I spend a decent amount of time looking for products to cover and my search landed me on ZYX’s website. ZYX is a Japanese company that makes high-performance cartridges also ZYZ is an initialism, meaning you pronounce it Zi/ks/. I reached out to SORAsound to check out the Exceed Bloom and they got one sent over for review. Everything from the packaging to the cartridge itself is purposeful and beautifully built and presented. It certainly primes you for the performance you are about to experience. The Bloom Exceed is one of their newer products so I was quite excited to check it out. The Bloom Exceed is a “Real Stereo” MC-type cart, the “Real Stereo” refers to the motor design which I’ll discuss more later, however, it is a novel approach to creating distinct stereo sound. The Exceed Bloom is the entry point into the Exceed line from ZYX and comes in at an MSRP of $1,400.00 (U.S.), so it is far from entry-level in the grand scheme. So what do 1400 dollars get you, is the Exceed Bloom worth the money? Let’s see what it has to offer and if it is the right product for you.
Unboxing and Setup:
I am a sucker for good packaging and the Exceed Bloom comes in a great package. When I opened the box it shipped in, I was greeted by this gorgeous ornate drawstring bag, and inside was a wood box with an acrylic top. Held securely in the center is the ZYX Bloom, and under it was a toolset to mount the ZYX as well as an assortment of different screw lengths. The varied length screws were great as I had to use the medium ones to mount the Exceed Bloom to the Wand Tonearm, and the long ones with my VPI 3D Tonearm. The included screwdriver works well enough, but I prefer to use my I Fix It set as I have better control with the handle but for someone that does not have precision screwdrivers, it works well enough. The wand was much easier to set on as the alignment is fixed so I just had to worry about getting my tracking force right and I went with 2.0 grams as recommended. On the VPI it is a little trickier with the slotted head, but using the VPI protractor I got it aligned in no time and tightened down my screws just enough to hold it secure and finally again set my weight at 2.0 grams.
Sound:
The ZYX Bloom Exceed is a pretty incredible value proposal as it performs extremely well and is relatively affordable. The clarity is beyond what I have experienced from any of my Ortofon cartridges, while they are not truly comparable, it is more a show of there being better sound available if you go with a higher-end cartridge. The tonality of the ZYX in my system seems ever so slightly on the bright side of neutral, though it may be the extra detail being resolved that makes it seem that way. I found that it is much less forgiving of poor quality or dirty recordings than any of my Otofon carts, but the positive side to that coin is that you are able to extract exceptional detail out of clean quality recordings. The stereo separation is certainly impeccable and their claims seem to line up with what I hear.
I used the Bloom Exceed on a couple of different tonearms, one being the 10″ Wand Tonearm as a part of its own review and on my VPI 10″ 3D uni pivot arm. In both cases, I enjoyed the sound of the ZYX, and it certainly does well on medium-mass tonearms. I do have to say that I did like it more on the Wand as you will see more below. In either case, it extracts great levels of detail with a good balance. Vocals are crystal clear and natural sounding with great texture, making them very lifelike.
Listening
Aurora: All My Demons Greeting Me as A Friend
Aurora has an incredible voice and I had looked for this album for quite a while before finally finding a copy. It has what is probably her most popular and one of my favorite songs; “Runaway”. The notes she hits are impressive as are the melody and instrumentals. Aurora is among my favorite singers so I knew this album would be one of the ones I used in this review. Her music has elements of orchestral, folk, and pop/rock and blends it incredibly well and a revealing cartridge like the ZYX Bloom Exceed really fleshes out the details and nuances of her music as well as wonderfully reproducing her ethereal vocals. The ZYX is quite fast as well, creating a sharply detailed stage with great separation of each element in the music. The sound stage is large, extending beyond the room in both width and depth giving all the layers loads of room to stand out. While the whole album is wonderful “Runaway” is exceptional among the rest of the tracks. The song spans a wide frequency range from low rumbling bass to super high sparkly synths. All this behind the angelic vocals of Aurora, reaching incredibly high. This is probably the best I have heard her sound. Aurora’s voice is so lifelike as if she is here in the room with me.
