I have a Soundsmith Carmen mk2 and it is a great sounding cartridge. Many Soundsmiths are available at fabulous prices as the line has been redesigned.
cartridge recommendation
the cantilever of my benz micro
MC2OE2 cartridge broke recently.
benz micro offered me kind of repair discount for another cartridge, like mc gold or other.
i'm not sure if this is the one i'll go on.
looking for one up to 500 $.
naturality of sound is very important to me, can't stand coloration.
think i need kind of high output 1-2 mv. ( i'm working with an integrated amp with build in phono stage).
have some names that was given me, but i'm open to others:
Benz Micro MC Gold/silver, LP Gear Bin 215, LP Gear Bin 323, Hana EH, Audio technica AT-OC9, DL103.
my turntable and arm are WELL TEMPERED.
benz micro offered me kind of repair discount for another cartridge, like mc gold or other.
i'm not sure if this is the one i'll go on.
looking for one up to 500 $.
naturality of sound is very important to me, can't stand coloration.
think i need kind of high output 1-2 mv. ( i'm working with an integrated amp with build in phono stage).
have some names that was given me, but i'm open to others:
Benz Micro MC Gold/silver, LP Gear Bin 215, LP Gear Bin 323, Hana EH, Audio technica AT-OC9, DL103.
my turntable and arm are WELL TEMPERED.
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- 25 posts total
chakster- i think i prefer a new cartilage. johnto - i saw that the Soundsmith Carmen mk2 is 999$' its beyond my budget. |
@Stone1- I'll let someone else tackle your question, though some years ago (late '80s?), I had a Well Tempered -the original one, which had been heavily tweaked and used a range of cartridges, mostly MC. One key to that arm was getting the 'right' amount of fluid in the cup b/c the damping could change the sound. I can't remember all the cartridges I used with it, but did have a Van De Hul (a higher output MC) and one of those Lyra Parnassus with the unobtanium magnets. Given the price of state of the art MC cartridges today, the notion of a vintage cartridge (even if rebuilt) may make sense, see below. @chakster (and others)- I remember many of the cartridges you list from new, back in the day. That AT20 I had new, if I recall, it was an early Shibata- and considered a very good cartridge at the time. This was circa 1973? or so and it was installed in an AT arm that had a pneumatic lift with a hose and cuing lever that mounted flush to the turntable plinth. (It was on a Technics SP 10 back then). --- I'm just now going back and exploring some of these older cartridges- I've been using the fancy current ones, and the prices are getting daunting for top tier. I got a Monster Genesis 1000 to use as a stopgap and it is a little lean sounding, not bright, just not as full sounding in the lower midrange or as tonally rich as the Airtights I have been using for the last decade or so. But it is still breaking in and at the price, it is a phenomenal performer. I had many Grados back in the day- they were always considered very good sounding for the money- I do remember some people had issues with hum, which may be due to the design and electrical noise thrown off from the motor? being picked up by the cartridge. Peter L from Soundsmith is a gift. |
- 25 posts total