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Hear my Cartridges....🎶

Many Forums have a 'Show your Turntables' Thread or 'Show your Cartridges' Thread but that's just 'eye-candy'.... These days, it's possible to see and HEAR your turntables/arms and cartridges via YouTube videos.
Peter Breuninger does it on his AV Showrooms Site and Michael Fremer does it with high-res digital files made from his analogue front ends.
Now Fremer claims that the 'sound' on his high-res digital files captures the complex, ephemeral nuances and differences that he hears directly from the analogue equipment in his room.
That may well be....when he plays it through the rest of his high-end setup 😎
But when I play his files through my humble iMac speakers or even worse.....my iPad speakers.....they sound no more convincing than the YouTube videos produced by Breuninger.
Of course YouTube videos struggle to capture 'soundstage' (side to side and front to back) and obviously can't reproduce the effects of the lowest octaves out of subwoofers.....but.....they can sometimes give a reasonably accurate IMPRESSION of the overall sound of a system.

With that in mind.....see if any of you can distinguish the differences between some of my vintage (and modern) cartridges.
VICTOR X1
This cartridge is the pinnacle of the Victor MM designs and has a Shibata stylus on a beryllium cantilever. Almost impossible to find these days with its original Victor stylus assembly but if you are lucky enough to do so.....be prepared to pay over US$1000.....🤪
VICTOR 4MD-X1
This cartridge is down the ladder from the X1 but still has a Shibata stylus (don't know if the cantilever is beryllium?)
This cartridge was designed for 4-Channel reproduction and so has a wide frequency response 10Hz-60KHz.
Easier to find than the X1 but a lot cheaper (I got this one for US$130).
AUDIO TECHNICA AT ML180 OCC
Top of the line MM cartridge from Audio Technica with Microline Stylus on Gold-Plated Boron Tube cantilever.
Expensive if you can find one....think US$1000.

I will be interested if people can hear any differences in these three vintage MM cartridges....
Then I might post some vintage MMs against vintage and MODERN LOMC cartridges.....🤗
128x128halcro
halcro's avatar
halcro OP
2,664 posts
 
I agree with you Noromance...👍
There is more drive and menace in what I hear from it.
Exactly what I hear 'in-situ'...
There seems to be more excitement, tension and anticipation with the Sony. More like 'The Real Thing'....
The notes seem to start faster and stop instantly and there is more clarity and definition in all the instruments when a loud crescendo (or 'blast') in the Prokofiev occurs....
I can't help but wonder if these attributes are more a symptom of the Victor's Direct Drive being able to 'power' through the heavily modulated grooves without being affected by 'stylus drag'...?

Regardless.....I think the performance of the 40 year-old Sony XL-88 LOMC against one of the best current 'Uber' cartridges, proves that there have been little 'technological' advances since the 'Golden Age' of Analogue...🤗
noromance's avatar
noromance
9,574 posts
 
Interesting that you brought up the ’powering through the stylus drag’ aspect of the DD. It’s both the very reason I run idlers and why I think you’re not hearing the best the LDR has to offer. (!) Speaking of 40 years. One of my Deccas is 35 years old and sounds excellent.
Wonderful Prokofiev. I’m listening to Symphony No.7 thanks to you!
halcro's avatar
halcro OP
2,664 posts
 
😃
However.......
Don't forget that we all preferred the Palladian in the Copperhead on the Raven AC-2 Belt-Drive to its performance in the WE-8000/ST on the Victor Direct Drive.......
Curiouser and curiouser......🤔🥴
Ag insider logo xs@2x
rauliruegas
12,879 posts
 
Dear @halcro  and Magicians : and I mean it in good shape. I know that all of you are really getting big fun in this cartridge party, good and please continue with.

For me is not very atractive this kind of " fest ". Anyway I wonder if this is a true cartridge " game " or something else and I have a question for all the Magicians:

how any one of you can separate the cartridge quality performance from the headshell or tonearm or TT or arm board where @halcro  mounted each cartridge?  I know for sure I can't do it especially for grading each cartridge quality level performance against others and if we add our each music/sounds preferences things goes more complicated for me. Btw the OP title is: " hear my cartridges ".

I know I can do it when everything is the same for each cartridge and even with is not an easy task.
 In the other side I never had patience for shoot-outs through headphones maybe because I'm accustom to live room/system.

I ask my self : It's a valuable excercise for the " magicians " that can't validate it?

Anyway and as I said this post is in good shape so go a head gentlemans  ! ! ! fun is fun no matter what.

Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS,
R.




lewm
12,588 posts
 
Raul, I think the group (of which I cannot count myself a member, since I have offered no SQ opinions so far) has acknowledged the effect of tonearm and headshell (and tacitly, the turntable); the Palladian was run on both the SAEC/Victor and then on the Copperhead/Raven, and the group preferred the latter.  As for me, my computer speakers are lousy, so I dare not think I can judge at all.  Nothing sounds really good at my end.
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