Going from MM to MC

Chayro, I tend to think the OP is a big boy who must know that almost no question posed on this Forum ever elicits a single unanimous opinion from the peanut gallery. But I do agree that the myriad of responses, many of them to questions that were never asked, can be dismaying even to a disinterested casual reader of threads.

Crustycoot, since you own the phono stage, I trust you know what you’re talking about, but in reading the manual and scrutinizing the web, I fail to understand why you can’t use balanced mode for other than MC cartridges. Can you comment?

If you can find a van den Hul dealer, I would recommend his (AJ's) cartridges highly. Great detailed sound, medium output MC with a very long stylus life. There are tons of options, some less expensive, but if you include the ongoing stylus replacement cost, it makes up for it and you have a better sounding cartridge. I have an MC One Special that lists for close to $2K or so. And if you ever want to really splurge, I have heard their phono stage, the Grail, is really the holy grail (i'm not going there), perfectly matched to their cartridges. I use it with a Rega P8, so I expect it would pair well with a Linn arm, but make sure the weight is compatible. It's on the lighter side.

I'm a long time Ortofon MC user, and fan.  I've strayed a few times to other brands, only to come back to the Ortofon sound.  Most recently I tried a Soundsmith Zephyr II.  I wanted to get something with more output (less noise). I liked it OK.... it was very clean & clear... but boring.  After over a year on my table, I popped my old MC-30 SuperII back into my arm and got a shot of adrenaline!  My very old MC was much more engaging than the Zephyr (but not as resolving).  Then I tried a Quintet Black (very nice) and now I have a Cadenza Blue (very VERY nice!)  I am totally happy with my 30+ year old Sota Sapphire TT with the Cadenza Blue cart, into a Parasound JC3+.    

The Lyra Delos sounds above every cartridge I have owned.  It is clearer, cleaner, more detailed yet smooth, has dynamics and energy as good as my digital sources. Bass is punchy and detailed, midrange is clear and life like, treble is sweet and never bright or harsh.  

My last cartridge before the Delos was the Ortofon Cadenza Blue, which was very good but not as good as the Lyra.  

Before that I had a Soundsmith Zephyr MIMC star ES which I did not care for. 

Audio Technica ART9 and ART9 XA, better than the Soundsmith but not as good as the Ortofon. 

Dynavector DV20X2L, good but not as good as the ART9s. 

Ortofon 2M Black.  Great midrange but overall not very refined compared to the MC cartridges. 

Lyra Delos is a great value at its price and my winner.