Hana EH/EL Moving Coil Cartridge, High Output

Recommended Component 2024 – Stereophile

Group Test Winner - Hi-Fi Choice Magazine

Recommended - Hi-Fi Choice

Deeply Groovy Award - The Audiophile Man

Very Highly Recommended - Positive Feedback

"I Love It," Says Stereophile

Hana EL and EH moving coil cartridges represent the best way to upgrade from 'starter' cartridges that typically come packaged with turntables. Weighing in at only 5 grams, and possessing great tracking ability, the Hana EL and EH cartridges feature a distinctive moss green body which houses a sophisticated generator with an aluminum cantilever and synthetic elliptical stylus.

"Recommended Component" Honors

Stereophile honored the Hana EL by awarding it the magazine's coveted Recommend Component status for 2024.

Stereophile magazine's Herb Reichert (reviewing the Hana EL moving coil cartridge in the August 2016 issue) listened to the Hana through an extensive variety of tonearm and phono stage combinations and a plethora of program material, all to great results.

Herb's initial reaction to the cartridge was that "the EL's basic sonic character was highly musical and exceptionally non-mechanical." He continues, "[The Hana EL] demonstrated technicolor mids, liquid (but not overly extended) highs, and a delightful way with plucked double bass." Additional listening yielded more great results, with Mr. Reichert touting its "easygoing musical magic" and its "inexorably real" sound.

Herb's conclusion: "I love it."

Group Test Winner

The Hana was a Hi-Fi Choice Group Test Winner in a comparison of cartridges in a similar class and/or pricing and also won a "Recommended" badge from the magazine.

"The EH balances a rich, detailed, and refined presentation with impressive tonal accuracy…."

"It is emotionally engaging and has a sense of air and space that is unusual at the price."

"Perhaps just as importantly, the Hana manages to sound fun as well…. It rewards with an exceptional sonic performance!"

More "Best" Honors

Part-Time Audiophile included the Hana EH / EL in its The Best Phono Cartridges, Tonearms and Headshells Buyers Guide 2022. "After mounting this affordable high-output MC on a very expensive table with two tonearms, and against another cartridge that was more than five times the Hana’s cost, we were surprised that the lower bass frequencies were fuller and more satisfying—possibly at the cost of that last bit of inner detail. This is crazy inexpensive for one of the best phono cartridges to feature Japanese high-quality."

Also, ecoustics.com listed the hana EH / EL in its Best Phono Cartridges: 2021 Holiday Buying Guide, with Ian White saying, "An excellent tracker, the EL offers a lush sounding midrange, and slightly rolled-off treble making it an excellent cartridge with a wide range of music and systems."

"Terrific Value for the Money"

Reviewing the EL and the EH, Paul Rigby at TheAudiophileMan.com gave them a Deeply Groovy Award, noting that both cartridges "performed well and both bring genuine advantages to any listening session, while both offer terrific value for money."

"If the vinyl revival continues I see a bright future for the new Hana brand, its excellent price to quality ratio should ensure that," notes René van Es in a February 12, 2016 review for The-Ear.net

Chose Low Output or High Output Versions

The EL cartridge, in case you were wondering, is the low output version. Not totally unexpectedly, the EH is the high output version. EL has an output voltage of 0.5mV, while EH has an output voltage of 2.0mV.

Hana cartridges use the best materials, including alnico magnets, cross-shaped armatures, and proprietary manufacturing processes. Hana has excelled at creating MC cartridges noted worldwide for their sound and value, which retain their 'musical magic' regardless of their phono stage pairing.

"The Best Cartridge I Have Ever Owned"

"The Hana [EH] cartridge is the best cartridge I have ever owned," proclaims Byron Baba, dagogo.com, October 2018. "I have been using my Hana almost every day for hours, so there is probably well over 1,500 hours on it. The sound has not degraded at all, which means this is a fairly durable moving coil cartridge. I bought a number of extra cartridges so I could rotate cartridges and not wear out the Hana, however, I still use the Hana almost exclusively."

"The almost unbelievable increase in trackability, musicality, and overall performance makes it worth every penny, raves Tom Gibbs at positivefeedback.com. "Very highly recommended!"

"For me, the Hana EH not only redefines the budget MC cartridge: it practically redefines music for the open minded audiophile. Gold Star indeed, and my most enthusiastic recommendation," notes Noam Bronstein, wallofsound.ca, January 10, 2017.

