Best Budget Phono Cartridge?


After upgrading my system for CDs and SACDs recently, I pulled my old turntable out of storage to see how it would stack up. It sounded pretty sick, and my best guess is that an old (very old) Stanton 681EEE is the culprit. I don’t want to spend a lot of money on this experiment, but if I can find a decent cartridge in the $100-250 range it would be fun to see how my old vinyl compares. I’m looking at the following new or NOS cartridges:


Audio Technica AT7V MM or AT-F2 MC

Denon DL 103 MC or DL 110 MC;

Grado Prestige Gold1

Sumiko Pearl MM  

Ortofon 2M Blue MM  

Shure M97xE

 Would any of you like to weigh in on this list, or add a favorite of your own? I’ll be inputing to a Parasound New Classic 2100 preamp.


128x128cheeg
viridian
Just to clarify, I have no issue with disagreements on matters of phono alignment and welcome the discussion. So, contrary to cleeds wanting to paint my ire as a reaction to these differences, he knows that is not correct.
The post that was deleted by the moderators was ugly - truly vile. That's why they deleted it. If you object, you can share your thoughts with the moderators.

You correctly note that the link you provided refers to "negative VTA." The link is simply mistaken, and I've sent an email to the audio dealer asking them to correct it. We'll see if they do.

Humans can communicate because we use words with shared definitions. When we lose that, we lose out ability to communicate altogether.

The question seems to  remain: What is VTA (Vertical Tracking Angle)

Here's an accurate definition, courtesy of PS Audio: "... vertical tracking angle is the angle the cantilever makes with the surface of the record. Typically in the range from 10 to 30 degrees for cartridges, this should be matched to the VTA of the cutter head cutting stylus’s pivot angle as it cuts the record ..."

Here's another accurate definition, courtesy of tnt-audio: " VTA is represented as the angle the cantilever makes with the surface of the record, generally around 20-30 degrees. This is the widely accepted definition of VTA ..."

Here's yet another good definition, courtesy of hi-fiworld: " You can roughly visualise it as the angle a stylus cantilever makes with a disc's surface, although to be more precise it is the angle between a line drawn from the stylus pivot to the stylus point of contact with a disc and the disc's surface, denoted by A in the diagram ..."

Do you know where the "V-15" designation comes from in some phono cartridges, such as Pickering and Shure?  "The vertical tracking angle is 15 degrees, thus the 'V15' name." Surely we can all trust Shure to know what VTA is!

This link on Analog Planet contains the definitive article on VTA and SRA, published by Jon Risch and Bruce Maier. It explored SRA in away that had never been thoroughly considered previously. It's from Audio magazine. (That's the US version of the magazine. A briefer version of this was published elsewhere around the same time, perhaps Popular Electronics. But the Audio version is the best reference.)

Roy Gandy has a particular perspective on VTA. It's interesting.

Viridian, you are free to call me pedantic for setting the record straight on VTA. But the fact remains: There's really no such thing as "negative VTA." It's either physically impossible, or it relies on a mistaken definition of VTA. Choose the one that makes you most comfortable.

 
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viridian
We simply will agree to disagree on the VTA issue ...
That means you also disagree with Shure, with John Risch, with Roy Gandy, with Paul McGowan ... ??? Wow!
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viridian
I believe that you are disagreeing With Galen on this one.
It's not me so much disagreeing with Galen , or whoever wrote that for Galen. It's Shure, John Risch, Roy Gandy, Paul McGowan and so many others. I've emailed Galen for a correction, and he's already responded by saying he "will address the issues" in his article over the next few days. I'm inclined to take him at his word - he enjoys an excellent reputation in this industry, which I'm guessing is why you put so much faith in his site.

... Gandy suggests that record cleaning is unnecessary as the stylus will simply push the dirt out of the way. I am not comfortable with that but YMMV.
No, I absolutely agree with you on that. I think it's a nutty claim, frankly.