Dear Audiofeil: " +++++ FWIW, regarding the frequency measurement argument simply disregard it as audiospeak rhetoric. Those graphs and charts are nice to look but you can't listen to them. I've heard speakers measuring 20-20K flat that aren't fit for car stereo. " +++++
Of course you can listen to them!!!! With the today high level performance audio devices that we can have almost what we are hearing ( other than good/bad design ) are differences on the frequency response that means inaccuracies of different kinds that create distortions/colorations in what we are hearing.
If you have a few cartridges: XV-1, Universe Allaerts MC2, Myaby 47, Lira Titan i, Colibri, etc, etc and you run a test for frequency response: 10Hz to 40kHz, where you can " see " on the paper the frequency deviations from " ruler flat " response for each cartridge through this test results you could explain and hear the small/big colorations/inaccuracies that belongs to each cartridge.
It will be very complex to run that kind of test because we need not only the cartridges but several tonearms ( we have to match for the same resonance frequency ), a top performance analog system and the precise instruments/records to make the measurements but of course that you could hear those measurements!!!!
Your example of speaker/car audio is the worst you could choose, with cartridges is different.
Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.