Steely
Dumped Comcast for FiOS
Premium
join:2000-10-15
Princeton Junction, NJ
| Vinyl anyone?
I'm looking to resurrect my Dual turntable and extensive record collection from the near dead. I realize not many people are up on vinyl anymore, but I figure I'd take a shot and post here.
A new phono cartridge is probably in order since I'm still using my original >30-yr-old Pickering XSV 3000 (the stylus was replaced once), but I'm not quite sure what to get. In the old days, you'd simply walk into your local stereo/hifi shop, check out various cartridges from known brands, compare their virtues and weaknesses, and then discuss them with knowledgeable sales help. It's not that simple anymore. Nowadays, for the most part, you have to rely on online store and forum reviews.
In consideration (so far) are the relatively inexpensive Shure M97xE, the Audio-Technica AT440M, and the significantly higher-priced Audio-Technica AT150MLX. All get consistently strong reviews but without hearing them myself, it's really hard to decide. If anybody has any opinions, I'm all ears! I'm not looking to spend more than $300 and I'd prefer to spend much less.
BTW, system is a Sony ES receiver (also have a nice Yamaha receiver in reserve) with B&W main speakers and a Paradigm sub. |
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royphil345
Premium
join:2004-12-10
Lakewood, OH
clubs:
4 edits | I really like the Shure a lot. You'll find a very favorable review on Amazon by me... also a pic I've seen e-Bay sellers use to sell the M97xE for years... lol. That would be my second choice out of all the carts I've tried based on sound. It doesn't give me quite high enough recording levels for recording to digital though. I'm using a Denon DL-103 low output that sounds similar, but performs just a little better and actually turns out to have higher output when I set my phono stage for moving coil. I didn't recommend the 103 for you because it works best with higher mass S-shaped tonearms and a phono stage with moving coil capability and some tweak settings is really required to get the best out of it. Another $400.00 at least for something with enough loading / capacitance options...
Check out the last customer photo of the M97xE on Amazon... The guy says..."The Shure 97xE ended up to be a great cartridge for the money!!"... and it looks like he crimped his cantilever and the cartridge body is sitting on the record. Probably sounds great... lol.
I too have heard good things about the AT150MLX. Haven't heard one myself... It's supposed to be a little richer sounding than the 440MLa or 120E. If that's true, I'm sure it's a winner. I almost settled on using the AT120E as my main cart because it had higher output than the Shure. I actually prefer it over the more expensive 440MLa. I've never been a sucker for fancy stylus shapes and super-detailed sound, usually at the cost of warmth in the lower price-range. For a little more money you can maybe get some warmth AND some detail. The AT120E had some very clean and involving sound going for it. It was just a little too bright for my system and room... maybe just my taste in the long run. Although, I didn't even put the break-in hours most people recommend on it before I switched back to the DL-103 for keeps. It might mellow some over time.
That ADC we talked about via messaging looks very tempting. I had one a long time ago and I'd swear it sounded more accurate than anything I've tried since. But, modern systems are a little more revealing. Not sure how it would sound on a modern system.
Your Pickering is a very nice cart. Too bad you can't find a new old stock OEM stylus for that. Most of the replacements I've seen are from aftermarket manufacturers. I'd probably stay away. Never know what you might find on eBay though... I've found some very rare new old stock styli on eBay.
I haven't heard the OEM version of the Ortofon 20 either, but many "budget high end" turntables come with the OEM version of the 10 installed and people seem fairly satisfied with that. The Ortofons are supposed to be a great match with the Dual arms. The retail version of the 20 sells for about $200.00. I think the "Super" cartridge body is supposed to be slightly different and better sounding, although the stylus is the same on both versions.. |
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drjim
Premium,MVM
join:2000-06-13
Torrance, CA
clubs: | reply to Steely
You're not alone! I've got a collection of vinyl that I enjoy listening to. Shure and AT both make very nice carts in your price range.
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One man's Magic is another man's Engineering. |
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Steely
Dumped Comcast for FiOS
Premium
join:2000-10-15
Princeton Junction, NJ
2 edits | reply to royphil345
OK...I pulled the trigger on the Shure M97xE! Between the consistently positive reviews and the invitingly low price ($55.49 w/ free shipping and no tax) I couldn't resist.  Tomorrow I'll order an extra cartridge mount for my Dual 510 to use with the new Shure so that I can easily go back to my Pickering if for some reason I don't like the new M97xE. (The cartridge mount holds the cartridge in place and snaps into the headshell of the tonearm.) Even if I ultimately decide against the new Shure for my Dual it wouldn't be a waste as I could always employ it in either of my other two turntables (an Ion and a Sony) where it would certainly be an improvement. In that unlikely event I would just go back and buy one of the other recommended cartridges for the Dual.
I'm not too concerned about output volume for digital transfers as I also just ordered an inexpensive but favorably reviewed USB/Line phono preamp with adjustable gain which can be used for that purpose.
