progress?

In one sentence: why in 1980 could I buy a turntable such as a Technics SLD2 for $130 and a cartridge such as an Audio Tecnica 12XE for a total of $160, while today I might spend $3000 and still not be able to track the Telarc 1812 cannons[when I could do so with the $160 1980 expenditure]?

In 1980, vinyl records were the medium of choice for home music reproduction. Millions upon millions of turntables, tonearms and cartridges were manufactured and sold every year. Today, that number would be in the mere thousands, not millions. Economies of scale dictate pricing. The fewer units a company's fixed costs can be amortized over, the higher their prices must be to stay in business.

Additionally... what they ^^^ all said about the goal of our equipment.

I don't own a copy of the Telarc 1812 and never will. Since the track looks like the photo Almarg posted, I've no intention of subjecting my $5K LOMC to it. My $15K vinyl rig plays music so much better than my old $500 rig that I can't stand to listen to the old one. If a rig isn't worth listening to, I couldn't care less what sort of torture tests it can track.

" I think it is all about set-up, cartridge/tonearm matching and proper isolation."

Having not tested out or compared the modern tables to the older in a test like this, I also suspect the overall setup is the key to success in many cases. This and similar records were the ultimate test for table tracking back then. I was in retail audio sales back then and had the opportunity to set up and use many tables and carts back then and the setup made all the difference as I recall. Only a small % of setups/combos seemed up to the task even back then as I recall. Also I seem to recall high mass carts in lower mass tonearms popular with many Japanese and European tables at the time having the least success due largely to extreme inertial effects. Those records served too purposes: 1 ) demonstrate the dynamics possible with digital recording technology of the day and 2) demonstrate the shortcomings of most record players/turntables of the day with such recordings as they failed to track the records adequately in most cases. Digital had its own technical issues and challenges to conquer over the years, but the laws of physics relating to mass and inertia was not one of them luckily.

Your moniker tells me all a I need to know.

I think Al's photo tells us all we need to know. Nice find, Al.

Dear Boofer: +++++ " Except for the cannons, all mentioned TT's sound just fine, and if sound is what it's all about, well and good; but I think trackability should also be a concern, especially if today'sprices are considered.... " +++++

IMHO perhaps the main or more important cartridge characteristic/target is: the cartridge traking abilities.

Everything the same the best cartridge tracker ( between cartridge comparisons. ) is the best performer too.

Better cartridge tracking abilities means ( between other things ) LOWER DISTORTIONS: distortions that many of us can hear and discern about.

The main cartridge function/target is to follow the recorded grooves staying in touch with always.
Any stylus microscopic " jump " when the stylus is riding the grooves means added distortions and we don't want added distortions in our audio system.

In any decent TT/tonearm/set up the main responsability to shows great or poor tracking abilities fall in the cartridge it self. We don't have to have an stellar tonearm or TT for the cartridge can shows its tracking habilities. I made it " thousands " of test for tracking habilities with real music/recordings with " hundreds of vintage and today MM/MI/LOMC/HOMC cartridges.

One of the recordings I used is that Telarc 1812 Overture ( that IMHO is a great recording and not only because the cannons. ) and because the way ( over the recording. ) the cartridge trfacked I know how that cartridge performs against other cartridges and the differences I have to expect.

Only a few of the today cartridges can track the 16 cannon shots ( one of them is the Denon top of the line S1. ), other only part of those shots and depending which shots can track that's the way that cartridge performs with " normal " LPs.

Now, that is not only which cartridge can pass the 16 cannons shots but on each cannon shot: how it performs/sound? and ( again ) depending on the cartridge kind of sound/reproduction of each one shot will be its overall quality performance level.

Those people that still think that because no other LP is so demanding it's no important that his cartridge can't pass the test but the other LPs: wrong way wrong, it's important because the cartridges that can always performs in any other LP with lower lower distortions.

Of course that if the distoriton levels o what you are hearing is not important: well, is not important.

Dougdeacon, the recording can't damage your precious cartridge but it's a good test/experience to know which distortion levels you have at the source.

Several today and other vintage LOMC cartridges more than riding the LPs normal grooves are jumping on it! . This is terrible, not the Telarc 1812 Overture.

Regards and enjoy the music,
R.