I appreciate the question but it’s asked on the wrong premise.
I have not heard the AT-ML180 on my equipment and will have to buy a turntable
and arm for it (my Linn is otherwise employed). So I thought that this might be
an opportunity to ask an engineering question.
Given the mechanical and physical properties of the
cartridge, what would theoretically (in terms of physics) be the most
compatible cartridge/arm/turntable system? My knowledge of the physical properties
of the components, and the synergy between them, is not up to analyzing and
calculating this.
I realize that the final choice of equipment will be based on
more than just the physical interaction between the components and that
personal sonic preferences will enter into the final decisions but I am looking for
a rational starting place.
The Hi Fi industry, like many others, is largely based on
marketing, hype, lust (after the newest, sexiest piece of kit) envy and profit
margins. And on top of that we all tend to hear what we want to hear (“veils
are lifted”). But since cartridge-arm-turntable is an (albeit complex) mechanical
system I thought that it should be possible to start out with a rational
approach before getting into the psycho-acoustic variables.
