Audio Technica's new VM cartridge series

Bump...any other reports on the new AT carts?

 

I just installed a new AT150sa yesterday on my project carbon DC, I think that's one of the latest carts right? Anyway I'm very happy, it sounds fantastic and sails through all of the tricky inner groove tracks I've struggled with prior. Highly recommended

 

It is, but not part of the new series. Fully enjoy my 150sa as well!

 

Yep agree, only been running mine for a few hours now and it already sounds great

 

I installed a new AT VM540ML cart on my admittedly-modest AT-LP5 TT 2+ weeks ago. I really like it a lot. I spent a fair bit of time getting it aligned, I'm running it at 2 gms VTF, and about 1.75 anti-skate. The headshell looks to be quite level with the record surface. Very happy at this point.

 

Picked up a AT150sa from lpgear for $272 recently and I love it. Recent carts have been 2m blue and a lot of 440mla play time. Best cart I've ever had, replacement model is currently 399 !

 

Dear all,

I'm brand new to the forum, even if I've already had the pleasure to read some interesting discussions in the past

I'm going through this thread, since I'm interested in replacing the cartridge of my turntable, the well-known Technics SL1200MK-II that I bought second hand almost ten years ago and that I left almost untouched, apart the replacing of signal cable with this one. So, I would say, almost nothing
The current cartridge is an AT120E that I bought 4 or 5 years ago (and one question I have is ... how many hours does last a cartridge??

The rest of my hifi chain is a Luxman SQ-707 II and a pair of 4-way speakers from Cabasse, a French brand that I discovered when I moved to Brussels and that I find pretty good.

So, going back to my question ... I would like to replace my cartridge, hoping to have more brilliant high tones and dynamic mid and low range (I hope to use the right terms, sorry for my English). Now I feel it a bit "tired" and not that brilliant, even if it still sounds great.

So far, I've looked at Goldring 1042 and a couple of models from AT , i.e. VM540 and VM740 ... I've read about other cartridges, from Denon, Ortofon 2M blue, etc. but I'm really unsure, there are so many factors that it is a real mission impossible to find out on paper, so I believe the best thing is to ask opinions around , so here I am

I forgot to mention that usually I listen to jazz music, preferably from original vinyls dating back to the '60s and '70s, but also classic rock records, as Pink Floyd, Dire Straits, Police, Genesis, etc. arriving to recent records. The proportion are, I would say 50% jazz, 20% classic rock, 30% all the rest.

I would be glad to have some opinion from you suggestions, etc.

I thank you in advance,

Nelik (an Italian guy from Rome, living in Belgium since few years, listening vinyls since always ... just to complete the picture )

 

Cartridges can last quite a long time- decades- but you'll need to replace the stylus regularly. I'll defer to more knowledgeable forum members regarding how many hours, on average. I think this probably varies some with the brand and model of cart.

Again, I'll mostly defer to more knowledgeable forum members, but I think moving up the AT line would be a good move, especially with regard to "brilliant high tones".

 

@Nelik, no one can predict how a cart will sound to your ears, your system, in your listening room. Opinions will be widely varied across the board.

Check this site:

Hi-Fi Cartridge Reviews - Home

The guy uploaded a bunch of sound clips using different cartridges, it will give you a rough idea of the house sound of certain cartridge brands and may help you narrow things down a bit.

Whatever cartridge you buy, if high frequencies and detail retrieval are paramount, do not buy anything with a standard elliptical stylus. Get something with an advanced stylus shape, e.g. Shibata, Line Contact, Gyger, Microline, Vivid Line, SAS, etc.

Aligning this type of cartridge carefully is important, as is finding the correct compliance match for the mass of your tonearm.

See here:

Cartridge Resonance Evaluator - Vinyl Engine

 

IME AT styli last around 1000 hours, sometimes a little less. This assumes clean records (RCM or Spin Clean) and careful handling. The only way to truly know if a stylus is worn out is to examine it under a microscope.

 

i was told by Audio-Technica they were coming out in January of this year.

