Your Favorite Cartridge Maker(s)? (pick three)

Not too worried 'bout it... you can't cover all bases/please everyone.

If Decca and Cartridge Man/MusicMaker had been cut to make room for the few significant cart makers who weren't in the poll, then someone would be bummed about that, too.
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Current poll Top 5 (while noting that 'popular' does not automatically = 'better', just popular):

#1 Ortofon – And #1 by a wide margin, too. Kinda freaky that about half of all respondees put 'em in their Top 3, but hey, props. They're obviously doing something very right.

#2 Audio Technica – Who I initially thought would be winning the poll. They're everywhere. Feels like a bit of an upset that they're not #1.

#3 Dynavector – Another surprise to me. Knew they had some hot models (10x5, 20x2), but didn't know they were this popular.

#4 Shure – Would've thought they'd be Top 3 or even Top 2. Didn't most everyone grow up on Shure?

#5 Denon – A real audiophile stalwart. The DL 103 is an enduring hero cart, for over 50 years now.
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One issue with Shure is that they are almost exclusively focused on the DJ market now. Nothing wrong with that per se but with only one hi-fi cart currently being produced it was obvious that they wouldn't make it to the top of the poll. If you started a poll on vintage MM carts I would imagine Shure would be closer to the top.

 

Agree, In my youth Empire and Sonus were by far my favorites along with the beloved V15-III and IV.

 

Is this a poll for current favorites, or past nostalgia. If we are talking current, I see no surprise at all. If we are waxing nostalgic, then I would expect AT and Shure to be neck and neck at the top with Pickering, Grado, Empire, and a few others higher. To me, Ortofon became a household name with the Concorde in the DJ market and the hi-fi ranges rode those coattails to the party.

 

Audio Technica, Ortofon and EMT

 

It's both, or either, or neither, because it's whatever ppl want it to be. There are no rules on what makes a cart maker someone's favorite.

Nostalgia can be part of it, or not, depending on what someone values. People just coming into analog and/or high-end due to its newfound popularity obviously won't have the background for that to be a factor. Old-timers may be different. As always, YMMV.

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Very different in the UK, Ortofon have been very popular for decades, I'd probably place them second behind Shure when it comes to carts found on old decks from the sixties, seventies and eighties, some way behind Shure, but well ahead of the pack, they also came fitted as standard on low end Duals, also let's not forget they invented the MC and came up with the SPU sixty years ago, not many carts are still in production after six decades.

 

Audio Technica
Dynavector
Grado

 

#1 Not surprised, as it has been pointed out, they invented the MC cart and they have longevity in their veins. On top of that, they are currently strong among audiophiles. As has been pointed out, that many audio dealers and entry level TT's (real TT's), that are available online come standard with the red and offer an easy and inexpensive upgrade to the blue. There is a solid market share in the $100-$200 price range.

People always seem to like MM cart's. I would have thought that they would have gone the way of the Dodo bird, in the audiophile market, due to draw towards MC cartridges.

Being able to buy the Bronze, which is a solid performing cartridge, is a winner. And, having the ability to upgrade to the Black, at any time, is so nice, allowing people to move up the ladder a step at a time, without having to make that huge jump in price all at once.

Besides, it is the process of moving up the ladder, that brings with it the audio experience in first and understanding.

Since this IS and audio forum, more people in the forum probably own and enjoy there Ortofon's in their 2M line.

Add to it, their MC's and other MM carts. and they have the advantage of having a huge catalogue, something for everyone.

#2

Again, within the forum members, a good many people, myself included feel this way. So not surprising. But you have to hand it to AT, they have or did offer cart's starting at less than twenty bucks, you have to give them credit for that. I've found their cartridges to be well made and they do have detail and sound good, if a bit on the bright side, which is the only reason that I shy away from them. They are a good value at their price points.

Deserves a solid second place.

#3 & #5 I might have guessed that among forum members, they might have preferred the Dynavector or Dennon, but although they are well liked cartridges, they have

#4 A strong showing, because the limited product line, split between DJ's and the home market. A good and well liked line of cartridges over the years. I would bet that more of our individual members, would have more vintage sure cart's than any other cartridge manufacturer (I own one).

