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budget cart help

hey all, i'm new to the analog world and need a little help. i recently acquired a JVC QL-A75 turntable. the stylus on the cartridge that came with it is broken so i am in the market for a new cartridge. The local shop where i plan on having the cart installed has these in stock:

AT3600
Grado black, green, blue and gold
Shure M97XE

I am not looking to spend more than about $200, so my question is, which of these would be best? the cost to performance ratio is what i'm looking at. as in, i'm sure the Grado Gold is the best of the bunch but is it $100 better than the Shure? Or is there even a big difference among lower end carts?

I am not opposed to ordering something online and i was intrigued by the Ortofon's and have heard good things. so my last question is, what other carts are out there for less than $200 that would fit well with what i have? i was specifically looking at the Ortofon 2M Red or the OM10 or OM5E.

Any help would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks
maidenhel

Showing 1 response by maidenhel

maidenhel OP
1 posts
 
thanks for all of the responses!

the cartridge that is currently mounted is an MC-200E. The stylus (DT-200E) would cost at least $136 (per LPGear.com), hence the search to outright replace the cart.

the table came with both straight and curved tonearms. i have the straight on there currently, but that's only because i dont know which is better haha.

how do you "match up" carts with tonearms? what specs of each do i have to look at in order to make sure that they are compatible?

my search has recently led me to the Nagaoka carts as well. does anyone have any experience with these? if so, which model is a good "starting point"? i dont want to have to upgrade the stylus too soon. i was looking at the MP-110, 150, and 200.
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