 

Dear all, thanks a lot for your kind replies that I've found very useful and instructive

I will visit the website Patient_ot suggested me, it seems to be very promising ... I'll listen the clips using my Fiio earphone amplifier coupled with good ol' Sennheiser HD650

Thanks also for the remark regarding the stylus shape, I confess that I didn't knew it at all ... even though it's many years I'm listening vinyls ... in the end I'm not such an expert

One last information, I'm used to wash all vinyls, both brand new and second hand , using Knosti (now the new version, slightly better than the previous one) using an home-made liquid and then I keep each vinyl in individual sleeves

Thanks again,

Cheers,

Nelik

 

Test: Audio-Technica VM540ML – der Preis/Leistungs-Tipp - LowBeats
Test Audio-Technica VM740ML: die noble Art zu Hören - LowBeats

 

I purchased the AT VM750SH cartridge back in Feb of this year. And after almost a year of listening to it daily I'm still loving the way it sounds.
It has a great soundstage, no igd, and plays is just a great sounding cart.
I think the move to stiffen the cantilever and using a higher VTF has improved on an already great line of cartridges.
I've owned the AT120eb, the AT440mlb, and the AT150mlx, (plus several varieties of the older AT cartridges) and this is the best cart, in their line of carts that I've had the pleasure of owning.
When I purchased this I was thinking of going with the Ortofon 2M Bronze, but I was afraid there wouldn't be enough clearance on my Denon DP-45f due to the fact that there is no way to adjust the tonearm height. I originally had on it was a Goldring 1042 which is a fantastic cart...but at that time I just couldn't afford the re-tip price. So I took a chance on the VM750SH and I'm glad that I did. I'm even thinking of getting one of the VM740ML as a backup.

 

So I took a chance on the VM750SH and I'm glad that I did. I'm even thinking of getting one of the VM740ML as a backup
VM700 all use the same body all you need is a Spare Stylus

 

dears, just to let you know that my girlfriend spared me the embarrassment to choose the cartridge, since yesterday she gave me as Christmas present a brand new VM750SH cartridge <3

 

I bought the VM540ML today at the AT warehouse sale. The stylus mounts on the AT-440MLA cartridge so no set up necessary for me.

Recommended tracking is 1.8 - 2.2g vs 1.0 to 1.8 for the 440.

Sounds great, love at first listen!

 

How do these sound compared to the at440mla out of curiousity ?

 

Haven't heard the new 540ml yet but I'd be very surprised if it sounds that much different from any of the old 440 models (there were 3 of those).

 

Dunno if this was linked here on the forum or not. It's an interesting review with some technical measurements near the end:

Audio-Technica VM540ML Phono Cartridge Review - HomeTheaterHifi.com

 

Check out Ian's You tube page HiViNyws channel( https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKNKJ_uFheEftryRCvbmfNg).He has done 2 reviews on the VM520 and VM530. He buys them himself so there is no manufacturer support to say they are great carts. At one point he shows that the new carts are just repackaged older models.

 

While I appreciate his enthusiasm, I'm convinced he has a system matching or capacitance issue, as he really didn't like the previous generation of AT carts either. However, he praises Grado and Nagaoka carts which are moving iron designs therefore not sensitive to capacitance. Coincidence? Maybe, but I doubt it.

As far as repackaging goes, maybe. Compare published specs, assuming they are accurate. AT certainly wouldn't be the first cart manufacturer to do that, Ortofon and Grado have done it as well - repackage and relaunch with very, very minor changes or mostly cosmetic changes.

FWIW I corresponded directly with AT North America and they say the compliance of the new styli are the same as the old ones, but engineers changed their minds about tracking force. I've shared this with others and they insist the new rubber suspensions must be a little stiffer to accommodate the higher VTF. Who is right? Can't say.

All I know is that when my current stylus wears out on my old Signet I will buy a new AT microline just like I have the last several times.

 

Noel Keywood of HiFi World gives a glowing review along with test data of the VM700 line in the December issue.

 

I've went ahead and purchased the VMN60SLC stylus upgrade for my VM750SH cartridge that I've owned for almost a year now. I was a bit leary; I wasn't sure if the price difference would be justified by its performance. After about 10 hrs of use I have to say 'yes', it's worth it!
No changes were made to the alignment or to the VTF. I simply remove the previous stylus and popped in the VMN60SLC.
The increase in detail is is tremendous. It adds a bit of air to the sound as well. Also I'm hearing less surface noise from the albums I've listened to...which was unexpected. The bass is tightened up on this stylus; the VMN50SH got to be a tad thick on the low frequencies.
To be honest all of the frequencies are more prominent. On Santana's 'Abraxas' (the 33.3 mofi reissue) everything sounds crystal clear. I'm hearing instruments that were hidden when using the VMN50SH.
I can honestly say that it was well worth the cost. And I'm hoping that as it breaks in it will sound even better.

 

The 760SLC just keeps getting better. I went ahead and bumped the VTF from 1.96 to 2.00gm...which isn't much. But after this adjustment it sounds livelier. I put on Neil Diamond 12 Greatest Hits Vol. II, and you can hear every instrument more distinctly. Background sounds are much clearer as well. I've gone from being slightly skeptical about this upgrade, to ecstatic over the difference between the 750sh and the 750slc. To me it was money well spent.