In anticipation of the new cartridge arrival I ran over to the Princeton Record Exchange today and picked up three new sealed audiophile Mobile Fidelity LP's as well as a few other records, both new and used, that were conspicuously missing from my vinyl collection. Add to that a set of protective inner sleeves and a bottle of D4+ Discwasher solution (which I plan to dilute with distilled H2O) and a used CD, just for good measure. Yesterday I got my 180-gram re-released copy of Gaucho from Amazon (remarkably the only one of the original main seven Steely Dan LP's I didn't already have in vinyl).
I think I'll order myself a good carbon fiber brush and and a stylus brush....and together with the new Shure stylus gauge I got the other day I should be good to go!
Many thanks for your help royphil345  , here and via PM! And don't worry...I don't plan on crimping my cantilever any time soon!!! 
Thanks drjim , too!  |
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royphil345
Premium
join:2004-12-10
Lakewood, OH
clubs:
1 edit | reply to Steely
Congrats!!! Sounds like you're all set. I think you will like the Shure. It's a hard cartridge not to like, although you may want something with a little more "zing" someday.
Don't confine yourself to "audiophile" reissues. I usually prefer the sound of an original pressing in good shape.
LOL... I actually DID snap the cantilever on my Shure, or else I probably would have offered it to you. The cantilevers on the Shures seem a little more delicate than most. I once received a V-15 brand new with a broken cantilever. Replacement stylus costs about the same as the whole cart, so I didn't bother offering... Keeping my Audio Technica as a backup.
Sounds like you bought the Art DJ USB preamp? Should work out nice. I'm using the tape-outs on my receiver to an M-Audio Audiophile 2496 sound card. The transfers sound pretty nice, as long as I use a cart with enough output. I've got a bunch of weird old stuff up on Demonoid if you want to check it out... »www.demonoid.com/files/?uid=3609683&seeded=2 |
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drjim
Premium,MVM
join:2000-06-13
Torrance, CA
clubs: | Oh, yeah, the V-15! Great cart, but as you found, a bit 'delicate' at times.
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One man's Magic is another man's Engineering. |
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Steely
Dumped Comcast for FiOS
Premium
join:2000-10-15
Princeton Junction, NJ
3 edits | reply to royphil345
said by royphil345 :Sounds like you bought the Art DJ USB preamp? The one I ordered is called the Art PhonoPlus but I'm not sure if they'll ship the PhonoPlus V2 described here which is USB 2.0 compliant and has an adjustable headphone volume, or the previous (discontinued?) PhonoPlus version which uses USB 1.1. The description in Amazon says V2 but the product name doesn't, so we'll see what arrives. At least one Amazon reviewer, however, reported receiving the V2 model with this order.
said by royphil345 :I'm using the tape-outs on my receiver to an M-Audio Audiophile 2496 sound card. The transfers sound pretty nice, as long as I use a cart with enough output. They carry that sound card for $99 at the same place that Amazon gets the Art preamp from!
»www.audiomidi.com/AudioPhile-2496-P962.aspx
BTW, when I custom ordered my last Dell desktop a few years back I purposely went with the significantly more expensive Creative SoundBlaster X-Fi sound card option so that I could do things like make nice digital recordings from analog sources. I can't tell you how pissed of I was to find out after the warranty expired that the stereo line inputs don't work! Apparently the card doesn't have dedicated analog line-in jacks but instead relies on some kind of auto-sensing switch to assign function. Well it doesn't work! I had better luck 8 or 9 years ago with an integrated Yamaha sound card! One of these days I'm going to transfer the Turtle Beach Santa Cruz (THX?) card from a donated spare PC into my desktop. Until then, I'll use USB!
I went to sample your vinyl transfers but I'm a little embarrased to say don't know what to do with torrent files. I've never used bit torrents! |
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Steely
Dumped Comcast for FiOS
Premium
join:2000-10-15
Princeton Junction, NJ
| reply to royphil345
said by royphil345 :I think you will like the Shure. It's a hard cartridge not to like, although you may want something with a little more "zing" someday. Oh crap, maybe I screwed up! I really LIKE zing!!!
I found your review on Amazon. Since I'd already read it prior to starting this thread I can now say you've been advising me for longer than we both knew! |
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royphil345
Premium
join:2004-12-10
Lakewood, OH
clubs:
4 edits | reply to Steely
"Zing" can be overrated...
Like I said, it usually comes at the cost of thin mids in the lower price range. You'd probably have to buy something like the pricier Audio Technica or maybe the ADC to get "zing" AND a little comfort for your ears. The Ortofon OMP 20 Super sounds a little livelier than the Shure without sounding very thin. Not sure how the OEM version sounds. It's probably not too late to cancel your Amazon order if you're really not sure... or should I say Shure... lol.
If you want to download torrents, just download and install a client like uTorrent. When you click on a torrent file, the client will open it. If you ever want a Demonoid membership, shoot me a message... |
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Steely
Dumped Comcast for FiOS
Premium
join:2000-10-15
Princeton Junction, NJ | Thanks...will look over everything again tomorrow. |
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