First impressions of the Nagaoka MP-110 phono cartridge

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by dividebytube, Mar 11, 2014.

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  1. acemachine26

    acemachine26 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Bangalore, IN
    Thank you, that was really helpful.
     
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  2. rockin_since_58

    rockin_since_58 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Simi Valley, CA
    I installed the MP-110 on my 2016 Planar 1 last week using the protractor/alignment tool that came with the TT and it worked out well. The only trouble I had was pinching one of the leads a little too hard when removing it and I could not get it to slide back on to the Nag. I had to use some tweezers to open it up a bit and in the end was successful. I replaced a Bias 2 and it is like night and day.
     
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  3. acemachine26

    acemachine26 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Bangalore, IN
    Thank you, I'll be ordering the MP 110 soon.
     
  4. ECTherapy

    ECTherapy New Member

    Location:
    Knoxville
    I got my MP-110 some time ago. I may have reached the 10 hour mark by now, but I'm not too sure. I've heard a lot of good things about this cartridge, including how good and deep the bass was... I'm not hearing that. I have my tracking force at 1.95g, I've adjusted my speaker positions, my position, severely increased the low ends on my equalizer without distorting the output sound, and the bass is still too light! I'm not looking to "raise the roof," as I'm sure no one says anymore, but I really feel as though there should be more of a detailed prominence and kick in the bass than what I'm getting. I know my albums well, and some of them are giving off too much treble. I'm not sure if I need to go a full 2.0g, or if the "break in" period will ever fix this, but I'm not too ecstatic about the measly bass it's putting out.

    Great mids and highs, though!
     
  5. CCrider92

    CCrider92 Senior Member

    Location:
    Cape Cod, MA
    Why are you at 1.95 when the recommendation is 1.75?
     
  6. rockin_since_58

    rockin_since_58 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Simi Valley, CA
    I am getting fantastic bass with my Nag. It could be system related. I do have 15" woofers. The bass is very tight and defined, even when listening through my HD600's. I have my VTF at 1.8 grams.
     
  7. norliss

    norliss Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cardiff, Wales
    These Nagaoka carts seem well regarded but on the manufacturer's (EU) web site they claim that the cartridge should be replaced after 150-200 hours. That seems like quite a short lifespan?
     
  8. rockin_since_58

    rockin_since_58 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Simi Valley, CA
    Maybe the stylus, but I cannot imagine replacing the whole cartridge.
     
  9. TEKWRX

    TEKWRX Am I Demon?

    Location:
    Boynton Beach, FL
    I just hit 500 hours on my MP-110 this weekend, and it still sounds just a good as usual. I do keep my records really clean and use a zerodust after every side. Not sure why they recommend replacement so soon, but I'm hoping to get at least 1000 hours out of mine.
     
    norliss likes this.
  10. ECTherapy

    ECTherapy New Member

    Location:
    Knoxville
    The recommendation is 1.5 - 2.0. I think most people say they have better results around 1.75 or 1.8, or they have better results in general the closer they approach the 2.0 maximum.
     
    trd likes this.
  11. CCrider92

    CCrider92 Senior Member

    Location:
    Cape Cod, MA
    I'm on my second stylus in 10 or 12 years. The original stylus still sounds find to me - have kept it clean with magic eraser and the lp's clean with an RCM and a brush.
     
  12. CCrider92

    CCrider92 Senior Member

    Location:
    Cape Cod, MA
    OK - I'll have to look into that. Several years ago either on this site or another I had mine in the 1.8 range and people were all over me! Perhaps a change of thinking since then?!
     
  13. Greg Carrier

    Greg Carrier Senior Member

    Location:
    Iowa City
    +1. I recently switched the stylus on my MP-110 to the JPN-200, and everything sounds better. I didn't notice a weaker low end, btw. And it still tracks like a champ.
     
    Jelloalien likes this.
  14. henry babenko

    henry babenko Forum Resident

    I have mine at 1.0 and it sounds the same as when I had to 1.8 no difference at all.
     
