Any experience comparing these carts? Is there really a difference in stylus shape between the two?
I have owned a few OC9ML and was not disappointed.
I'm looking for a new cart coming off of a Lyra Skala and don't expect quite that refinement but would like equal or improved dynamics. Also looking for solid imaging and a good soundstage.
Arm is a Jelco TK-850L on a severely modified VPI TNT. All Herron Audio electronics.
You would be moving from a 5th Gen moving coil to more modest, albeit impeccably executed design. Still, I can't imagine you'd be happy with the results. A-T carts aren't really known for the two characteristics you mention - dynamics and soundstage. If the replacement cost is the issue, then I'd consider a Hana ML. In my personal experience, and in every review I've read, Hana carts are extreme overachievers, easily comparable to anything 3X-5X their price.
I have most of the AT carts plus quite a few others. The ART 9 is a nice pathway into the ART series. Pretty musical cart, nice soundstage.
The ART 1000 is in another league. the dynamics, soundstage depth, instrument placement in the sound stage better every other LOMC I have tried. Its one heck of a hot rod LOMC cart.
When you guys recommend ART9, which one are you talking about, the original ART9, the 9Xi, or the 9Xa? Because if it is the original ART9, assuming one can still find it NOS, then let me put in a plug for the ART7, the low output (0.12mV) version. Although it probably would be as hard or harder to find an NOS ART7 as to find an ART9. The ART9Xa is the low output counterpart to the 9Xi and therefore replaced the ART7. I do note that AT nearly doubled the retail prices of the 9Xa and 9Xi, compared to the original prices of the ART9 and ART7. I bet the new models are not twice as good as their respective forebears,
If the phono stage has sufficient gain, I would dare say the ART7 even at $1090 is a good bargain, if one is looking for a LOMC cartridge. And it's likely to outperform the OC9 variants. The price is about the same as that of a Nagaoka MP500 (high output moving iron). I happen to have one of each up and running right now in my "upstairs" system, which means I like both although I would say the MP500 is a bit "fuller" or richer sounding, and the ART7 perhaps more detailed. These differences are nothing to write home about; they are both excellent.
Viridian, that $500-$600 price is doable if you buy from Japan, and that’s about what I paid for mine a year ago in Tokyo. I was assuming that most would buy in the US where I think the price is more like $ 900, within shouting distance of the ART7 from LP Gear. And anyway, the OP is interested in a new LOMC, apparently not in a high output MI.
I am not interested in moving iron / moving magnet carts. My listening preferences are strongly in favor of LOMC carts. My Herron VTPH-2a works GREAT with LOMC carts even though it also is outstanding with HOMC carts.
The ART7 sounds interesting, but I have concerns about its very low output of 0.12mv. Not sure how that would work with the Herron phono stage. I have more gain available with the Herron VTSP-3a(r03).
I guess I am a bad person for daring to mention the Nagaoka. I did so only because it occurred to me that the US prices are close to the same. Meantime I did introduce the ART7 to this discussion. If the output is too low, one might search for an NOS ART9.
I looked up the NOS availability of both the 7 and the 9. Seems both are still around and at a nice price.
I recall the discussions related to the ART7 and ART9. I don't recall the details. One was supposed to have better dynamics than the other. One was supposed to provide better detail that the other. One was supposed to be preferred for classical music, the other for jazz and rock.
You would be moving from a 5th Gen moving coil to more modest, albeit impeccably executed design. Still, I can't imagine you'd be happy with the results. A-T carts aren't really known for the two characteristics you mention - dynamics and soundstage. If the replacement cost is the issue, then I'd consider a Hana ML. In my personal experience, and in every review I've read, Hana carts are extreme overachievers, easily comparable to anything 3X-5X their price.
bpoletti, I think that business about the ART7 being best for one kind of music and the ART9 best for another kind of music all started with something that came from AT originally in one of their ad blurbs. After that, individual users ran with it, most of whom owned only one of the two and so were not in position to compare in their home systems. I use my ART7 to reproduce all sorts of musical genres, and it's uniformly excellent. I am sure there are several end users who would say the same about the ART9. The only spec or stat to grab onto in choosing between them is signal voltage output. The very low output of the ART7 suggests it might have a lower moving mass, which cannot be a bad thing. On the other hand, if you don't have enough gain in your system to complement the ART7, the ART9 was once the darling of this forum.
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