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Entertaining A - B Comparison

So, I just sold what had been my first turntable - the trusty Thorens TD-160 Super with the Grace 707 arm and a Shure M97xe cartridge. Since I had to demo it for the fellow I had the opportunity to set it up next to my Sota Star which has a Audioquest PT-6 arm and an AT OC9 cartridge.

You know what? The Thorens/Shure combo did not come off as bad as one might have expected. No where near as much detail or refinement from the cartridge, or as stable an image from the table, but otherwise quite pleasant. And I know its not really all that "hi-fi" but that Shure has a very nice warm sound. Not terribly open in the highs, but warm with really natural timbres. You could do worse.

The OC9 by comparison has much better clarity, but it really is a bit dry sounding. Might be a reason to upgrade sooner or..... sooner.

At any rate, I watched my Thorens drive off in the back of this fellows hatchback. Based on what he was telling me he didn't seem cursed with the hi-fi bug. He just wanted to spin some records. I'm sure he'll enjoy it.
grimace
dcstep
1,518 posts
 
Don't write off the OC-9 until you break in for a few weeks. Lots of good cartridges will sound a little bright and dry early on and warm up with time. VTA could also impact, but wait until you get it broken in before optimizing VTA. Another tenth or two of tracking force might help, until it breaks in.

Dave
elevick
2,636 posts
 
Told you the Thorens was good. The weak point was the Shure. Oh well, you have an awesome table now and shouldn't miss it a bit. I'm still dueling my Sota Jewel vs the VPI 19 that I picked up. Quite different sound regardless of the cartridge. The VPI is "lighter" but the Sota has much more depth and fullness...
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rauliruegas
13,016 posts
 
Dear Grimace: I don't know how you are loading ( impedance ) the Shure one but if you could try at 100Kohms you can improve its quality performance. That cartridge is a lot better that we think but it needs 100Komh.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.
grimace OP
624 posts
 
Well, Like I said, I wasn't unhappy with the Shure. I actually like that lush midrange. I know its not very hi-fi, but it sounds nice. I wonder if the now deceased V15's had that same quality? An NOS one might be an idea if one comes up.

In all honesty I don't have a clue what 'loading' is or how to ascertain the ohms. I'm a very non-technical a-phile. Feel free to enlighten me.

BTW, in the mail today came a Sota reflex clamp that I got on e-bay. This little bugger makes an audible difference in bass weight and what was already really good solidity. Seems like stage depth is better as well. pretty cool.
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