What Cartridges are you using on the Technics SL1200/1210 GR TT's

Have you had a chance to try the Naga mp150 as opposed the mp110?

It's gotten cheaper of late... like $239 on Amazon. And the mp110 has gotten cheaper too ($105).
.

 

Happy with my current cartridge but I bet a Soundsmith MIMC star would sound great on a G-series.

 

I have not but am looking to the MP-200 one day. I would start with the 150 but that green is ghastly with the purple stylus.

 

Is very quiet maybe due to the fact that ml digs into a part of groove less abused by old owners.. And, the 740, better shielded

 

I mostly use a Dynavector 20x2l that was retipped by SoundSmith this year. Love it.

 

SL 1210 ...an Ortofon 'Niteclub' elliptical also occasionally a Shure M97 which doesn't actually sound right with the SL's
rather massive arm..

 

The compliance is just fine, and the alignment is designed for Technics (52 mm overhang which gives you Stevenson). The Concorde was designed for the Technics arms.

 

Right, I know the alignment is designed for Technics, which is what makes it so desirable, but my hesitation is more the risk of imprecise stylus manufacture (something I have read can be an issue for Ortofon...). If the cantilever isn’t exactly where it should be, I’d have no way to adjust it, but maybe there’s just a leap of faith required if I want to try one of these.

Good to hear regarding the compliance. The weight of the cartridge itself along with the relatively high compliance spec makes me hesitant, but it doesn’t seem like KAB would recommend and sell something incompatible with a 1200 arm.

 

Not the same thing, but I am strongly considering a Zephyr III for my GR at some point in the foreseeable future. Or maybe it’s worth holding out until I can get a MIMC star and a SUT?

 

Have you compared it to a 540, or have you only used the 740? Wondering if the 740 sounds appreciably better than the 540, and whether the 740 might be a little heavy for its own compliance on the 1200 arm?

I use a VM95ML, and I agree the ML stylus seems at least as/more forgiving of surface noise as the conical and elliptical styli I have used before.

 

I have the 740 because I was happy of my 540..so to upgrade to the aluminium diecast better shielded.
I have the vm95e to sample used records. A different sound. Less less less detailed.

 

The Zephyr is a wonderful cart with a great bloom quality to its sound. It’s something to behold on classical, acoustic jazz, folk... But with rock, pop and especially heavy metal, and super especially any techno stuff, it’s just too polite.

 

That’s good feedback, thanks! Is that impression applicable to most Soundsmith cartridges, or specific to the Zephyr?

 

Only the Zephyr. I have never knowingly heard any other Soundsmith cartridge.

 

Oh and one more thing, for any doubters: The Zephyr was sent back to Soundsmith to have it checked out. It came back with a clean bill of health. It still had the same sound characteristics, wonderful yet genre targeted.

 

For a punchier SoundSmith, I find the Aida Mk2 to be very dynamic and engaging across genres on my 1200GR. Rocks when called for, silky-smooth when not.

 

uberlyle - any thoughts on your GR and how it sounds compared to your modded Thorens table?

 

Although the Thorens is a really great table, I had some issues with pitch correction until I added on the Music Hall Cruise Control. That worked great but it still felt fussy to me somehow. I found a really good deal on the GR, picked it up, put in in my system, and haven't looked back. I still have the Thorens (I'm not sure if I really ever want to part with it), but haven't felt any great need to put it back in.

I worried initially if the Technics would somehow sterilize the sound, but that hasn't been the case. It's a total keeper for me.

 

I’ve read those reservation sabout 1200s and direct drives in general, but I don’t find anything sterile about pitch being correct.

 

I've read elsewhere that the Plug N Play Ortofon headshell/cartridge combos are quite heavy for Technics tonearms and requires use of the extra counter weight fitting that technics provides. I'm not certain if actual users of the combo mentioned that or they were just looking at the specs

 

Just looking at the specs, it’s in the overlap between using the aux weight or not. The PnPs have a total weight of 20 grams; the max without aux weight is 20.7 grams, and the minimum with aux weight is 18.7 grams. I would think most people would find using the aux weight better because it gets the main counterweight closer to the pivot and reduces see-saw action.

 

103m

 

Currently
GR- VM760SLC
MKII - MP-500
(The mkII hasarm rewire, upgraded I/C, and fluid dampener).

i have several others that get rotated on occasion (2M Black, DL-103r)
Eventually my Blackbird will likely get on a headshell. Right now its on my Oracle that is not being used.

 

Does anyone have any thoughts/experiences with a Koetsu Black MC cart on a 1200GR. I have a lead on a pretty decent price on a used cart, and it's through a dealer, so I can return it if it doesn't work out. I'm thinking it'd be a good way to get a taste of a higher-end cart for not a huge (or at least not completely absurd) outlay.

But if it's a bad match with the Technics arms, I might skip it. Most of my reading/research thus far suggests it might work okay, though I certainly don't see it as a commonly recommended cart for the GR. I've also got an ART-9 I'll be trying out.

 

eff mass of stock arm is 11g so it appears on paper to be a perfect match