So what sounds better then? Moving Magnet or Moving Coil?

What!!!! Are you mad? Moving Coil course!!! That's why they are more expensive etc ...so the argument goes but in my personal experience I have preferred Moving Magnet.

Maybe I have been unlucky or ignorance regarding set up but I have found that Moving Coil despite exquisite treble information , can sound thin & almost seem to " not like rock music"

I have used in the last 24 years Audio Technica ATF5, OC9,OC5 (a good cartridge ) Sumiko BPS & Denon DL304. The turntables have been Roksan Xerses & Michell Gyrodec . The DL304 was the best due to very low output I had to get a phono stage . One day the Denon died on me & was too expensive to replace.

A few years ago due to the finances I bought an Ortofon 2M red the first moving magnet I bought in years . i wasn't expecting much but was very impressed.

I recently bought an Ortofon 2M Blue & I am nearly on the 50 hour burn in . I am very happy with it.

I know Moving Coil is the medias & audiophiles choice but tell me your experiences about what type of cartridge you prefer.

It has to said I have a Koetsu Red Signature on my friends Oracle turntable . It sounded fantastic. It's price was not.

People with genuine experience need only apply . Lastly forget talk about measurement , your ears are the only judgement here


Thanks.

 

I think it really all depends on the phono stage to be honest. If the stage isn't up to task, MC's can sometimes sound thin. I think that's because the stage can't handle everything it's being fed and the fact that MC carts are very reactive to proper loading. Not having the right settings deployed or not having a stage that can adjust to the requirements of the cart can leave you with a bad taste. MM's are less sensitive to loading generally. I guess in short it's much harder to dial in a MC cart and if you do not have the gear to do so you might not enjoy it as much as if you did have the gear. That said, I often hear MC's are not as musical as MM's. This is likely due to the added detail being captured, improper stage settings and the listener's ears. I think that you have to spend a few more bucks to keep musicality in the MC arena, mostly because you need a stage capable of getting the most out of the cart. Just my .02.

I currently run a Ortofon 2M Black ona RB 250 Cardas wired arm. It's fantastic and has tons of fine detail. It sounds superb and keeps all it's creamy musicality. I think it's the best over all cart I have had the pleasure of owning.

Prior to that I was running a Zyx R50 Bloom LOMC. My preamp did not have enough gain for it and I ended up with a SUT. When I finally figured all that out it did sound fantastic for sure. The detail was impressive and it sounded musical. It was ona different table and arm. I honestly wish I still had it for this arm and table because I now have a stage capable of anything loading wise. Audio Alchemy Vac-In-The Box.

I think the next time I off load some extra vinyl I will venture back into a MC cart for the Thorens RB 250 deck so I can truly compare them.

To summarize....right now I prefer MM only because that's what I was most successful with....but now that I can effectively deploy a MC cart and have an arm capable as well I am sure something MC will really knock me off my feet.

And on your 2M Blue....I ran one for 2 years before the Black....hope someday you can get a Black because it's really much better than the blue.....both are great but the Black is in another league....(price included).

 

MM sounds better to me, after owning several MC's, but again that's my opinion. Right now I'm running a Shure N91ED with a Jico SAS stylus on an $8000 turntable/tonearm setup.

This combination costs a little over $100, and I'm very happy with the results. The N91ED with $14 EVG stylus sourced from eBay is also very nice for a cost of less than $50.

With cartridges, more expensive and new designs aren't always that much better to me. But it's all subjective and system dependent.

 

In my experience, to my ears, with the types of music I listen to, MC is the way to go. I do agree with the previous poster that loading is crucial to get the best out of an MC cart. I'm currently running a Dynavector DV20xL2 with a Sutherland Ph3D phono stage, but am considering an MM tubed phono stage with a SUT.

 

229 pages in all its glory:

http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?eanlg&1200430667

 

I saw this regarding a SUT for a MM tube stage, http://www.parksaudiollc.com/cm1254sut.html. Upgraded transformer to boot.

 

There is a 3rd way, used less often but IMO has lots of advantages: Moving Iron. Used by, among others, Nagoaka, Grado, and Soundsmith.

Has the advantages of MM (Comparatively low cost, replaceable stylus, high output voltage) while offering potentially a more detailed sound close to MC due to more accurate tracking.

 

To my ears and my system MC rules!

