Cartridge Match for Marantz SR7008's Phono?

OK. Bear with me, I'm new to this...

I want to get a turntable and cartridge. There was a recent thread in which the OP was told that one of the things high end phono stages allow for is adjustability, so they can match different cartridges. Well, for budget reasons, I'd like to start out by using the phono stage in the Marantz SR7008 receiver, which has zero adjustability.

So, to me, it makes sense to work backwards. What sub $200 cartridge/stylus combos with minimum inner groove distortion will match the SR7008?

 

I'd focus on finding the best MM cartridge you can afford, don't worry about the Marantz's phone stage. That way your next upgrade can just be a phono stage, instead of phono and new cartridge.

 

Well, I guess that's the best answer so far. But I don't think it makes much sense, does it? If I get a cartridge that doesn't match my phono stage, that will guarantee that I won't get the best possible sound between the time I get the TT and do a later phono stage upgrade. I'm trying to keep the option of using the Marantz phono stage for a long time, maybe forever.

 

Matching a Moving Magnet cartridge to a Moving Magnet phono stage isn't as difficult as you've been led to believe. The only factor to consider is capacitance, and while Marantz doesn't list its capacitance for built-ins its usually <100 pf. That will be fine for the vast majority of cartridges in your budget.

 

I hear ya, Rolltide. My questions were the result of this thread:
General phono stage question..

I didn't want to hijack it...

 

I can see why you'd get that impression from the 2nd post. Unless you're using a cart that likes low capacitance like an audio technica I would put phono stage matching at the lower end of the list of most important things to consider (Even with an AT it's not the end of the world, just brighter sound than with lower capacitance). That's why I said not to worry about your Marantz for now. It will get the job done fine for most of the carts you'd be considering. Try and find the best bang for the buck table and cart you afford, while leaving yourself an upgrade path. Since you have the Marantz you can skip any table with a built in phono stage.

 

I used an Audio-Technica AT440MLA (bought brand new last year for about $180) directly into my Marantz AV7005 (which I assume has an MM phono stage very similar to that in your SR7008). I thought the sound was very good, detailed and dynamic, with a lot of punch. Really great combo for rock and pop; I wouldn't say it was overly bright, but just dynamic and detailed. The only real noticeable downside -- and I don't know whether this is attributable to the cartridge, the preamp, or some combination of the two -- was I thought that the mids, particularly female vocals and massed strings, were a somewhat lacking in weight and nuance compared to my current setup (Ortofon Kontrapunkt H into Linn Linto).

 

There's such a huge disconnect between this thread and the one I referenced.

Does anyone know the specs on the SR7008 phono stage?

 

I'm not sure, and it doesn't seem like Marantz publishes (or at least makes it easy to find) its phono stage specs.

However, my take is that, although there may be outliers, if you take a decent mid-level phono stage incorporated into a reputable and popular Japanese company's top AV receiver (the Marantz), it is likely to pair fairly well with a decent mid-level mm phono cartridge made by a reputable and popular Japanese company (the Audio-Technica). These products are not bits of audiophile esoterica, but products that sell in relatively significant volume and are designed to "play nice" with a broad range of options.

Will a dedicated "specialist" phono preamp with a more expensive, exclusive cartridge sound better? Perhaps, but perhaps not, as specialist products may or may not be more finicky as to matching.

 

They're printed in the back of the manual, to the extent there are any. As I said, capacitance isn't listed and its about the only thing of interest in this matter and even it isn't that relevant given the circumstances.

Anybody in that previous thread who suggested one has to take care in matching a <$200 MM cartridge to a phono stage is full of it. But hey, if its got your jimmies rustled, go out and buy a phono stage.

 

Can anyone help me find the specs on this phono stage?

 

I have a Marantz SR6007, probably a step down and a year older than yours but I bet the same phono stage. I have used a Rega Super Elys, a Dynavector 20XH and a grado Red and all worked fine. Get the best High Output cartridge you can and it will sound fine, and when and if you upgrade to a separate Phono stage it will sound better. Don't over think it.

 

From my SR6007 owners manual

Phono equalizer (PHONO input — MEDIA PLAYER OUT)
Input sensitivity: 2.5 mV
RIAA deviation: ±1 dB (20 Hz to 20 kHz)
S/N: 74 dB (A weighting, with 5 mV input)
Rated output: 150 mV
Distortion factor: 0.03 % (1 kHz, 3 V)

 

Any impedance or capacitance numbers?