Purity Ring: Another Eternity
Purity Ring is a Canadian indie electronic pop duo with many dreamy, airy songs that take advantage of a revealing and open system. “Bodyache” is one of my favorite songs from the album Another Eternity, it has a great melody with a punchy bass-heavy chorus. The bridge is slower and has that dreamy sound that Purity Ring is known for but the whole song is a neat sonic journey with highs and lows to keep your attention. The next track “Push Pull” is more synthy and airy with several staccato style notes giving a sense of space. The Bloom Exceed recreates the bass in a controlled way that punches but doesn’t overdrive the sound, allowing the midrange to shine. The top end is delicate and detailed adding that icing on the sound.
Moby: Porcelain Pt. 1
Porcelain Pt. 1 is a remix album with 4 different mixes on it that came out in 2000 on vinyl. I have only ever seen this album 1 time and that is the one I happen to have. Porcelain is probably one of Moby’s most recognizable songs but these 4 mixes change it up quite a bit. The first track adds in a bunch of drums that the original doesn’t have and it gives it a more tecno beat than the original. The panning back between channels is extra noticeable with the ZYX Bloom Exceed and it helps to create a more realistic 3d stage. I haven’t really heard this album like this before, with this much nuance and detail. The second track is the original album version, so you can really compare the remix to the original back-to-back. Side 2 is quite the departure from the original, especially at the beginning of track one. That said it’s an interesting album to listen to and hear different versions all together in one place and as a huge Moby and electronic music fan in general I love all the remixes. The bass throughout the album is punchy and infectious, hard not to enjoy and the reproduction through the Bloom is accurate and detailed, at no point sounding muddy or overdriven.
Massive Attack: Mezzanine
This album is full of dynamic and bassy tracks. All of them have a different sound making it a fun album to flex your system with. Mezzanine also has a lot of transient notes that can be missed if your system is not up to the task. The Bloom Exceed did well to extract those transients and allow them to add to the dimension of the music and build the holographic sound. As I mentioned in previous album impressions, the bass is also superb, in both its punch but also in its control, the speed and responsiveness of the Bloom allow it to not get overdriven in bassy tracks, as you can sometimes hear with entry-level carts that get overwhelmed. Bass isn’t all that is impressive, the high hats, cymbals, and higher frequency synths really pop giving that sparkle and excitement to the music.
On the Wand
This excerpt is pulled from the Wand Tonearm review (Link Here):
The Music: Peter Cat Recording Co. – Bismillah
https://hifichicken.com/review-the-wand-tonearm-a-unique-approach-to-unipivot-tonearms
If you have never listened to Peter Cat Recording Co. you are missing out. I’ll be honest I’m not entirely sure how to describe them, they have a bit of Sinatra influence, some electronic elements, jazz, and probably other adjectives as well. All that said, I love them, I plan on seeing them live here in a couple of months in Columbus for their new album tour.
On the Wand
The Zyx Exceed Bloom is an entry into the Exceed Line from Zyx, though at $1,400.00 U.S. it may not be what some consider entry-level. Its performance on the Wand was also not that of an entry-level cartridge. This is the best I heard from the Wand and goes to show the potential on tap, and I would have no issue using cartridges that double triple, or even quadruple the price of the Wand. It won’t hold back a quality cartridge and easily could be an end-game tonearm. The detail and articulation from the Exceed on the Wand is stunning. It is incredibly fast and reactive to dynamic frequency changes and ate up anything I threw at it. Hearing Bismillah by Peter Cat Recording Co, was like hearing for the first time again. This combo is my favorite analog setup I have had in my system to date and both the Bloom and Wand will be hard to send back.
