Originally Posted by
Clive197
Stick to Moving Magnate (MM) cartridge’s. Most will work very well with an SME and will have greater bang for your buck over a budget MC.
If you can find a low hrs Ortofon ML25 then you will be well on your way. If a little more money is available then Ortofon 2M Black would be my recommendation, with its Shibata stylus you will be very close to MC sound in the £300-600 price range.
+1
The amount of times I've recommended, no highly recommended the 2MB, I must sound like a broke record, but hey ho ! I'll always share and spread the news
The 2MB opened my eyes to what can be achieved in hifi, up until that point i wasnt close, a properly set up 2M Black is a superb and classy mm, and yes it does have mc like traits, which reviews often express.
If I were you, rather than go through the hassle / conundrum of how to get the best out of an mc - which SUT ? / headamp ? and all the rest of it, I highly recommend you try and bag an Ortofon 2M Black.
IMO, Every mm user should experience an Ortofon 2M Black before even contemplating the mc route. I did and boy am I glad I did - an invaluable education in that respect, high end carts, what they bring to the table and so on.
Make no mistake the 2MB is a high end cart.
I remember when it launched (around 2011/12 ? Blimey cant believe it's been that long ), some said £460 was crazy money to spend at the time on an mm (nearer £500 these days).
Lets put it this way, I was so impressed with the 2MB that I then went on to the the other Ortofon Shibatas up the range which was Quintet Black and Cadenza Black.
The Cadenza was £1850 for a long time (I didnt pay anywhere near that as I bagged a used bargain) - Does the Cadenza Black sound £1350 'better' than the 2M Black mm ? No! and that's another thing the 2MB experience taught me, In hifi and mc's are no exception, there comes a point of quality where improvements become incremental / small in comparison to the spend / price hike for small level of said improvement, it's just how it is in this game.
Lastly, for now Everything is a compromise ie: no such thing as a free meal ticket. Been said numerous times here by me and others - The 2MB will require meticulous / accurate attention to setup AND in particular vta adjustment as the final sweet spot nailer, due to it's stylus profile/shape.
If you havnt got easy/smooth vta adjust then it'll be hard.
If it's set up sweet spot isnt right, then it wont sound great/right, you wont know what the fuss is about. Hit it and you'll be grinning from ear to ear, only wanting to play album after album after album .....
My System:
Amplification - Sansui AU-alpha 707 DR
Turntable - Technics SP10 MK2-Technics EPA-250 Tonearm-Yannis Tome 423.5Plus tonearm cable-Eichmann KLEI Absolute Harmony plugs.
Ortofon Cadenza Black moving coil cartridge-Fritz Gyger S re-tip. Panzerholz plinth.
CDP - Pioneer PD-91
Speakers - Spendor D7 on Soundcare SuperSpikes
QED Silver Spiral speaker cable-airloc banana plugs
Mains - Ultra Pure silver plated un-switched socket-Missing link EPS 500 silver plated plugs-Hi-Fi Tuning gold plated silver ceramic 13 amp fuses