You mentioned Benz and Soundsmith. Many Benz LOMC cartridges have high-ish internal resistance, like the Hana SL (33 ohms). So those are just as difficult to match with your phono stage as is the SL. Soundsmith make some "Low Output Moving Iron" cartridges. Those also would not be an ideal match for your phono stage, even though their internal resistance is typically only 10 ohms (see below). If you must have a LOMC cartridge, stick with those that have a low-ish internal resistance. Like less than 12 ohms, for example, AND a low inductance (that's why the Soundsmith LOMI cartridges need an input impedance of greater than 100 ohms; their inductance is much much higher than that of a typical LOMC.)
Matching the cartridge to the phono stage
Hey Everyone, I am new to this so please be gentle :)
I am in the process of buying an amp that has the phono stage in it with the following specs with 3 options for the cartridge type MM/MC-Low/MC-High:
Moving Magnet: 2.5mV / 47kΩ
Moving Coil:
MC-High-Output: 0.3mV / 100Ω
MC-Low--Output: 0.1mV / 40Ω
LINE 180 mV / 47 kΩ
Now I am thinking of buying the Hana SL cartridge with the following specs:
Hana SL specifications:
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Output Level @ 1kHz: 0.5mV
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Output Balance @ 1kHz: Less Than 1.5dB
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Impedance @ 1 kHz: 30 Ohms
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Suggested Load: 400 Ohms
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Cartridge Weight: 5 Grams
The preamp MC-Low says: MC-Low--Output: 0.1mV / 40Ω
The Hana SL cartridge: Output Level @ 1kHz: 0.5mV, Impedance @ 1 kHz: 30 Ohms and Suggested Load: 400 Ohms.
How do these values match ? As far as I can see I don't have the same voltage 0.5mv on the cartridge and 0.3mv on the phono preamp. I also see that 40ohm vs 30ohm. The 400ohms figure is only mentioned on the cartridge.
Can this cartridge be used successfully with this phono stage ?
Do I need to match these numbers ? Can someone help explain this whole thing to me.
Thanks!
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- 46 posts total
- 46 posts total