classical music

Whether you're talking about opera or "pure classics" there is usually more complexity going on in classical music than in other kinds.  An orchestra of 100 or so, singers chorus, etc.  So my view is that cartridges that provide the maximum detail of what is going on is the key.  That means, I think, low output MC with some sort of fine line stylus; there are many types.  Same in digital; I do not look for "laid back".

IMO, for the money these days you can't beat Audio Technica cartridges.  They come in enough varieties to satisfy any budget.  I use an AT Art 9 which has a lot of advocates around here.

@anthonya  No-one has figured out a way to make any sort of hifi equipment favor a certain format. What's good for classical music is good for jazz, rock, folk, metal, electronia, you name it.


The idea that a certain speaker or amplifier might be best for classical as opposed to some other genre is purely myth.

Raph is absolutely right. Good speakers play everything well. If not then they have unacceptable limitations. Why should cartridges be any different. Although gear that has limitations might do better with certain genres.

totally agree about genre @atmasphere  

@melm  @mijostyn 
with low gain cart 
classical, live music especially where there is alot of hidden background sound pops out. making this kind of recording   way more interesting. 

with high gain cart. the macro pop out more.  and this more saturated. 

this is what I noticed. 

I always wondered about this debate which is 'better.' 
at one stage.. the MM got better than Mc.

then after slowly reviewing the whole system.. slowly improving different aspects.. oh okay.. the advantages of 'mc' appears. my friend uses 2 Lyra and 1 goldring mm and 1 audio technica mm.. then i myself tried Mc and Mm low gain.. oh okay similar results. never at his 80k hi end system  system venue with custom room.. archieve 3 layers of clarity width and depth. saturation space. like a very good digital setup .. he say man.. been doing it wrong for 40+ yrs.. old dog got schooled. 

But still not final conclusion. there is still something better about high gain mm, it's simply more natural . we know better now not to argue which is better. 

Joe Grado who invented the moving coil cartridge gave up on it. I believe his argument was that there was no way to get the moving mass low enough resulting in resonance inside the audio band. But given modern materials, lighter cantilevers, smaller diamond it is now possible to keep the resonance above the audio band. It still requires a stiffer suspension.