Cartridge dilemmas..

Howdo lovely people. Just been pondering on couple cartridges and any advice would be greatly appreciated. I own a Stanton Mark 2 st150 and run an audio technica AT440mlb cartridge. But thinking of change any opinions on Denon DL-103R or the Audio technica vm740 ml..both have stonking reviews and around same price. Cheers

 

If you like the "AT sound" go for the VM740.

 

If you go the 740ML make sure your total capacitance is as close to 100pf as possible

 

Does your Stanton turntable have the short straight arm or the regular S-arm?

 

The model he lists is the normal one, the straight arm version has that cute STR8 prefix.

In response to the OP though, those are two completely different cartridges and directions to go, one a low output moving coil with conical stylus, usually at home in heavier mass tonearms, while the AT is a modern moving magnet design with over 10x the output of the Denon and a much more advanced stylus shape. It does have a nice heavy body though, so is somewhat comparable in that regard.

Without really investigating, I'd guess your tonearm is roughly comparable to the Technics SL-1200, so pretty much anything that works good on that one should for you too. How much you invest in a cartridge and what return you get on that outlay depends somewhat on the quality of the headshell and how well it clamps down to the connector, as well as bearing adjustment and tonearm mounting. You need a stiff and stable tonearm with good vibration management to get the best results as you move up the cartridge ladder.

 

I made the switch from an AT440Mlb to a Denon DL-103R and then the VM740ML.....I have a different turntable and arm, etc than you but here is my general assessment of the three....

1) The AT440Mlb I loved, it was my first "wow, how about that" moment in vinyl. I had upgraded from a at120e or something like that (the orange one) and the Micro-line stylus was great.

2) The Denon DL-103R I got into at the suggestion of the professional at the store I bought my Pro-Ject Xtension 9. It was okay, but lacked the detail and punch that the AT440mlb displayed.

3) Picked up a VM740ML and it all came back and I was thrilled. This cartridge (and there is a VM540ML, which in my opinion is very close to the AT440Mlb) is similar in sound to the AT440mlb.

- I have also tried the VM750SH and for one reason or the other I am still on the fence.
- After speaking with some people there was a general consensus that people could almost be split into to groups where stylus shape is concerned ....Micro-line and Non-Micro-line. Some people cannot enjoy the refined detail and find them less musical maybe? Not open enough. Others cant listen to vinyl without them! Who are you? If you dont know give the Denon a ride, it is a fine sounding cart, it just didnt fit my taste?

 

You may want to try a Denon DL-110. It is a high-output MC, very musical with a huge sound-stage. May be a nice compromise between the two carts you mentioned.

 

Thanks for responses fellas yeah it's S shaped arm on my Stanton which I mainly got for pitch control, how come all latest players don't have this option. Cost cutting I suppose but with instrumental music I think it's essential. I'll keep pondering but I must admit I do love the AT sound so maybe the VM is the beast for me. Pretty spooky Chester but I had
the AT440Mlb as well are you my doppelganger? Great advice though.

 

I'm a bit confused by this even googled it. Could you explain(briefly will do . Is that a output from my player. Cheers

 

On my amp is marantz pm6006 btw

 

Regarding the "740ML make sure your total capacitance is as close to 100pf as possible"response

 

Someone here will probably show up with a better answer, but the capacitance has to do with the effect that the tone arm wire, the cables coming from the TT to the preamp and I guess the cartridge itself becomes one "big" capacitor within your system. Some carts like a specific C value in order to sound the best. It seems that the higher end the cart, the more finicky they become in this regard and also with setup. So expensive carts typically become more expensive as you try to find cables, tonearm wire etc. that will allow you to get your money out of them.

So you should basically match the cart to the level of your TT. Since you already had a 440, the 540 would be a good match. the 740 might be great too, but then you "may" have another level of "stuff" to deal with.

 

Jeez this runs deep...especially in my pocketCheers Spin Doc nicely explained. If I have a marantz pm6006 and a Stanton 150 s tonearm do you think a preamp might add something? Just want the best out of what I've got on offer!

 

Seems a lot of variables in this business!

 

Depends. You'll need to try for yourself and decide whether an outboard preamp is worth it to you.

 

As stated, this is the part of the hobby where you just try stuff and see what happens... I'm pretty sure I have enough gear in my shed to build another complete system... And I already have two up and running, lol.

 

Just another one to throw in the hoop! The Nagaoka mp-200 I do own lot funk jazz/ library records and I hear this has a warm sound. Having only owned Audio Technica cartridges previously (slowly climbing up the ladder) I'm just wondering if to change direction. I know at end of of day it's down to me but any opinions would be great as it's a lot of moolar! Also can you return cartridges if they are out of the packaging?! Would this cartridge suit the Stanton st150 s arm? Cheers again. Steve

 

I hear tracking can be an issue. Warning idiots guide alert. But does this refer to say if you have a scratched vinyl and it jumps easily?

 

Tracking is how well the setup keeps the stylus in the groove, in contact with both groove walls. In the worst case it will be a needle jump. In less drastic cases, and much more frequently, it will be very small shifts in stylus position in the groove where contact with one groove wall is lost or intermittent. This will sound like distortion in that channel.

 

Cheers beers!

 

I've never had an AT cart that had tracking issues.

 

Hi went for the nagaoka MP200 sounds lush!