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Post by jazzbones on Aug 22, 2015 11:13:44 GMT
This is a question many have ponder about when it comes to the end game, viz: the enjoyment of music off your records via turntable. For those who are multi bank account loaded amongst us, I'm not one of 'em, this is purely a non consideration, but for us who take the economic beatings, my question (finally) is can a circa UK£500quid pickup cartridge, of good quality and make, give you the deep satisfaction of a really really good performance, record wise? Sure, there are are very fine UK£5,000.00 creations around but for a finite life of a cartridge are they worth it? Okay, okay if I was given one I would accept because it would have cost me Nowt as they say in the Dales. Whats your take and belief on this one folks?
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Post by Nick on Aug 22, 2015 11:51:19 GMT
Why is the life finite?
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Post by Stratmangler on Aug 22, 2015 12:01:38 GMT
It wears out a little bit every time you use it. |
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Post by Nick on Aug 22, 2015 13:06:25 GMT
Surely if its a decent cartridge the stylus wears and you replace it (the stylus that is)and if it happened to be a £5000 cartridge the re tip is not likely to be a huge percentage of the total cost.
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Post by MartinT on Aug 22, 2015 13:13:08 GMT
It's a bit hard to make monetary comparisons like that, Ron. I can only use my own cartridges as an example: the £500 AT 33PTG is an excellent all-rounder, and in isolation sounds mighty fine. The £2000 Shelter 5000, in comparison, sounds more structural, has more welly and more dynamic clout, has authority across the board and just gets more from the music. Do I need to go to £5000 for a cartridge? No, I can't justify it.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 22, 2015 15:54:31 GMT
It often amazes me to see the expectations some have for cheap cartridges. Folks will spend £500 ++ on a TT/arm and then ask about AT95's, cheap Shures etc which are total shite (some actually like the sound of these which is worrying...).
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Post by MartinT on Aug 22, 2015 16:28:07 GMT
Yes, I agree about cheap cartridges. The Linn Basik was another crap cartridge.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 22, 2015 17:20:37 GMT
Ive got a cheap MM cartridge a Pickering 'V15/625E' im sorry to upset some but to my ears it sound super.Didnt cost me much.Where as the expensive MC's ive had over the years i certainly wont be revisiting any time ever.
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Post by Clive on Aug 22, 2015 18:31:04 GMT
I tried a 2M Black. It was very good, in isolation I'd be very content with it. I have a London Reference which is what, about 3k today? In some respects it's not so different to the 2M Black but the Ref is so much more satisfying. Much better dynamics, crystal clear treble, better imaging. Ultimately it connects better mostly due to its dynamics. Would I spend 3k on a Ref today? No I wouldn't. At AT150 mlx is probably better than the 2M Black and the AT150 ANV (about 500 quid) is the one that gets closer to my Ref. That would be my choice today balancing sound and price.
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Post by julesd68 on Aug 22, 2015 20:48:46 GMT
Clive, how does the Garrott P77i compare to the AT150MLX? Have you compared either with an AT33 PTG mk2?
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Post by Clive on Aug 22, 2015 21:43:39 GMT
Clive, how does the Garrott P77i compare to the AT150MLX? Have you compared either with an AT33 PTG mk2? Jules, I've not compared with a 33 ATG. The MLX is very different to the P77i. Much more treble for a start which IIRC is not your cuppa tea. Bass is not as impactful either but the MLX has a more "linear" balance. If the balance of P77i suits your system and ears then the MLX will give very different results. |
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Post by julesd68 on Aug 23, 2015 9:07:57 GMT
Thanks Clive, that's very helpful - I'd like a little more treble but not bucketloads...
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Post by Clive on Aug 23, 2015 9:44:52 GMT
Have you played with the capacitive loading? It moves the resonant peak around and doesn't always follow the more capacitance - less treble rule. Ultimately though the P77i resides on the safe side of treble IME.
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Post by MartinT on Aug 23, 2015 10:01:24 GMT
With AT cartridges in general, the 33PTG has more impact than the OC9, which has more impact than the MMs. The latter sound lightweight to my ears.
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Post by daytona600 on Aug 23, 2015 10:52:38 GMT
£500+ cartridges total waste of money unless you have a RCM £ 5000+ total stupidity
RCM can double or more stylus life or retips & records sound better as well
some fantastic cartridges on the market for under 500quid
correctly set up on a quality deck & adjustable arm these can really sing - get VTF/Azimuth dialled in & use a quality protractor
Audio Technica AT-150MLX £ 200 odd ,Audio Technica AT33PTG/II £300 odd , Nagaoka MP-500 £ 400 odd & Ortofon Quintet Black £ 500 odd
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Post by Nick on Aug 23, 2015 11:05:53 GMT
£500+ cartridges total waste of money unless you have a RCM £ 5000+ total stupidity RCM can double or more stylus life or retips & records sound better as well some fantastic cartridges on the market for under 500quid correctly set up on a quality deck & adjustable arm these can really sing - get VTF/Azimuth dialled in & use a quality protractor Audio Technica AT-150MLX £ 200 odd ,Audio Technica AT33PTG/II £300 odd , Nagaoka MP-500 £ 400 odd & Ortofon Quintet Black £ 500 odd And how many over £500 or over £5000 plus cartridges have you tried? |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 23, 2015 12:25:42 GMT
Some may argue this but the music you listern to can make a cartridge sound good or bad. If i play EDM 12" singles with my cart it sound fantastic, where as if i play any old Rock LP's it's not brilliant. Lucky for me all i play is those 12" single on my TT.
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Post by daytona600 on Aug 23, 2015 13:47:12 GMT
£500+ cartridges total waste of money unless you have a RCM £ 5000+ total stupidity RCM can double or more stylus life or retips & records sound better as well some fantastic cartridges on the market for under 500quid correctly set up on a quality deck & adjustable arm these can really sing - get VTF/Azimuth dialled in & use a quality protractor Audio Technica AT-150MLX £ 200 odd ,Audio Technica AT33PTG/II £300 odd , Nagaoka MP-500 £ 400 odd & Ortofon Quintet Black £ 500 odd And how many over £500 or over £5000 plus cartridges have you tried? £500 tried dozens & own a few myself £5000 tried lots & own a few myself Lyra Titan , Ortofon Anna , Ortofon A95 |
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Post by MikeMusic on Aug 23, 2015 15:55:50 GMT
There's free hifi systems on Freecycle. That gives great VFM  Moving on from that there's the upgrade path.... To spend serious, lottery type money on kit you have to have loads of dough and be well into music and/or hifi. If so then why not ? A £5000 cart should go alongside a *very* expensive set up or it would be a waste of money. £100,000 maybe ? |
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Post by Clive on Aug 23, 2015 16:37:22 GMT
5k is quite a lot but 2k or 3k cartridges easily work in systems that many find affordable. With highish efficiency speakers amps don't need to cost much so the rest of the system could be say 2k to 4k. A far cry from 100k. A 5k cartidge could work with the right deck/arm/phono stage.
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