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Moving coil cartridge

hello all,

It has been on my mind for the past 3 years. " I wonder if I should try out a moving coil cartridge" Well it seems that this itching is driving me crazy to the point of OCD'ing 24/7. I own a modest set up, nothing too fancy, a Marantz-Clear Audio TT15SE equipped with the wooden Virtuoso MM cartridge. I have to admit I love the rich and warmness that the Virtuoso provides and have other MM's such as the Orofon 2M black but prefer the Virtuoso because of the aforementioned attributes and its almost silent like operation. I digress, I must quench my thirst and put the MC debate to rest once and for all.

A local dealer in my area seems to like the Dynavector brand. They range from $650.00 to over 5K. I of course cannot afford much above $1,500 so I figured the new 20x2 HL and 17D3 would be a good starting point. One, does anyone know if this a good fit for the TT15SE? I ask this because the Ortofon 2M black which sounds great on my old Ariston rig, sounds very average on the Marantz. Two, of the 2 Dynavectors mentioned, the 17D3 being the more expensive units, would I be better of trying the lower end 20x2 unit first? From what I have read the 2 have totally different sonics and soundstage characteristics so i am not sure if the more expensive unit (ie 17D3) would be the right choice.
Any other suggestions for MC cartridges?
All feedback would be aprreciated.

Thanks
vinylmad814
pbnaudio's avatar
pbnaudio
1,613 posts
 
Just to get your feet wet with a MC cartridge try a Denon DL 103R its inexpensive and you will have to spend much more to get better performance, it is a true steal.

Before stepping in make sure your phono preamp have sufficient gain for the LOMC

Good Listening

Peter
dougdeacon
3,338 posts
 
You didn't mention your phono stage. Without knowing its gain and impedance characteristics no MC recommendation would be meaningful.

That said, my guidance is likely to be that you spend your next $1,500 elsewhere. Unless your other vinyl components (turntable, tonearm, phono stage) are entirely up to snuff you won't hear what a good MC can do. You may well, however, hear what your other components can't do.

Of the four major components in a vinyl setup the cartridge should generally be upgraded LAST.
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