SPU
A moving-coil stereo phono cartridge from Ortofon, first made in 1959 and still in production in several versions.
- Designed by
- Robert Gudmandsen
- Made by
- Ortofon
Pictures © Ortofon, from ortofon.com.
Why it is renowned
The SPU, first made in 1959 for professional use, is still produced in different versions, among them the SPU Meister of 1992.1 It is the only Ortofon stereo cartridge that has stayed in production since its launch.2
The story
SPU stands for stereo pick-up, as cartridges were called in the 1950s and 1960s; it was made to play the new stereo records, building on Ortofon's ten years of mono moving-coil cartridges, and Robert Gudmandsen took a leading part in its design.3
In 2004 Ortofon began to make new SPU-G housings of a resin mixed with wood powder.3 At the end of 2008 it introduced the SPU 90th Anniversary, designed with the Danish Technological Institute and made with a technique called rapid manufacturing.3 The range today runs from the SPU #1 E and S to the SPU Royal G MkII.2
Sources
- Ortofon, Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org, read 1 October 2026.
- Ortofon SPU Series, Ortofon. ortofon.com, read 1 October 2026.
- Our Story, Ortofon. ortofon.com, read 1 October 2026.
Last checked 2 October 2026, against the maker's own pages.