Not getting enough volume with my new MM cartridge

G'day all, interesting. My only thought is that if the preamps use a simple one op amp feedback or other design then perhaps the overall voltage gain may be just slightly lacking, givng the results you have observed.

My present DIY phono stage (the ESP P06) has an additional gain stage which is the better approach, in my opinion. Interestingly enough even with this high level of overall voltage gain my M97xE MM cartridge still needs a bit of a volume control push, but the M97xE is known for being slightly low output for a MM cartridge, despite the healthy published output 'specs'.

I suspect that your preamps are ok, just slightly low output. The single stage phono stages I've built all have this 'issue'. Although a single op amp can develop very high gain, for 'quality' reasons the voltage gain is often 'throttled' back a little. Regards, Fap.

FYI, when dealers sell a Rega deck with a Rega cartridge you should get a good discount. When I bought my P5 with the Exact I paid $425 for the cartridge, it listed at the time for $550. Mine played fine through my Rotel preamp with an onboard phono stage which I was told was the Rega MM/MC phono pre installed in the preamp (RC-1090).

Rick, if the cartridge is indeed defective, you'll have to work with the vendor you bought it from. Depending on their warranty and return policy, you might not be able to switch to a different cartridge. The Exact is supposed to be very good, but I don't have any experience with it. If you want to try something different, make sure it's compliance is a good match with your tonearm. I think the P5 has an RB600 which is medium mass.

Fap, his previous vinyl set up didn't have this problem, which suggests it's something with this particular cartridge.

Mingles and Miner42, thanks for that. It does sound like the cartridge might be faulty. Regards, Fap.

Thanks for all the input! I will give you an update when I here back from REGA! Also, my dealer mentioned there might be a way to get additional gain from my K-1Xe on a givin input. Hopefully, I will get this sorted out.

Thanks again!