Hana SL with Shibata stylus ($750) is the best choice! It will work on that tonearm without problems. What phono stage do you have? Gain - and noise - could be an issue if too low! I use an SUT with all my mc cartridges. I prefer this into a mm stage rather than a high-gain stage.
Best MC cart for Thorens TP16 MK1?
I'm sick of reading through so many different forums, my eyes are bugging out and I can't decide. So I'm just going to put it out there and see what y'all think. I've never had a moving coil cart before and I really want to install one on my Thorens TD-160 with original TP16 arm (16.5g) and stock TP60 headshell. I've gone through all the math around this, but now I need to hear from folks who are ACTUALLY running an MC cart on the same setup as mine (or have in the past), or at least heard such a setup.
I'm tempted by DL-103, but some feel it's too low in compliance for the arm, and I'd have to add weight most likely. Others that mathematically might fit the bill: Sumiko Blue Point No. 3, Hana EL, Benz Micro Gold, Ortofon Quintet Blue, and Audio Technica AT33PTG/2.
I'm willing to spend up to $700. What friggin MC cart would sing on this arm without fussing with weights? I can't seem to find a straight answer. I thank you all in advance.
I'm tempted by DL-103, but some feel it's too low in compliance for the arm, and I'd have to add weight most likely. Others that mathematically might fit the bill: Sumiko Blue Point No. 3, Hana EL, Benz Micro Gold, Ortofon Quintet Blue, and Audio Technica AT33PTG/2.
I'm willing to spend up to $700. What friggin MC cart would sing on this arm without fussing with weights? I can't seem to find a straight answer. I thank you all in advance.
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Yet more reading material for ya... https://allforturntables.com/2018/05/03/the-7-best-moving-coil-cartridge-under-1000-bucks/ |
Not your arm, or table, but for my 1st MC, I chose the AT you mentioned AT33PTG/II based on it's Stylus Shape; superior stereo channel separation and tight channel balance. Tracks lightly enough, sounds absolutely terrific, it's stereo separation the reason I prefer it to my prior favorite cartridge: MM, Shure V15VxMR body with new Jico SAS stylus on boron. Greater separation gives more distinction to instruments 'just off center', bass player just there, floutist ... as well as far left/right, and the strong center instrument/performer revealed in all it's glory. Bigger orchestra ... Certain recordings, very wide separation can be distracting, in that case I either use my Shure on my second arm, or adjust the speaker's toe-in to narrow the full width of the sound stage, easy as my heavy speakers are on 3 wheels. For 2 listeners, to get a nice wide center and audible left/right for both people, I toe-in even more: aim the left speaker at the right chair, right speaker at the left chair, gives very enjoyable imaging to both listeners. If you cannot alter your speaker's toe-in, an arm with a removable headshell will allow you to use a 'less wide' cartridge for certain recordings. |
At a glance I suspect a Denon DL103R would sound very good for you. I’ve used one for almost 15years now on my Linn Axis with Linn Basik tone arm. I had same concern about compliance initially when I did the math. But I decided to give it a go for nominal cost involved. It continues to deliver the goods every time no problem to this day. So I can strongly recommend the DL103r under the assumption that your tonearm is close enough to mine to get similar results from a cartridge compliance perspective. |
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