Best MM?

Audio Technica AT150ANV, $1549.

In Mike Fremer’s evaluation of nine cartridges, #2 was the 2M Black and #1 was the AT150ANV. He rates the AT150ANV as incrementally better, conveying wider dynamic swings, but the 2M Black is overall rated more organic and natural sounding, which would probably carry the day for me.

One thing that puzzles me is why, in Stereophile’s Recommended Components issue, the 2M Black has been dropped to Class C, the same as the 2M Blue. Pretty much every other review I’ve read of the 2M Black placed it at or near the top of every MM cart available.

He rates the AT150ANV as incrementally better

It actually was the winner as voted (blind listening) by his readers.
And I think it won IIRC against his Ortofon Anna in his Cobra arm on his Caliburn turntable.....

I have the AT150ANV and this is an excellent example of what Chakster and I are saying about 'modern' MM cartridges......
Whilst in a blind listening test the AT150ANV beat the Ortofon Anna......it cannot compete against the GOOD vintage MM of the 70s and 80s 😝

And when compared to the GREAT vintage MMs that Chakster and I mention......it is really 'chalk and cheese' 😴

Dear @halcro : In audio all is dependent on at least to critical subjects: r00m/system quality level and resolution and each one of us MUSIC/Sound priotities. I forgot a third one: how accurated is your proccess evaluation to always know the very tiny differences/nuances in between the different items: are you sure to be aware of those differences other than the obvious ones?

With out that all preferences/opinuions belongs to the common: " I like it more ".

R.

Are you a music lover, or an "equipment specification" lover? If you are a music lover, you will listen to what I have to say; if you are a spec and equipment lover you will dote on every word Raul has to say.

Make no mistake about this post, in no way am I challenging Raul's knowledge of cartridges, but I am challenging his method of classification in regard to good and bad.

Raul quite often ends his posts with this;


        "Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS"


There is a subliminal SS message hidden in that statement; that's because SS is more likely to have 0 noise and distortion than tube, but are you hearing what the musicians intended for you to hear or a good reproduction?

I'll give you an extreme example of music versus equipment; after my SS pre bit the dust, I asked for a CJ loaner. A "golden eared" audiophile was visiting at the time; although the CJ was apparently noisy, the music sounded better.

While I was thinking this, he blurted it out. His hearing was so acute, and his listening ability so intense, that I would invite him over for a session, and ask what I had changed without telling him. (I miss that guy)

He would demand complete silence, and after listening for awhile, he would say "You got new interconnects", and whatever his answer, it would be the correct one; that's what I had changed.

Everyone knows about ARC; I got an ARC SS pre loaner, and we listened to it for 5 minutes before returning thumbs down, and going back to tubes.

No noise, and 0 distortion can be seductive, but I want to hear every nuance the musicians are laying down, even if that includes both noise and distortion; a tube phono is a perfect match for a MM cartridge.

Dear @orpheus10 : That " MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS " goes way beyond SS vs Tubes technology limitations.

As @johnss posted in the other thread both analog/digital signal pick up by the recording microphones is way manipulated that degrades it and we can't do nothing about because the damges already comes in the LP grooves.

What can dowe to try to listen the LP's in the best way?. IMHO, try to listen it putting at minimum every single noise, distortions, anomalies, etc, etc developed during the overall play proccess.

Than means that we need to know or learn how THD sounds along/added to MUSIC, same for IMD, noise levels, frequency response bandwindth. room/system relationship. Unfortunatelly in the overall room/system chain each link is a focus od developments of different kind of noises, distortions, anomalies that degrades the already heavy degraded recorded signal that comes in the LP grooves.

I posted several times that my main room/system target is to stay truer to the recording and this means to put my room/systems developed noises, distortions, anomalies and the like at minimum.

To do those we have to be self trained to be aware how detect all those developed " enemies " and how to put at minimum. Only to know how detect it how it sounds each of them is a true challenge for any one of us and we need a hard sel training, patience and a lot of time.

When any one of us can be near of that target digital or analog always will performs with very high quality and you will listen those MUSIC nuances you are talking about with SS electronics.

We have to learn if that high frequency " transparency " is just MUSIC or is added distortion what we are in true listen it, not an easy task but worth the rewards to enjoy rally enjoy MUSIC and not only that: " I like it ", that at the end means almost nothing because each one " I like it " is really different.

Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS,
R.