 

There are several forces at play that restrict the supremacy of MCs. One is cost; gaining superiority over a good MM requires a considerable investment, one which many - even audiophiles - are unwilling to make.

Second, they're just more "fussy" - requiring a SUT or MC stage, unless you use a HOMC which in many cases defeats the advantage of the MC.

Third, there's the "no user replaceable stylus" thing. The need to send it away for retipping is another no-no for many folks.

All that notwithstanding, I've had my share of MCs - including my best of all Sumiko Talisman - but I've sold them all, preferring to stay with my AT, Empire and Acutex collection.

Suppose that makes me only a "quasi-audiophile", but...I'm happy.

Cheers,
Larry B.

 

Hey Larry I would love to hear how some of these Empire Carts sound eventually myself. I recently purchased an older Pioneer table that came with the Empire EXL-10 which I believe is probably bottom of the line for the Empire series is it not? Has been difficult for me to find much information for that one but honestly was impressed with the sound quality it produced and it has me really wondering how some of the higher end models would sound.

 

Denon, Denon...and Denon.

The DL-160—sadly no longer manufactured—and DL-110 have superb sound and value. They track
like champs. Dig that HOMC sound!

Best,

Bill

 

Not bottom of the line at all; one of the many clones of the 2000/4000 "blob-on-a-clip" bodies that are so prevalent. What you can get out of it depends on what stylus you can find for it, which will require some study. I believe any of the "237" series needles available from vendors such as thevoiceofmusic.com will work, but don't take my word for it - if you have the stamina, wade thru the VERY long Empire thread at Audio Karma; it's a wealth of info. Just stay away from the "Swiss made" Pfanstiehls. Good luck!

EDIT for clarification: Yes, an EXL10 is bottom of the line regarding stylus; but you can transform it to a better cart just by getting a better stylus. All of the 2000 series bodies are the same, all of the 4000s are the same, and any variety of an EXL is the same as another.

Cheers,
Larry B.

 

Not listed is Pickering, which plays a big part in my life. Yeh, I realize that Pickering was taken over by Stanton.

 

Rounding out the current Poll Top 10 (again, popularity does not automatically = quality, just popularity):

#6 – Benz Micro

#7 – Grado

#8 – Lyra

#9 (tie) – Nagaoka and Soundsmith

#11 (included 'cuz they were so close on votes) – Sumiko

Consider that your 'solid Tier II', behind the 'Big Five' top vote-getters. Feels like we're more firmly in 'audiophile favorite' territory with this group, as opposed to say AT, Shure, and to some extent, Ortofon (cheap Reds on everything likely boost familiarity/popularity).

Not slagging on those companies, just sayin' that they're generally more mass-market-oriented than the mostly-audiophile players (though Grado is a bit mass-market as well).

 

Close, but not exactly.

"
Walter Stanton, 86, Audio Stylus Innovator
By AMY HARMON APRIL 21, 2001


Walter O. Stanton, the inventor of an easily replaceable phonograph stylus that was crucial to creating a consumer market for audio equipment, died on Monday in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. He was 86.

In the late 1940's Mr. Stanton's slide-in stylus made it possible for users to replace a needle assembly when it wore out, instead of having to send it back to the factory. Audiophiles snapped them up for home use, and the invention became one of the basics in phonograph cartridge design.

But Mr. Stanton was as much a salesman as he was an engineer. In 1950, he bought Pickering & Company, the audio component manufacturer that first sold his patented stylus.

A decade later he founded another company, Stanton Magnetics, which was one of the first American companies to make and sell magnetic cartridges that improved sound quality and allowed for a less-expensive product in the 1970's. Both companies had operations in Plainview, N.Y., and West Palm Beach, Fla.

Cheers,
Larry B.

 

"Audiophiles" are willing to pay a lot of money for interconnects, speaker wire, AC cords, NOS tubes...

I doubt that the price of a MC cartridge will sway those members in their never ending quest for audio nirvana.

That is what I thought, but I was corrected in another thread, that there are several nice MC carts available for under $500. And I understand that there are quite a few more in the $500-$1,000 range.

