Advice needed on MC cartridges
I’ve an Ortofon Black 2M cartridge on my VPI Classic 2 turntable, It’s a moving magnet type cartridge with a Shibata stylus and cost about $700 when purchased. I could easily be wrong, but am under the impression that the Ortofon 2M Black is about as good as it gets with MM cartridges and if I wished to upgrade I’d need to be thinking about moving into a MC, moving coil, type.
So I’ve been trying to learn something about moving coil cartridges and what differences or improvements in sound quality might be obtained by using one. My integrated amp, a Luxman 507uX Mk2, has a built in phono stage and can play either type,
Generally speaking, how much more would need to be spent on a MC cartridge before a noticeable, or significant improvement, might be heard in sound quality over the Ortofon 2M’s performance? What improvements in performance might you obtain using one a better quality MC over the Ortofon 2M Black? And third, what MC cartridges might you recommend that would fit in performance and budget wise with a system composed of the above equipment plus Magico A3 speakers. My other equipment is a Marantz Ruby CD/SACD player and a Shunyata Denali Hydra power conditioner.
I’ve never heard a MC cartridge in use so would be interested in following your advice and recommendations to see if I can find a dealer or someone that might be able to demo one so I can hear what the differences might be in performance. Thank you for any responses or suggestions
Mike
Thats not true. Soundsmith high and medium output cartridges are designed for standard 47k load. The low output require 470ohms. here is the info you need - https://sound-smith.com/cartridge-compliancearm-mass-chart
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If Mijostyn is correct, having to buy an exceedingly expensive $8000 MC cartridge to hear imrpovement over the current MM cartridge, is certainly not a cost effective alternative in keeping with the cost of the other components. Maybe I should stay put with the Ortofon 2M black and hope Santa leaves a Ortofon Windfeld Ti under the tree this Christmas. Mike |
Spending thousands for a cartridge is insane! They all wear out and need replacement! The most I would spend would be about $1300 for the Hana ML with the micro ridge stylus. But I still think that the SL at $750 is just about as good for a considerable cost savings. I have been using moving coils since 1977. IMO there is no contest compared to any mm or mi (Grado/Sound Smith) type - even the vaunted Shure V15mk5 with the micro ridge stylus. I have a NOS one I am saving for posterity! The big advantage a good mc type has is low inductance coils. Superior (faster) transient response compared to mm types with their inductance measured in the hundreds of millihenries. Low inductance mc types are also immune to cable capacitance loading. |