Product Features

Distinctive moss green body
Sophisticated generator
Stylus shape: Elliptical
Aluminum cantilever

Product Specs

Output voltage: EH: 2mV; EL: 0.5mV
Weight: 5.0 grams
Tracking: 2.0 grams
Manufacturer's limited warranty: 2 years

Recommended Component 2024 – Stereophile

"The EL's basic sonic character was highly musical and exceptionally non-mechanical… [The Hana EL] demonstrated technicolor mids, liquid (but not overly extended) highs, and a delightful way with plucked double bass."

Additional listening yielded more great results, with Mr. Reichert touting its "easygoing musical magic" and its "inexorably real" sound.

Herb's conclusion: "I love it."

- Stereophile, March 15, 2024 / Herb Reichert , Stereophile, August 2016

Group Test Winner - Hi-Fi Choice Magazine

Recommended - Hi-Fi Choice

"The EH balances a rich, detailed, and refined presentation with impressive tonal accuracy…."

"It is emotionally engaging and has a sense of air and space that is unusual at the price."

"Perhaps just as importantly, the Hana manages to sound fun as well…. It rewards with an exceptional sonic performance!"

- Editorial Staff, Hi-Fi Choice, July 1, 2019

Deeply Groovy Award The Audiophile Man

"My first impressions of the EH was that it was a very smooth, easy going, performer. Turning to more dynamic fare, I played a recently re-issued Joy Division album, Substance and played the aggressive song, ‘Leaders of Men’, which was introduced by a rather insistent bass guitar. Lead vocals were articulated well via the EH. There was a lot of passion and energy infused into this area which could have invited slurring and blurring at times but the EH successfully resisted any such urge. More than that, the texture of the vocal delivery added to the emotive presentation which helped the ear to engage with the motive power of the music."

"Both cartridges [EH and EL], however, performed well and both bring genuine advantages to any listening session, while both offer terrific value for money."

- Paul Rigby, TheAudiophileMan.com

The Best Phono Cartridges, Tonearms and Headshells Buyers Guide 2022 - Part-Time Audiophile

"After mounting this affordable high-output MC on a very expensive table with two tonearms, and against another cartridge that was more than five times the Hana’s cost, we were surprised that the lower bass frequencies were fuller and more satisfying—possibly at the cost of that last bit of inner detail. This is crazy inexpensive for one of the best phono cartridges to feature Japanese high-quality."

- Editorial Staff, Part-Time Audiophile, November 26, 2021

Best Phono Cartridges: 2021 Holiday Buying Guide - ecoustics.com

"An excellent tracker, the EL offers a lush sounding midrange, and slightly rolled-off treble making it an excellent cartridge with a wide range of music and systems."

- Ian White, ecoustics.com, November 10, 2021

"The Hana (EL and EH) get a solid recommendation for their $475 price point. The Hana-SH gets an easy recommendation for the sub-$999 category and quite possibly beyond. The Hana-SL is the gem of the lineup and can easily fit in any ’table/’arm combination that will accommodate a 0.5mV output. With the Hana-SL, the user can rest assured the cartridge will support the next ’table/’arm “upgrade” and will provide a clear baseline from which to judge if any future cartridge “upgrade” is warranted. The Hana-SL is strongly being considered as an addition to my choices of moving-coil cartridges to use for ’table/’arm evaluations and—more importantly—musical enjoyment. Yes, it’s that good."

- The Absolute Sound, High-End Audio Buyer’s Guide 2017

"The Hana EL is truly a remarkable cartridge, and in combination with The Classic, makes for a compelling and world-class analog playback system. And even though the price is probably double what I'm typically used to paying for the cartridge that's usually mounted in the arm of my table, the almost unbelievable increase in trackability, musicality, and overall performance makes it worth every penny."

"Very highly recommended!"

- Tom Gibbs, Positive Feedback, June 11, 2018

"If the vinyl revival continues I see a bright future for the new Hana brand, its excellent price to quality ratio should ensure that."

- René van Es, The-Ear.net, February 12, 2016

"You could say the EL looks at the bigger picture. Rather than focusing upon specifics, it offers a possibly more engaging and flowing performance."

"Both these [EL and EH] moving coil cartridges performed well and they bring genuine advantages to any listening session at a low, low price. Terrific value for money."

- Hi-Fi World

"The Hana [EH] cartridge is the best cartridge I have ever owned. I have been using my Hana almost every day for hours, so there is probably well over 1,500 hours on it. The sound has not degraded at all, which means this is a fairly durable moving coil cartridge. I bought a number of extra cartridges so I could rotate cartridges and not wear out the Hana, however, I still use the Hana almost exclusively."

- Byron Baba, dagogo.com, October 2018

"For me, the Hana EH not only redefines the budget MC cartridge: it practically redefines music for the open minded audiophile. Gold Star indeed, and my most enthusiastic recommendation."

- Noam Bronstein, wallofsound.ca, January 10, 2017