Putting together turntable rig

Of course you would say that because you peddle cartridges on eBay etc after recommendng them on this forum. You have a vested interest in that false argument.

Please post links to my sales on ebay or elsewere before you make such a blank statement, ok?

All “my cartridges” were recommended on this forum 10 years before I made my first post, so what? They were recommended by some other users years ago. 

I’m happy to share my new discoveries and I am happy to help people like you who can’t find NOS cartridges in perfect working condition. Because otherwise people like you will say they are impossible to find. If you or someone else can’t find them I can help, try to understand it. I only buy what I really like and when I like something I buy 2-3 samples!

All those modern MM and MI are inferior compared to the top vintage MM cartridges I have mentioned. I tried them all (Grado, Nagaoka, AT).

I think it’s a waste of time to recommend mainstream cartridges that any dealer will push to the buyer in every country. Leave it to professional reviews.

But it’s nice to recommend something special, at least I was happy to read about those special vintage MM or MI on this forum for many years and this is how I came to some exceptional cartridges after I wasted my money on overpriced LOMC in $3000-4000 range.


Keep your opinion as an opinion and keep spending money on super expensive carts if you want (if you rich enough), but I will keep recommending amazing cartridges from the past simply because I can compare them to old and new LOMC myself and based on such conparison I believe they are amazing (some of them are not expensive).

And remember, I am not a reviewer or a shop owner, I don’t get my cartridges for free, I pay my dues and share my experience with VINTAGE stuff. Being a honest person I do not post some BS, I am not that old yet.

Purchasing NEW carts for my needs in the past I realized that most of the high-end dealer have no idea what they are selling, they do not have enough knowledge and they never tried great carts from the past, they just keep on pushing average carts for insane prices to get their huge margins. This high-end business is full of myth and propaganda for rich buyers. Many times on this forum you said you was a dealer in the past. Dealers support and sell ONLY current production and this is serious problem, because good high-end does not have an expiration date! I’ve learned this over the years. I don’t give a .... about trendy modern high-end gear, I’m searching for the quality sound, if high-end MM from the 80s in NOS condition can give me that sound I am happy. If I will find 3 more samples of than great cart I will buy them all, maybe I could sell one. 

If you want mainstream plz go to your dealer or to your local shop, you will never find any cartridges from my list at your dealer, because they are discontinued 20-30 years ago, because designers of those carts are retired, because the company hired new designers and because they can’t make it anymore, they are making something else (not better, often even worth). We are in the digital era after all.

 If you or someone else can’t find them I can help, try to understand it.

@chakster 

Oh I understand it.

You buy old cartridges off yahoo japan
You recommend those cartridges on audiogon forums.
And then you sell them based on your own recommendations on audiogon.

You are using audiogon for business purposes free of charge.
Why are you not supporting audiogon which you use to sell product by advertising your product on audiogon - instead of trying to peddle your old cartridges through forum posts and private contacts to audiogon members without paying a sales fee.

Save up longer. In the meanwhile window shop and do your research.
Unless you have a lot of records I usually do not recommend getting started especially if you can't get yourself a starter collection of around 50 records. What happens is you buy a few records, play them over and over wearing them out until you are board with them. You wind up building a worn out collection of records you are board with. There is no streaming records. In this regards digital is unquestionably superior. 
Manu of us have thousands of records so, there is no getting away from it. Many enjoy the tinkering involved in maintaining a top notch record playing system. Some people get started just to prove they are serious audiophiles. This is just a serious waste of money. Many would be better off improving their digital playback.  

Dover, you are such a Sherlock Holmes, so I must be a millionaire according to your private investigation, bravo. How many cartridges per month do I sell, please tell me? I want you to recall my audiogon buyers, please. It’s funny to read you comment, because you see me as a businessman and blame me for something.

Let me tell you that audiogon is the worst platform for business, especially for vintage cartridges, if you think you can post something about cartridge and sell it next day privately you are naive like a 17 year old kid. I believe Raul and others posted about most of the cartridges in existence about 10 years ago.

Even if I can sell a few cartridges on audiogon (just like everyone on this forum), how does is correlate to my opinion about my best cartridges? Does it makes them bad or what? Or does it makes me dishonest about anything I posted? Very few people from audiogon asked me to sell a cartridge over the years, but many people asked for advice.

I have a good friend in Tokyo and there are a lot of work off-line to get some of the rarest NOS cartridges in perfect condition for my personal collection of the best vintage MM and MC. It’s my passion.

If you think you can get them online you are again naive like 17 y.o. kid. What you can get online in Japan is used cartridges listed as “junk” from the seller who can’t test them, and this is a blind deal, you know. Often kids sell their father’s or grandfather’s carts, but they have no clue what it is and don’t know how to grade them even if the cantilever is broken, they can’t make even a good pictures.

But audiophile scene is very strong in my county, some of the rarest stuff already here (speakers, cartridges, amps etc). If you search you will find them in Russia. And you probably missed those Japanese auctions 15 years ago (when the prices were 5 times cheaper).


What I like to do locally is to bring my mid priced vintage cart (and modern phono stage) for a demo for friends in their system. Once they hear it they want to throw away their inexpensive Ortofon, Grado, Nagaoka, AT ...


Local folks in my age, who are deep into music, doesn’t care about digital at all, they want vinyl. I’m happy to be surrounded by younger people who collect records (not files).


As been said before audiogon is for people over 60, but I’m 44.


I see a huge difference in preferred media format between people of different age. 

I have a good friend in Tokyo and there are a lot of work off-line to get some of the rarest NOS cartridges in perfect condition for my personal collection of the best vintage MM and MC.

Chakster, I have a good friend in Moscow who sells the finest Vodka - only the best potatoes are used - organically grown in only the finest of alluvial soils of course.