What is the “World’s Best Cartridge”?

mijostyn, I see you try some other approach than the one in your

previous post. Probable to improve your ''status'' . Alas this will not do,.

We buy ''new carts'' out of curiosity but in order to try. If we are satisfy

after ''listening cesions'' we will keep the cart. Otherwise get rid of it

by (re) reselling the thing.

Thanks to Raul we got the chance to do this ''luxury'' approach for free. 

BTW when we look at ''technical specs'' of carts they all look as one

egg to one other, except  by Allearts . His are unbelievable but his carts

do not sound better than some other with ''less impresive'' specs.

See Raul's preference for ADC 26  in comparison. 

+1 to atmasphere. The tonearm match is a key variable. Along with the cart output / phono stage match, which also includes a compromise between what you can accept of background noise for getting the best sound. Speaking as a tube enthusiast (converted after many years of investing upwards in solid state without quite getting what I wanted). I play flutes, some guitar,  etc - and playing along with the music from the stereo is my sure-fire method of finding what I like and not.

I am not sure, when I prefer my Atlas cart compared to digital streaming, and even (often) my digital recordings from LPs, how much is due to the specific capabilities of the Atlas, and what would be the result with a less costly cart. I am part of a group of music lovers regularily meeting for an evening, hosted by each of us, so we get to hear many music systems. We have an unwritten rule: this is NOT an audio testing and comparison event, who has the best system, and so on. Works fine. And I have learned to listen for the positive aspects of each system, and try to look away from limits and faults. Good idea. We tend to converge, listening to LPs rather than digital, on these evenings - regardless of the low middle or high cost of the cart and the rest of the system. At the same time, I do hear what the Atlas is capable of. Maybe especially, very delicate and refined treble, compared to digital (including 24 - 192 hi res), easy to hear with female vocal like Rosalia: Motomami, for example (digital sounds good; the LP sounds great). Also, the Atlas has fairly "explosive" dynamics, and is no slouch on bass, as others have noted. So I think, all in all, that it is a good idea to invest in a good cart, even if it is costly. This is where the musical information starts, and the job of the rest of the chain is to reproduce it as faithfully as possible.

Dear @o_holter : " . The digital version is good, but still has a way to go. " my recordings still hold a candle to streaming "

Sure because is a " fake " digital version not an original digital version and because your take is full of subjectivity with out analising for your self what in reality are you listen it through analog. Obviously you don’t care about and you don’t care ( as almost all analog lovers . ) because that’s what you like it: subjectivity again.

Almost always that we are making comments on digital and analog recording experiences almost all of us compare digital listen experience against same LP analog experience and this kind of reference IMHO is way wrong.

I think that not only is way wrong but unnaceptable because both mediums not only are way different but the analog MUSIC information we are listening comes " truncated ": no one analog rig/cartridge can pick up all the recorded information in the LP grooves against digital that’s nearer and truer to the recording . There are other objective reasons why we almost always are comparing airplanes against a banana and you are not alone in this thread because between others M Lavigne did it on that specific regards.

Obviously that to each his own.

All subjectivist gentlemans almost always just diminish objectivity in so hard way that forget of it.

Btw, which your MUSIC reference?

R.

@solypsa, The question comes down to what cartridge I want to buy. It is rare to be able to evaluate a cartridge's sonic performance appropriately on your own turntable.  As time goes on, having dealt with quite a few cartridges you develop preferences. Any cartridge I buy is going to be a low impedance moving coil. They seem to be the only moving coil cartridges that with a transimpedance phono stage match the dynamics of the best moving magnet and iron cartridges yet maintain the nuance of a moving coil. It must have some type of fine line stylus. I have heard the Gyger S, the Replicant 100, the Soundsmith OLC and the MSL fine line. They are all excellent. It must have either a Boron or Diamond cantilever. It must have a sturdy, resonance free metal body. The wooden bodied cartridges I have owned have all been colored or poorly manufactured. The cartridge has to be perfectly aligned or so close that I can not tell it is off and I measure each and every cartridge I get. Reviews also factor in to some degree as does the manufacturer's reputation and stability. I will not buy a cartridge from a cottage manufacturer. 

Unfortunately, meeting all these requirements is no guarantee of great performance but it is a good start. Again, these are my own personal preferences or biases. If money was a real issue I would buy a Soundsmith Voice. It is the best cartridge for the money I have ever had direct experience with and it is high output!   

@mijostyn your list makes sense to me. Representing two cartridge brands that use non metallic bodies informs me differently on that topic but I do see your point.

On the topic of 'cottage industry' perhaps our definitions differ. I would put Lyra and SoundSmith in the cottage category. In fact I am not sure anyone making lomc isn't except Ortofon, Audio Technica and Excel. Maybe not even them .... What is the definition? Owning the supply chain and processing material from raw?