 

From above article:

"All those experiences told me that chances are that the cartridge that you own ( MC or MM ) is not performing at its best because chances are that the tonearm you own is not the best match for that cartridge!!!!!!, so imagine what do you can/could hear when your cartridge is or will be on the right tonearm???!!!!!!!"

 

There are great cartridges of both types and I think it's a fool's errand to try to generalize and say one type always sounds better than another. MCs have the advantage of not being as sensitive to capacitance loading, other than that I don't much worry about cartridge type just sound, and system matching particularly with respect to compliance and mass.

 

I once owned a Nagatron MC-8, a high output MC. It was not thin on the lower end, very flat, neutral response. It gave up on me after cleaning the stylus with electronics cleaner (back in 1987) a no no! The force of the spray deflected back into the cartridge body, breaking off one of the coil leads. The stylus was 0.6 mil grain oriented conica diamond, would play many slightly worn records completely free of distortion.
All others have been MM from Signet Analog master AM-20, on an AR turntable (great sound from this combo) and my favorite Shure V15 type IV, the M-95, and the M-91-ED. I currently have an ADC 230 XE on a Technics SL-D205 direct drive, just for test playing records for sale. I actually like it. The ADC has a high output (I think 8MV) and tracks nicely. The ADC has a very short cantilever, so it is dynamic and robust, but has no problem tracking loud passages.

I prefer MM for almost all music program because I am used to them, although I do miss the Nagatron MC-8 moving coil.

 

I see you never tried an Ortofon MC?

I've never heard an Ortofon MM, but my Ortofon MC rocks out rather nicely

 

I've used the Ortofon Salsa (LOMC) the Ortofon Red and Blue and Bronze and Ortofon Vivo Red. Out of them all, I've stuck with the 2M Bonze MM cartridge. I also have a Shure M97xe with JICO SAS stylus. I really tried to like MC carts but just can't for some reason. And I use the Phonomena 2 preamp so adjusting for the carts was not an issue.

 

I've gone from the 2M Blue which came with my turntable to an Ortofon Rondo Bronze which is a low output MC cart. Both carts have a similar sound which I'm guessing is a signature Ortofon sound but the Rondo seems to reveal more fine detail and produce more bass. Where it really shines is reducing surface noise and taming sibilance. My first UK pressing of Pink Floyd's Obscured By Clouds was nearly unlistenable due to really annoying sibilance on the vocals that has now all but gone with the Rondo

 

disc cutting heads are moving coil devices.....

 

I've recently purchased my first MC cartridge, an Audio-Technica OC 9 MK II, which tracks very, very nicely and has well-balanced sound with excellent stereo imaging. I've used AT cartridges for many years (all MM models up to now) and they have been excellent as well, however, for me the big difference seems to be that the MC cartridge has much less surface noise and a wider soundstage, which gives it an edge over the others. Of course, it is also mounted in my new Pro-Ject 2 Xperience Classic turntable which supposedly has a much better tonearm than my Technics SL-12ooMK2 that has an AT-14Sa cartridge on it, neither TT has an issue with IGD. My biggest concern will be when it comes time to have the MC cartridge re-tipped: I'll have to send it off to have it done, so, should I get another MC cart to use when I have this done, or should I use my AT-440ML to get me by?

 

Joe, I am pretty sure that when it comes to re- tipping some of these stores will send you the re-tipped cartridge first. Then you send your's back.

Don't know if they need a deposit, but maybe having your credit card imprint is good enough that they can offer this service.

 

Which model do you have? Thanks.

 

Rondo Blue.

 

That's a good idea. There are no stores locally that sell phono cartridges of any kind (other than the low-end AT carts offered at our local BB), but I bought it from Needle Doctor, so I'm pretty sure they'll point me in the right direction. It's a long way off, though, as I figure it'll be good for around 1,000 hours and I've put just 60 hours on it so far.

 

The answer to the OP's question probably depends more on what answering party currently has on their set up.

 

I've owned an Ortofon Bronze cartridge and two Grace F-9 MM carts. I preferred the sound of the Grace cartridges. My first MC was a ZYX and recently upgraded to a Van Den Hul Frog Gold, which blows all of them out of the water

 

LOMC

 

Strain Gauge Cartridges have a lot going for them.

 

I'll second the moving iron. I've used Adc and was happy with it for quite some time. Closer to a MM but was a good performer.