cartridge recommendation

Grado can’t compete with any cartridge from my list above.
I have Grado Signature XTZ as the reference Grado

i think i prefer a new cartilage.

None of the new MM/MI for $500 is equal to those rare ones from the hey day of MM/MI. Manufacturers ask much more today for entry level cartridges build with entry level parts. It’s day and night compared to those vintage high-end MM/MI cartridges if you will look at the stylus type, cantilever material, coil wire etc... even the specs if you want to.  

None of us buyin’ used or worn cartridges when it comes to the old ones, but even NOS (New Old Stock) unit must be checked prior to sell just to make sure it works properly. Even if a cartridge has been opened and used for 5 hrs it is considered "used", but in fact a burn-in process for any NEW cartridge is about 50hrs minimum.

If you really looking just for a brand new modern cartridge then look for Garrott or Audio-Technica top models. You can secure yourself with a warranty, but the overall quality of the modern MM is not better than vintage MM for sure.

We do not have anything at affordable price equal to the quality level of Stanton 881, 981 or Pickering 3000, 4500 for example.

People will tell you about those Nagaoka, Grado, Goldring, Ortofon, Shelter MM , but you limit yourself when you’re considering only modern cartridges.

The golden age of analog is not today, it was 30-40 years ago and some of the best phono pickups produced in the golden age when each big company tried to make something special.

can anyone say something about the benz micro gold/silver they offer me with some discount?

https://www.analogueseduction.net/benz- ... ridge.html

https://www.tnt-audio.com/sorgenti/benz ... ver_e.html

@chakster - first, the article about Doug Sax is a bit old and I think that things changed from there.
btw the photo you put of Stanton 881s says some other model.
from my experience i usually don’t pay much attention to technical build spec, only sound.
by that i’m not saying that you are not right, just that i need other factors than legendary vintage, or build.

first, the article about Doug Sax is a bit old and I think that things changed from there.

Things changed, manufacturers start pushing super expensive LOMC as the ONLY way to reach audio nirvana and they are still doing it.

I’ve returned from modern $5000 LOMC cartridge to vintage MM and vintage MC because they are cheaper and better to my ears and i have auditioned many of them, first nearly all the discoveries from the old MM thread on here (it will take a year to read) and you will find many comments and contribution from other folks who are too lazy to post nowadays.

I do not ignore an MC, i have some farovite LOMC too, such as FR-7fz, PMC-3, Ortofon MC2000, Grace Asakura’s One, Miyabi MCA just to name a few.

This is for example a Garrott p77i made by legendary Garrott Brothers, it was a killer $700 MM cartridge on $6000 Reed 3P "12 tonearm.

btw the photo you put of Stanton 881s says some other model.

It is correct model 881 mkII, but what you see is a genuine stylus model number II D81s ("s" is for Stereohedron), here is a view from another side for you.

You need to know that Stanton 881s is a blueprint of the Pickering XSV-3000 - this is the reason i have recommended Pickering 3000 (Stereohedron) for lower price than your estimate budget.

For much higher price you can search for these:

Stanton CS-100 W.O.S. is my reference, signature model of Walter O. Stanton himself, sapphire coated cantilever and Stereohedron II nude diamond. Check the specs. Here is more about it. CS-100 is better than low impedance version Stanton 980 LZS i’ve had before. Stanton series of the low impedance MM cartridges is interesting, the output of those MM is only 0.6mV and they must be connected to MC input, not to the MM input.

@Stone1- I wasn't making any specific recommendation. My points were that I:
-owned some of the cartridges that Chakster mentioned when they were new, many years ago, and am now exploring some of them again as vintage, given the crazy high prices of new top tier cartridges;
- also agreed that just starting to use an old rebuilt Monster cartridge last week, I had a similar reaction to yours- the cartridge is very lean sounding, particularly given what I am used to;
and, lastly,
-that I also had at one time a Well-Tempered.
Beyond that, and the pricing issues, it is hard to evaluate cartridges without hearing them in your system. Also, they all have a character in my experience, so there's some degree of matching the sound to complement your system's strengths and weaknesses, as well as to suit your personal preference: 
Some people like very clinical 'accurate' sound, I prefer something that has more tone and richness, but not to the degree that it is over-ripe or imposing that sound on everything- that is why I've been using the Airtights for the last decade or so, after several Lyras- which are also very good cartridges, but tend to have more leading edge and less fullness in sound. 
I do think the Grados are a good value and sound good, but it i haven't used one since the mid-'80s or so, so cannot tell you about their current products or their sound.