| Re: Longest you've used a cartridge [message #97349 is a reply to message #97344] |
Tue, 16 January 2024 20:04   |
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gofar99
Messages: 1940
Registered: May 2010
Location: Southern Arizona
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Illuminati (5th Degree) |
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Hi Everyone, A few of the cartridges I like that have replaceable styli are the Goldring 1042 (really excellent and can be found new with great markdowns on occasion) Ortofon OM series (all the styli interchange) with an OM 20 or 30 stylus, the 3,5 and 10 are so-so and the 40 too costly, Grado if you like their particular sound quality (The Gold is my choice, but most costly). For cartridges that don't have replaceable styli, Hana EL (or EH), Grado Sonata II is my normal go to cartridge (the III does not seem to be as good), Dynavector 10X5 (or 6 if you can find one at a good price), AT33PTG-II (again the III seems not as good), AT F7, and my go to high end one Dynavector Ruby Karat 23MR-RS. A reasonably good sounding MC is the BIN 215. One thing for sure...cartridge prices do not always translate well into performance. I do not own any but there are several AT cartridges that are both cheap and apparently sound pretty good. Lots of choices and many can swap styli. Generally though the quality of performance is incrementally better with higher cost. Two mistakes many folks seem to make is (one) getting a really low ball cartridge for a high end tone arm and (two) getting a really high end cartridge for a low end arm. Neither work well IMO. It seems to me that there tends to be a sweet sort of relationship. The cost of the arm ought to be between 1/2 and 1 times the cost of the cartridge. If the arm is pre-mounted on a turntable the cartridge probably should not be more than the turntable. For example a $500 turntable should not have a cartridge costing more than that and you could go down to 1/2 of that. A $500 arm could do well with a $500 to $1000 cartridge. BTW all prices are retail for new gear. Used stuff is a lot less and many components show up from time to time highly discounted. BUYER BEWARE of deals from unknown sellers that seem to good to be true. They probably are.
Good Listening
Bruce
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