On the VPI 3D Unipivot
The Exceed Bloom is a wonderful cartridge so it’s certainly not going to perform poorly on any quality turntable setup, but that doesn’t mean it won’t perform differently on different tonearms. It sounded great on the VPI Arm, but it seemed a little less expressive as compared to the wand. It is a minor difference, certainly not like a world-changing difference. The detail and speed seemed very comparable, but the edge wasn’t quite as sharp. The Wand is more rigid due to the shape and material and it lends to how the cartridge reacts to the groove, which likely lends to differences in sound. The Zyx doesn’t sound bad at all on the VPI arm but I found that on the Wand, the overall sound was better and more enjoyable.
Specs:
| HO:High output Model | |
|---|---|
| Type | Moving Coil (Dynamic) “REAL STEREO” Generator System |
| Cryogenic Treatment | Temperature: -196 ℃ (-320оF) |
| Coil Wire | 6N OFCφ0.035mm |
| Output Voltage | 0.24mV (HO:0.48mV) (3.54cm/sec, 1kHz) |
| Frequency Response ±1dB | 10 Hz – 100 kHz 20 Hz – 20 kHz |
| Channel Separation | ＞ 30dB 〔 1kHz 〕 |
| Channel Balance | ＜ 0.5dB 〔 1kHz 〕 |
| Recommended Tracking Force | 2.0gm 〔 20 ゜C-25 ゜C 〕 |
| Tracking Force Range | 1.7gm – 2.5gm |
| Trackability | ＞60μm /2.0gm |
| EQ Compliancehorizontal vertical | 15×10-6cm/dyne 12×10-6cm/dyne |
| Internal Impedance | 4.0 Ω (HO:8.0 Ω) |
| Load Impedance | ＞ 100Ω |
| Cantilever Material | Black ALMg5 tube φ0.45×φ0.30mm |
| Stylus | Line-contact Solid Diamond □0.1mm |
| Contact Radius, Life Time | 6μm×35μm, 2000Hour/2.0gm |
| Output Terminals | φ1.25mm gold plated〔EIA〕 |
| Terminal Board | Glass Epoxy Plate |
| Dimensions | 16.2mm(W)×19.7mm(L)×x17.6mm(H) |
| Net Weight | 5.0gm, 7.7gm(TB), 9.5gm(SB) |
Price: $1,400.00 (U.S. MSRP)
Distributor: SORAsound
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Great sound quality
- Detailed
- Great speed
- Great channel separation
Cons:
- None at this pricepoint
Associated Equipment:
- VPI Prime with VPI 3d Unipivot (10″) and Wand Unipivot (10″)
- Ortofon 2M Red, Blue and Bronze
- Ortofon Quintet Red
- SOTA Pyxi
- Advance Paris My Connect 250
- Marantz SR7009
- McIntosh MC250
- Onkyo M5140
- Sonus Faber Sonetto V
- Magnepan LRS+
- Paradigm Defiance V8
- Synergistic Foundation SX loom (Gold and Purple tuning discs)
- Synergistic Powercell 8SX
Conclusion:
ZYX is not a brand I see much about, and having experienced the Bloom Exceed, I think that needs to change. They have created a great cartridge well within the budget of many audiophiles that performs exceptionally well. The only downside to a resolving cartridge is that it is not forgiving with poor recordings, that said it is not exclusive to the Bloom Exceed, it is something you will experience with all high-end cartridges. That said when you are listening to well-recorded albums the sound is superb and worth every penny. Having listened to the Bloom Exceed has made me want to try the rest of the ZYX lineup and likely purchase one to use in my reference system. I am really surprised I don’t see more ZYX carts in systems in the forums and Facebook groups, as ZYX certainly deserves your attention and is well worth an audition in your system. If you are looking for a higher-end entry-level cart with something special up its sleeve, the ZYX Bloom Exceed may be the right fit for you.
For more information and where to purchase click the link below:
For American Distribution click the link below:
