Do You Play Or Save Your Best Cartridges


I suspect I am like many here, I have a small collection of cartridges. Until recently I would keep a casual playing cartridge set up and I would save my "good" cartridges for evening listening sessions where I am focusing on listening to music at the listening chair. I always had a casual cartridge mounted on an arm, maybe an Audio Technica OC9 III or something along those lines. These days its either an Ortofon MC3000 II or MC5000. 

 

Earlier this year I finally decided to use the DAC in my Trinov pre amp, and this involved getting a subscription to Roon, and hardwiring the computer and preamp to the router with CAT 6 ethernet cable. The sound is remarkably good, to the point where this can easily be my casual listening format. 

I almost wonder if its necessary to have a casual cartridge. Or should I just play my best ones as often as I want and bite the bullet and know I am getting a new diamond fitted every few years. 

 

Anyone else go through this kind of decision process?

neonknight

before i went 2 far with the false precision, might check the Grado stylus / cantilever alignment…. But, when ya get a good one…magic midrange…. but again….. why enjoy the same wine / food pairing every…..day ?

Heretic!

Not that I've ever had one - what are they these days, 20k? And then there's the 25 years+ of aging ...

About precision, it means you can adjust by ear to whatever sounds best. No-one, not even a Grado, can align a stylus to a cartridge body to within a few minutes of arc. And those are the sort of adjustments which I sometimes make, to allow for different records.

especially not a Grado…. of course…..one of my assignments…long ago… was picking thru the incoming Grado and play grading them….. let’s just kindly say they defined variability…..

pasquale Grado lived upstairs…but i guess that’s a different story / bottle of wine

Good thing I didn't hear that before it arrived. The one I have has absolutely superb fit and finish.

@tomic601:

Nope, Decca's defined variability ;-) . The London's not nearly as much so.