Advice on best mid priced MM cartridge choice for Rega P3 (2016)

Nagaoka is a solid choice for the money.

In the current range of the Ortofon 2M series I like the most
this Ortofon 2M bronce.

For my hearing it was more balanced than the black.

So it is a big bang for the buck.

yes -- with ortofon mm’s i have also found higher up the line gives more detail/treble sizzle

each user needs to find the sweet spot for them given the tonal balance they seek for their system

Sumiko Pearl...inexpensive and sounds amazingly good, well rounded and really gets a lot out of the groove, so to speak.

I came across this Stanton Catalog, two interesting technical performance and stylus type charts.

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/master/mbrs/recording_preservation/manuals/Stanton%20Product%20Catalog.pdf

what is the difference between Stereohedron and Stereohedron II?

Shared this link many times on this forum before, some of the best Stanton models are in the catalog, except for the signature SC-100 with Stereohedron II (top model, but not in the catalog).

One aspect of Stereohedron’s very long life must be it’s very light tracking centering on 1g. My Shure V15Vxmr liked 1.25 g. Most Mono and MC want heavier tracking which I prefer avoiding.

Stetting with the brush must be 2g, but the actual tracking force will be 1g and it’s recommended (however, the range is +/- 1/4).

It seems many of the outputs are in that difficult range near 1mv, where only a few SUT’s have low enough x factors of 5 or 6 are about right. What was in common use with these cartridge output strengths?

I have active gain phono stage with adjustable gain (Gold Note ph-10).
Long time ago my Low Impedance (low output MM) Stanton 980/LZS was fine with 1:10 SUT with my low power tube amp. But i was much more impressed with my Stanton CS100 (regular output). Now I have excellent Pickering XLZ/4500 and XLZ/7500, they are both low impedance (very low output MM).

*** Here is a part of the review from feb. 1982:

"Aficionados of moving-coil (MC) cartridges will be surprised and pleased to learn that 980LZS is indistinguishable from the very best moving-coil (MC) types in the most rigorous laboratory and aural tests. Stanton’s is an impressive dual achievement. I was continually aware that 980LZS sounded like a moving-coil (MC) cartridge. The bass was well defined and tight with good sonic clarity, as well as transient response and applause definition. Transparency of sound was excellent when reproducing the high recorded levels present on most direct-to-disc recordings. At no time did I notice any coloration of the music. The 980LZS is also one of the very few phono cartridges that can cleanly reproduce the cannon fire on the Telarc DG-10041 recording of Tchaikovsky’s 1812." - B.V.Pisha (Audio Review, Feb.1982)


SPECIFICATIONS for the 980/LZS:

Stylus Type: Nude Stereohedron Contact Radii: .0028 (71u)
Scanning Radii: .0003 (8u)
Stylus Tracking Force: 1 gram (+/- 0.5)
Setting with Brush: 2 gram (+/- 0.5) resulting operation tracking force 1 gram (+/- 0.5)
Frequency Response: 10 Hz to 50 kHz +
Output: .06 mv /cm/sec
Channel Balance: Within 1 dB @ 1kHz
Channel Separation: 35 dB @ 1kHz
Cartridge DC Resistance: 3. ohms
Cartridge Inductance: 1.mH
Cartridge Weight: 5.5 grams
Load Resistance: 100 ohms or greater
Load Capacitance: 1000 pF, or less (incl. arm leads cable and amp.)


P.S. None of the modern MM will sound as good as the Stanton/Pickering top models. Those are the finest MM for realistic prices. The low impedance (low output MM) will blow away your LOMC.