  15. zombiemodernist

    zombiemodernist Forum Resident

    Location:
    Northeastern USA
    I see the same results in overall tone as you did, but I stayed on the higher end, as I found it had slightly improved trackability on certain records. Even with the higher tracking experience a bit of sibilance on this cart with worn old records, and hot and brightly cut new ones. Truth be told, it's more of an accentuation of hard to track regions, and it very well may be the tubes I'm running in my phono stage, or the sharpness of my tweeters.
     
  16. dbsea

    dbsea Forum Resident

    Location:
    Brooklyn, NY
    I had been using a 2M Bronze with a Rega RP3 in my secondary system for quite a while. I recently installed a MP110 and am experiencing significantly less surface noise. The 2M Bronze is a great cart, but I found that it really demands pristine vinyl. I have some great NM discs, but a number of EX to VG+ ones as well. The 2M Bronze made me sort of hate a good chunk of my record collection. With the MP110, I no longer feel that way.

    On a side note, the Exact I use in my main system is sort of a middle ground between the MP110 and 2M Bronze in terms of surface noise. I play my best records with the main system, but now get much more enjoyment out of the rest of my collection on the secondary system.
     
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  17. nosliw

    nosliw Delivering parcels throughout Teyvat! Meow~!

    Location:
    Ottawa, ON, Canada
    That's what I noticed on some records with my Ortofon 2M Bronze and Nagaoka MP-110, although I do have plenty of used records where surface noise is definitely reduced (or in a few cases, almost eliminated) on my Bronze versus any cartridge with an elliptical stylus. From my experience, it's hard to pinpoint why this is happening.

    The middle ground for me with respect to surface noise is my Stanton 681EEE II-S with the original Stereohederon stylus.
     
    dbsea likes this.
  18. Heckto35

    Heckto35 Forum Resident

    I'm a living witness of the power of a fine line stylus!
     
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  19. Ben Adams

    Ben Adams Forum Resident

    Location:
    Phoenix, AZ, USA
    Just popping in to say ... over three years later and I still stand by all of this. I'm just hyper-sensitive to that last couple of minutes on an LP side. But the Nagaokas sound great anyway.
     
    Gethan Wall, nosliw and Heckto35 like this.
  20. Leonthepro

    Leonthepro Skeptically Optimistic

    Location:
    Sweden
    Just chiming in here as a new Nagaoka MP-110 owner. I would love to hear some peoples opinions about some of my concerns. I want to be detailed so as to leave no confusion, I hope its not too cumbersome to read.

    Lets take it from the top, my setup was:
    Rega RP1 with carbon cart
    Cyrus 2 amplifier
    System Fidelity SF5030 tower speakers
    Custom made HQ speaker cables

    Fitting on the new cart was a first time for me and had its share of difficulties. My first mistake was not putting the anti skate to 0 and lowering the tracking force while aligning the cart. I noticed the cantilever bending inwards to the spindle and freaked out. Even after lowering the anti skate there was still a slight bend when cued on the protractor. With investigation I can say that this might not be because of me breaking the cantilever but instead a remaining mild bias which Ive seen resides in many Rega tables and my slightly off leveled platter which might have caused the slight bend. In the air its straight as a nail. The Argon Alignment 1 mirror protractor proved useful and the only mild concern I have is that the screws were fitted somewhat far out on the headshell. Id say just between the very front and middle, so not a huge problem I assume.
    I set the tracking force to 1.8 and anti skate accordingly. My first real concern was that I had to lower the anti skate down to about 1.4 on the indicator scale. Its hard to be exact since the RP1 only has 0, 1 and 2 as markings. But I assume this is also not a big deal since many choose to play with 0 anti skate to begin with anyway. I just chose 1.4 because it makes the cart track still on a blank vinyl surface and the cantilever stays centered on both inner and outer grooves while playing.
    My second and probably main concern which still somewhat persists are the static pops. The first day it was out of control and consistent. Letting it rest over night solved the issue, I imagine it helped letting it naturally discharging or something. It still persists on parts where Im quite sure there are not usual pops. My records and mat have gotten oddly static since cart change as well. Anyone with knowledge of similar issues please let me know.
    The last concern of mine which Im not sure I want to solve is the SRA. Currently Id say its sitting at about 80 degrees just judging by the naked eye. To fix it Id have to buy tonearm spacers which would supposedly add resonans and change the VTA, adding more problems to fix one which Im not sure is so important. What do you think? Id love for the thinnest mat suggestions to help the issue either way.
    An issue which started before cart change I believe is a hum that slowly increased. Maybe Im just a more attentive listener now but I was wondering if anyone has diagnosis tips for hum. Its pretty typical for turntables as far as I know but remember, I dont have a grounding wire as a Rega user.
    Another thing to note is the rumble in the tonearm. While holding the headshell, I can feel the rumble from the motor or bearings through the arm. Its usually only slight, but after some play sessions it can get more noticeable. Maybe I just have very sharp senses as a younger VC member though. I imagine the Nagaoka is more sensitive than my previous cart and thought that this might have more of an effect on the overall sound now.

