I use a B&O RX2 turntable with a the MMC2 cartridge playing through a McIntosh C220 tube preamp and it sounds just fine. Obviously, there are better turntables out there but this combo suits me just fine. By the way, I was using the MMC3 cartridge and that too sounded good. The replacement cartridges are really expensive. I happen to pick up a used B&O turntable that had the MMC2 cartridge for $175 so it was a no brainer.