Music Hall Melody - anyone know this cartridge?

My friend is the original owner of a vintage Technics SL-1700 automatic turntable (original, not MK2 version) in very good shape. Some years back, he pulled the turntable out of storage and hired a professional "audio guy" to design an entire custom A/V system for his apartment. The system is comprised mostly of expensive Meridian gear with all modern components except, of course, for the Technics.

Originally, the audio advisor fitted his turntable with a Rega Bias (or maybe Elys?) cart that never knocked my socks off. Most recently, the guy mounted a new Music Hall Melody cart for him. I haven't heard it yet. In all honesty, I hadn't even heard of it until my friend told me about it. Apparently it's an "entry-level" MM cart with a conical stylus made for Music Hall by Audio-Technica. It comes pre-mounted on some new inexpensive Music Hall turntables and retails for well under $100 as a separate purchase. My friend tells me it sounds great, and a quick online search led me to a few mostly positive reviews although info seems to be quite scarce.

To further muddy the waters, LP Gear sells a $30 elliptical stylus with a carbon fiber cantilever for the Melody cartridge which they tout as an "upgrade" and state is manufactured in Japan by Audio-Technica.

Does anyone here have any experience with this cartridge (with either the conical or the elliptical stylus)? Is there any reason I should advise my friend to "upgrade" from the conical to the elliptical stylus or even to a "better" cartridge knowing that he's happy with what he has now? BTW, I'm aware of the general differences between conical and elliptical (and more exotically shaped) styli, so please don't go into any long-winded tangents in that regard. My friend's vinyl collection consists mostly of older albums in very good to excellent condition with some new recent additions -- nothing beat up.

Any thoughts or suggestions? Any help is appreciated.

 

It's a rebadged Audio-Technica AT3600-series cartridge (a.k.a. AT91, CN5625AL, Rega Carbon, Thorens TAS-257, Stanton 300, etc.).

 

Audio-Technica AT 3600 under an assumed name. Why pay the Music Hall price? Get the original for cheap. Same goes for the Rega Carbon (another such case of an Audio-Technica AT 3600 under an assumed name). Same performance, your finances will thank you.

 

LPGear's stylus is likely either a true Japanese AT or a Jico, also Japanese. Either will likely be a bit better than the installed conical.

If your friend thinks it "sounds great", why not stay with it? The elliptical might be a shade better on some records, but not OhMyGod better.

 

Those bottom of the line AT's like the 3600, AT91, etc. all sound better than they have a right to for what is essentially a $15-20 cart. Are they going to blow minds? No, but if you needs something very cheap but decent they fit the bill.

 

I was about to ask if it was considered to be an "over achiever" but you already answered my question!

 

Now that the Shure M35X is no more, I would likely recommend one of these ATs as a backup cart for records in rough shape, or something cheap for a starter table.

 

For $30 it's not much of a risk to try. Some of the specs are marginally better than the conical but recommended tracking force is .5 gram higher. Was hoping someone here had actual experience with both.

 

My friend questioned his AV guys again and their response was that the Music Hall Melody (a.k.a AT3600) is “the best match for such an old turntable” and that replacing the conical stylus with an elliptical would make no difference and be a waste of money ($30).

While the second part of that statement might be true, I can only only shake my head in amazement at the notion that a fully automatic DD Technics SL-1700 turntable in virtually perfect condition is somehow not worthy of anything other than a low-budget entry-level cartridge, albeit a respectable one.

 

A lot of old tables like this can take cartridges that cost more than one would pay for the table today. Whether your friend wants to go that route is up to him...

 

Bushwa. Bull Puckey. Did I forget "nonsense"? While I can't read the minds of the "AV guys", the whole thing reeks of total ignorance concerning turntables and LP reproduction. First of all, I'm mystified why they'd choose a Music Hall version of a low-end cart like the Melody in the first place. I have no wish to call down the wrath of Roy Hall, but that 'table can handle something waaaay better. If it were me, I'd use the best cart I could afford on that 1700 - perhaps an Audio Technica VM520 or one of the Ortofon 2M series. With better advice, perhaps even a Nagaoka or Grado or even one of the new Sumikos.

As always, just my opinion, YMMV.

 

I am running this cartridge on a Technics SL-1500 of my own. .6 mil conical stylus and all. Why spend about $100?, the real thing as an Audio-Technica is $21 or less. I have fancier cartridges when I want them, this cartridge performs very well for little cash outlay!

 

My modest Audio-Technica AT 3600 outperforms the Rega Elys at a small fraction of the price. Out tracks it too. This cartridge is a nice performer for little money if you avoid the fancy rebadged versions. I love mine for 45 RPM discs, mono, and early Stereo discs.