    Other than this I can say that I have been enjoying what seems to be more detail and deeper bass from this upgrade although Im not sure if the sound staging has changed for the better. I almost want to say it fills the room less, but perhaps its my imagination. What is not my imagination is the superior tracking ability which is the main reason why I bought this cart. Previously unplayable tracks are now much improved although not perfect, perhaps because of the sub optimal setup or issues I talked about above?

    Extra Detail: The days of trying this new cart has been the very days Sweden first experienced frost and snow for the year, at least where I live. Perhaps this contributes to an extra dry environment prone to more static build up?
     
  21. punkmusick

    punkmusick Amateur drummer

    Location:
    Brazil
    I quoted some of you because what you say is how I feel now about my Nagaoka MP-110. I listen mostly to heavier rock music (metal/punk) and sometimes classic rock'n'roll (ex: Stones) and jazz (ex: Miles) and reggae (ex: Bob).

    Good part is that it is definitely warm, great bass, great elimination of surface noise. I really love how it sounds.

    The not so good part is that I miss a little bit of treble specially with cymbals. They're there but not prominent. It seems like I had more treble before the cartridge broke in.

    If I listen to the same records on CD, I have more cymbals, which I like, but also more harsh and bright, which I dislike. Probably it is due to the mastering process of 80's and 90's CDs, because with newer masterings including HD dowloads the difference in treble is smaller, but it's still there most of the time.

    So overall I prefer my analog system with these records, sound better than the digital counterparts, but I have to reduce cymbals in order to get a warmer, bassier and less bright sound.

    I wonder if I could have it all. A little bit more treble would be better? Or more detail perhaps? Can I have both warmth and detail? Should I look for another cartridge?
     
    trd likes this.
  22. patient_ot

    patient_ot Senior Member

    Location:
    USA
    @Folloni, if you're not satisfied and have the budget, look for another cartridge. Life is too short to be listening with one you're not happy with. Not knowing your system I don't have a specific recommendation, though I can tell you it is possible to get both warmth and detail. Proper cartridge loading (often overlooked with MM/MI carts) is critical as is system matching.
     
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  23. punkmusick

    punkmusick Amateur drummer

    Location:
    Brazil
    System is described in my profile:

    Project Debut Carbon turntable
    Musical Fidelity V90 LPS
    Denon AVR-3200 integrated
    B&W CDM-1 or some Sony headphones I bought in the airport. My Seenheiser HD650 is on its way...

    Any recommendation on another cartridge?
     
  24. patient_ot

    patient_ot Senior Member

    Location:
    USA
    Hard to make a recommendation because the only part of your equipment I know at all is the turntable. The downside is that the tonearm on there is very light (6g EM), which limits your choice of cartridges due to compliance matching issues. I'd probably look for a higher compliance cartridge with that tonearm, then use loading plugs to fine tune the sound to your liking.

    More on that here:

    Parallel Resistive Loading
     
    punkmusick likes this.
  25. punkmusick

    punkmusick Amateur drummer

    Location:
    Brazil
    Very interesting! Thank you!
     
    patient_ot likes this.
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