In most cases, SUT's don't have to cost an arm and a leg. I have an Emotiva in a analog switch box. It doesn't cost that much as a phono pre and has a MC setting. I see different manufacturer's offering them as an optional add on for their phono pre's with only a reasonable up charge.

Understand and basically agree with you on all three points, which happen to be the three points used in a previous post in that thread by me. In that thread, the OP posted that he wanted to UG his 2M Bronze to a MC cart. I questioned, that since he already owned the motor for the black, and it is highly regarded by forum members, why not just U/G the stylus to the back?

Figuring that a stylus would itself cost "X" amount, for what ever quality it is. A diamond isn't going to know if it is on a MM or MC cartridge. Apparently, Ortofon has not had any difficulties in pricing the stylus at $475 in the US.

The Ortofon, has a list price on the Black cartridge just below $900 in the US. Apparently, that would tend to establish a market value. and as you can see by the poll, Ortofon is at the #1 position. Quite a few members do have the black cartridge. My thoughts were to place a value on the motor that the OP already has, and wouldn't it be more cost effective to keep the motor and upgrade the stylus? Instead of opting for paying for another motor and stylus to move to a MC cartridge.

His budget was around $500. Why buy a less expensive motor and less expensive stylus for the same $500? It costs so much to make something, the machine, the labor, factory overhead and marketing would be about the same, in either case, So why throw out a great motor? I doubt if people are going to buy a stylus or a new Black cart, at the prices they are selling if it did not have both a quality motor and a quality stylus?

But the OP was given advice to buy a sub $500 MC cartridge. I have never owned a MC cart, so that part matters little to me. If they made quality MC cartridges for less than $500, then why would anyone want to buy a MM magnet that was not as good for a lot more money?

 

The cost and inconvenience is absolutely the reason more people don't run a MC cart.

No matter how much money you've dropped in cables, you at least have the feeling they will be with you for as long as you care to have them. It doesn't take a very high IQ to figure out a $2,000 cart is costing you $1 per record played. I don't care how much money you have to throw around, that is some rough math.

But..... it's worth it.

 

I have a Grace which I adore.

 

I have 3 cartridges here:

Denon DL-103
A/T 33EV
Grado Prestige Gold1

I like the Grado best of all- easily.

 

Right now I have 4 phonographs in my sight which exclusively use Pickering cartridges, the oldest being from 1948. I also have several turntables which I swap out about Pickering's last available new cartridge, the NP/AC, which Stanton continued as the 400 series for awhile.
As far as the "slide-in" stylus is concerned, I haven't seen a pre-mid-50's Pickering cartridge which used one. My 1948 used what looked like a 90 degree bent strip of metal which was inserted into a slot similar to the round shaft needles which preceded it. Definitely something an audiophile would want to use as the tracking pressure was in ounces. Around 1954 or 5, Pickering put that bent strip in a narrow blue plastic carrier which slid in and out of the cartridge. Hence, Pickering's first slide-in stylus.
The next Pickering stylus innovation was more modern and conventional with a stylus point on the end of a tubular shaft which was mounted in a "T" shaped carrier of different colors identifying the type of stylus, and was also a slide-in.
The newest kind of Pickering cartridge I use came out in the mid-60's and was the first to use the Stanton style of slide-in carrier which was known as the 345 series. Although not a direct replacement, a Stanton stylus carrier can be modified to fit.

No. Pickering was pretty much a company all by itself with it's biggest customer being the Seeburg jukebox company. It also had a line of other cartridges, including their V-15 series. Dominant parent company Stanton closed Pickering down a few years ago and ceased producing anything with the Pickering name and none of their long history of phono cartridges.

 

ZYX the perfect tracker

 

That could be the other part of the poll, how many people on the board change the carts (good ones) from time to time...which takes away from any carts staying power. I see people on this board changing carts pretty frequently.

 

Thanks Larry that certainly helps me a bit more. I have gotten my feet wet in the thread over at Audiokarma but I need to devote a bit more time, as you said it will definitely require some study. Glad to hear I have a wider range of styli to choose from and I appreciate the advice to stay way from Pfanstiehls.

All the best!