky, extended highs, richly expressive mids and tight, rhythmic bass create a refined yet engaging tonal balance.
Wide, integrated soundstage conveys convincing scale, ambience and cohesive musical images.
Secure tracking, strong low-level detail and quiet groove behavior support clean, confident playback.
Less fussy about loading and VTA than many moving-coil designs, with straightforward installation features.
Cons
Cymbals sacrifice a little ultimate metallic bite versus more overtly energetic cartridges.
High compliance favors a low-mass tonearm, and the 0.35mV output benefits from a capable MC phono stage.
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What Reviewers Are Saying
SOUND QUALITY PERFORMANCE 93/100
Reviews consistently describe a refined, natural and richly textured presentation, combining a silky upper range, expressive midband and authoritative bass. Its strengths lie in cohesion, low-level resolution and an expansive, integrated presentation rather than deliberately spotlighting individual elements.
Overall Sound
93/100
SoundStage Solo heard a pure, extended and silky treble, rich midrange and tight, forceful bass, while Positive Feedback found the sound organic, lifelike and naturally saturated through the midrange. HiFi News similarly praised its even-handed, flowing and sophisticated character, though it noted that cymbals lack the last degree of metallic bite offered by more forward-sounding rivals.
Tracking Retrieval
95/100
The line-contact stylus and low-mass silver-coil implementation earn repeated praise for extracting detail and texture while maintaining firm groove contact. HiFi News heard secure tracking and detailed, well-timed bass, Positive Feedback found mistracking virtually eliminated, and SoundStage Solo called it remarkably quiet in the groove.
Soundstage Imaging
91/100
Reviewers hear generous air, scale and ambience, with HiFi News describing a grander sense of space around vocals. SoundStage Solo characterizes the stage as wide and integrated, presenting large, cohesive musical images rather than sharply isolated instrumental pinpoints.
FEATURES USABILITY PERFORMANCE 86/100
Tonearm compatibility / system fit.
Tonearm Compatibility
86/100
HiFi News found the Ethos SE unusually accommodating for an MC, citing straightforward setup and little sensitivity to VTA or loading changes. However, its relatively high compliance means arm matching still matters: SoundStage Solo found that it performed best after moving from a heavier arm to a lower-mass VPI arm, and its 0.35mV output calls for a suitable MC phono stage.
Assessments of Build Quality, Usability, and Overall Propositions.
Build Quality
90/100
The Ethos SE uses a precision-milled, black-anodised 6082-T6 aircraft-grade aluminium body, a bespoke suspension and a Vital line-contact stylus on an aluminium-alloy cantilever. HiFi News also notes the high-quality double-boxed presentation, inspection certificate and matching mounting hardware, although the reviews offer little on long-term durability.
Value for Money
95/100
At $1,999 / £1,299 / €1,599, the Ethos SE sits in the upper-tier moving-coil market, yet HiFi News calls this range-topping design a “veritable audiophile bargain.” Its comparison that the cartridge costs less than some enthusiasts spend on cables positions it as unusually compelling against premium analogue-system expenditures and cartridge peers.
Reviews & Sources
Professional reviews and sources for this product's Watt'n Potatoes analysis.
Online Reviews & Mentions
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Specifications
- Frequency Response
- 20 Hz – 20 kHz ± 2 dB
- Frequency Range
- 12 Hz – 32 kHz
- Channel Balance
- within 1 dB @ 1 kHz
- Channel Separation
- better than 30 dB @ 1 kHz
- Sensitivity
- 0.35 mV ± 1 dB, 1 kHz @ 5 cm/sec
- Static Compliance
- 28 mm/N
- Trackability
- 90 um (@ 315 Hz)
- Equivalent tip mass
- 0.34 mg
- Vertical Tracking Angle
- 20 °
- Stylus Profile
- Vital line-contact
- Stylus Radius
- 35 x 8 µm (0.3 mil)
- Stylus Type
- Factory Replaceable
- Load Resistance
- 100 Ω
- Load Capacitance
- 100 – 500 pF
- Internal Inductance
- 3.5 µH
- Internal Resistance
- 3.8 Ω
- Cartridge Mass
- 7.7 g
- Cartridge Mass (inc. fixings)
- 8.5 g (without stylus cover)
- Fixing Centres
- 0.5 " (12.7 mm)
- Playing Weight
- 1.5 - 2.0 g (1.75 g nom.)
Manufacturer's Description — Goldring
Goldring, introduces Ethos SE - a special edition of its award-winning Ethos model. Sitting at the very top of Goldring's range of moving coil cartridges, Ethos SE combines uncompromising engineering with unique new features to produce a cartridge of exquisite sound reproduction capabilities.
Thanks to a raft of exclusive and carefully engineered upgrades - including pure silver coils, low reluctance pole shoes and a black anodized, aircraft-grade aluminium body - Ethos SE sets entirely new standards in terms of detail retrieval, channel separation and low colouration. Even when judged against cartridges costing a great deal more, this new special edition cartridge delivers a totally immersive, thrillingly complete musical experience - which has always been the Goldring ethos.
"The Ethos SE exudes refinement…The Ethos SE has a pure, extended, silky top end; a rich, expressive midrange; and a tight, walloping bottom end. It’s the James Bond of cartridges. Without a doubt, the Ethos SE is a great cartridge. At its retail price, it’s a bargain. Highly recommended. "
"The Goldring Ethos SE is a hugely enjoyable cartridge. Building on the strengths of the Ethos, it adds an extra level of sophistication, and serves it up with a better sense of atmosphere and scale. Add in ease of setup and its indifference to VTA and loading changes, and you have an absolute winner. For a range-topping design that costs less than some spend on cables, this is a veritable audiophile bargain."
Verified Dealers
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Authorized dealers for Goldring Goldring Ethos SE
- Absoulute Audio plus Video — in-store — Aiken, South Carolina, United States (website)
- Holt Hill — online and in-store — Andover, Massachusetts, United States (website)
- Acoustic Technologies — online and in-store — Montréal, Québec, Canada (website)
- Acton Gate Audio — online and in-store — Cymru, United Kingdom (website)
- ALAIN CHOUKROUN — online and in-store — Paris, Île-de-France, France (website)
- All That Audio — in-store — Anaheim, California, United States (website)
- Alpha High End — online and in-store — Brasschaat, Vlaams Gewest, Belgium (website)
- Alta Fedelta — online and in-store — Lombardia, Italy (website)
- Altitudo Audio — online and in-store — Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada (website)
- American Audio & Video — in-store — Southaven, Mississippi, United States (website)
and 109 more verified dealers