Get a $125 Grado Prestige Green.
Decent backup cartridge
I’ve got my Soundsmith Zephyr lll in for a rebuild at Soundsmith. 2 months in and probably longer to go. I’ve been using an Ortofon Red as my backup. Just not doable much longer. Sutherland 20/20 for a phono pre. Would like to keep cost under $600. I listen to jazz primarily, so I like detailed warm. Audiotechnica seems to have a selection, Hana EL? Denon? Maybe Ortofon Bronze? TT is a Scout Jr.
Primaluna and Klipsch Cornwall 1 for the rest. I listen daily and wish I could endure this Red, and save the cash, but I think it’s a good idea to have a better backup cart. Thanks for your opinions. Always enjoy other folks experience.
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@panzrwagn : I never had hum problems with any Grado. |
Dekay+1. The Ortofon 2M Blue is an excellent upgrade to the Red. I own both a 2M Bronze and a Blue as backups and I actually prefer the Blue with its more relaxed sound as compared to the Bronze and tracks just as well. As Dekay pointed out, you can’t beat the price! And maybe within a minute, you can swap out the Red stylus with no further adjustments necessary. At that price, you can dig out all those used records you may have been reluctant to play with your Zephyr. |
@jasonbourne71 I ordered a Grado Platinum 3, then a Sonata 3 both of them were unusable in my system. Music Direct was unable to offer any advice which might mitigate the hum, including different cables, different grounding, even different preamp - nada. FWIW, back in the day, the AR Xa and Xb were also a no-go with Grados for the same reason, so the problem is neither new nor unique. Swap in the Hana I got in exchange, plus a little cash, and no issues whatsoever. MD was great,and patient, but they just had no answers. |
- 25 posts total