One of the best cartridges in the past were the B&O MMC 1/2 great MI performers that had fixed stylus design, was not at random designers decision.
When I asked Peter Ledermann (SoundSmith, who designed and manufactured B&O cartridges) in this topic: “what is a well designed MM/MI or MC from the past (not new)” ?
He replied under nickname retipper:
“Obviously Strain Gauge designs, although none have survived well, which is why I don’t work on them. Early Fairchild Stereo units. Some still are fantastic. Stax, for its cleverness, Dynavector 23 and similar, due to low mass (but terribly fragile), some Ortofon MI designs, GRACE, and of course the B&O, upon which my line has evolved from.”
I’m glad to see vintage GRACE in his answer, and of course his own cartridges now are better than B&O from the past. Most of them are fixed-coil type, but his price for stylus/cantilever replacement for his own carts is the lowest on the market (this is huge benefit compared to other manufacturers, the reason is simple - SoundSmith do not make a profit on stylus/cantilever replacement for his own SoundSmith cartridges, this is why the cost is user friendly).
