I have a Pioneer PL-530 which is a couple of steps up from your model. These tables with their S-shaped tonearms are not capable of extracting the most from very expensive cartridges. If the table was originally bought with a cartridge included it was probably a Shure budget model. On my table I have a Grado Gold cart. Works well given my setup. Well under the $300 budget. However, the phono stage in the system is just as important as the cart.
Auditioning cartridges is almost impossible unless there is a return option. Probably hard to find. Best advice.....search other forums and try to find other opinions for that particular table. Good Luck.
Auditioning cartridges is almost impossible unless there is a return option. Probably hard to find. Best advice.....search other forums and try to find other opinions for that particular table. Good Luck.