”The Delos optimizes performance by properly orientating the magnetic circuits, signal coils, and core. With the cartridge at rest, asymmetrical dampers place the signal coils and core into a more upright angle vis-à-vis the magnetic circuit. With tracking force applied, the force of the stylus pushing on the LP causes the asymmetrical dampers to become symmetrical. An exceptionally quiet background is the most immediately striking aspect of this design. It is also very well balanced and notably coherent, natural, rich, and fast.”

Wayne Garcia, The Absolute Sound

“If you’re in the market for a top-end cartridge, Lyra offers not one but two versions of its signature Atlas. The first has 0.56mV output, the second 0.25mV. Which one to choose? The regular Atlas offers a bit more slam and sizzle than the super-low-output version. But the lower-output Atlas provides more finesse and lower noise. Rock aficionados will probably gravitate to the regular Atlas, but for classical the higher-priced cartridge is probably the better match. But both are superlative cartridges that will provide a spellbinding presentation of well-nigh any LP.”

JHb, The Absolute Sound

“The Etna offers the most winning set of attributes that Lyra has produced. Vocals have a physicality and palpability that provides an unprecedented sense of realism. The sense of snap and pacing is also exemplary. A silky continuity that eluded previous Lyra efforts is also abundantly apparent, partly a product of very quiet backgrounds. Careful matching with a phonostage will be necessary, especially in the case of the Super Low (SL) output version, which supplies as mere 0.25mV. But this amazing cartridge will take most vinyl reproduction to a new level.”

JHb, The Absolute Sound

”Significantly improved sonic performance” doesn’t begin to describe the differences between the Atlas SL and the Atlas SL λ…”

“The damper and suspension changes bring to the Atlas SL λ a quality of top-to-bottom, luxurious textural suppleness, sustain, timbral generosity, and midband warmth, while losing none of the speed, slam, and detail retrieval for which the Atlas SL (and the brand in general) is best known. Still evident are black backgrounds against which are “carved images in perfect relief,”

Michael Fremer, Stereophile

“In short, the Lyra Etna SL just does the LP justice. Any LP. Other words are just filler. The fact it can do justice to records that really don’t deserve justice (why did I buy a Lionel Richie album, and why the hell did I play it, even if it sounded good?) only serves to show why the Lyra Etna SL sets a standard against which all other top-end cartridges should be referenced. It really is that good. If the Atlas and Atlas SL are even better, I will have to turn to a life of crime.”

Alan Sircom, hifi+

”For me, the Atlas Lambda is Jonathan Carr and Yoshinori Mishima’s masterpiece — a ”last” cartridge for the most discriminating audiophile. Anyone with the money to buy one of these extraordinary cartridges, however, will surely have multiple armwands, so let’s just say that if you are one of these lucky few, there is little risk to hitching an Atlas Lambda to one of them and settling back for some fun. As I said with the original Atlas, if I had to start from scratch and build a system around one component, it would be that cartridge. But now it would be the Atlas Lambda.”

Dennis Davis, The Audio Beat