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?
It seems I am in a minority by using my best cartridge sparingly. But don't worry, I don't have to change cartridges several times a day, I have two turntables, and if only the courier would get a move on I would have two tonearms on each. So I can have my best moving iron mounted (and used sparingly, as it is not at all clear that the new owner of londondecca.com will be there when it next needs a rebuild), and my next best moving iron, plus my best MC and finally a mono version of it. Being spoilt for choice isn't such a bad thing! |
@dogberry I fully empathise with your concern for having a access to a rebuild for a Cart'. I lost access to a exceptional Third Party Cartridge Service as a result of Brexit, the Technician was not interested in all the new requirements associated with the to and from shipping and reduced the customer base. A real shame and a fair proportion of testimonials given on the Web Site were from UK Based Customers. I feel confident, I am back on track when the time comes, but a trusted workmanship, is a luxury. |
@bdp24 well as you well know… neither Grado nor Decca had a monopoly on the far reaching tails of the variability curve…. As a Signet dealer, we had ( more properly were REQUIRED to have a fine German microscope for cartridge evaluation, as PART of.. ).. Plenty of storied brands struggle to meet the published specifications….. Volumes could be written…. ah hem…. were… Deming, Juran…. i digress…. |
@dogberry I don’t think you are doing it wrong at all…. now where did i put that….5th tonearm ?…… |
