If you never owned this model then do yourself a favor and find it, it is well worth the effort even if it will take several years, you may never heard anything better than this.I've not owned it, but I've heard it, and I don't agree with your assessment at all. I have heard better than that, but even if I hadn't I'd have zero interest in trawling the internet for weeks, months or years in order to attain a slight incremental improvement.
Nobody would pay that much if those cartridges are not significantly better than cheap AT line of modern MM cartridges you’re talking about.That's patently and obviously untrue. The AT-ML180 is exceedingly rare and like most things exceedingly rare it has become exceedingly expensive. Examples of this abound in more or less any product cathegory you can think of.
Is a1961 Ferrari 250 GT California Spider worth $18.5 Million because it is that much better than a Ford Focus? Is a Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime Ref. 6300A-010 worth US$31.19 million because it is that much better at showing the time than a Casio? Is an antique Kirman rug worth $33.76 million because it is that much better at covering the floor than a Wilton?
I think the answer in all cases are fairly obvious, as it is in the case of the AT-ML180.