The upgrade-itis is gnawing away at me... it’s been almost a year now. So let’s say I had up to £1k to upgrade my analogue bits - what should I do? I’m using a Nottingham Analogue Interspace TT (not Junior) / RB300 tonearm / Goldring 1042 MM cart / Aragon 24K pre/phono. Listening to rock/acoustic/vocal/jazz and don’t like a “bright” sound. I actually love the sound I have but dream of a broader/deeper soundstage and a bit more source “separation”. I’m under the impression from my research that I should upgrade the cartridge from a MM to MC, and of course people recommend the ART9. But my concerns are as follows: 1. Although the Aragon pre/phono should be fine with the MC cart, this is unproven for me as I don’t have the opportunity to borrow an MC and try it out. The Aragon is getting old now, and although it’s perfectly fine with the MM, some people have said an MC will not be that quiet through the phono stage (due to the extra gain?). If it doesn’t work out then I may have to buy a new phono stage too which I don’t really want to do and can’t afford on top of a £900 MC cart. 2. What if I end up preferring the sound of the G1042 MM to the ART9 - I’d probably lose a fair bit having to sell it on second hand and be back to square one. I know the solution would be to audition, but that is not an easy option for me for various reasons. And hey, what are the forums for anyway?
£1000 well spent on a ART7/9 as these are bargains & compare to cartridges in the £2,000+ price bracket Best results on a £5,000+ turntable/tonearm , upgrade the RB300 in the future for best results A quick word about the Audio Technica ART cartridge before we close this piece. I believe it retails for just under £1,000 and in my opinion that is an absolute bargain. Ultimately, however good your turntable and arm may be, their job is to provide the best possible platform for that tiny diamond stylus to trace the grooves in the record. The ART7 is a wonderful music making device and will certainly be on my short list when the time comes to renew my own cartridge. Vertere Acoustics MG-1 MkII | The Ear
