Cartridge Opinions - Sorry


Yeah, another dumb "what's your opinion on these cartridges" thread. Back in the late 80's we had dealers where you could listen to the stuff.

So anyhow I have a Linn LP12 with Ittok arm and a 30 year old Audioquest B200L cartridge. I'm running it through the phono stage of a Jeff Rowland Coherence One into a Spectral DMA90 through a set of Kef R300's.

I prefer a little more laid back sound (err on the side of forgiving instead of fatiguing) but I like a lot of upper end detail, precise soundstaging, air, etc.

So far I'm considering an Ortofon Quintet S Black, Hana SL or a Benz wood - something at or below the $1k level.

I'd love to hear any opinions, suggestions, and experiences with those cartridges or others in the price range. I could possibly go higher if there is something out there that really shines for less than $1,500.

Thanks.


klooker

Showing 1 response by oldears

I tend to agree with Ralph on this issue. I have no direct experience with the Tri-Planar, but agree that people tend to underestimate the value of a fully adjustable tonearm and a well adjusted cartridge as opposed to spending mega-bucks on a cartridge. Note that Ralph's experience with a cutting lathe, and knowing exactly what sound was engraved on a subsequent record is invaluable, and is the kind of experience that few on the site can use as a reference, no matter how many mega-bucks they have to spend.I have never found any of the advice given by Ralph on this site to be in error, and the characterization of his advice by Raulruegras as stupid, is reprehensible.