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Help with cartridge loading. . .

Hello,

I recently purchased a Pass X-Ono phono pre-amp, and both to my joy and horror I learned at once that there are over 500 different possible resistances I can choose to load my low output MC cartridge with. The manual gives the very helpful: "start with 100 ohms, then move up one setting; if it sounds better, then move up two. . .", which means of course I will be obsessing around in a circle forever.

Are there any rules of thumb that might help me zero in on an optimal loading more quickly? Better, is there a theory behind the settings, such that I could calculate the load given the output of the cartridge, etc.?

My analog front end: Orbe SE/SME IV/Ortofon MC3000.II. Any help would be much appreciated. Sad to say, I am a "fixed price" kind of guy.

Regards,
David Meriwether
meriweth

Showing 1 response by eldartford

eldartford
4,262 posts
 
And, when you have driven yourself half-crazy diddling with the load resistance, you can go the rest of the way to fully crazy by playing with capacitance.

My old Tandberg 3008 preamp has three resistance settings (100K, 47K, and 33K) and three capacitance settings (20, 120, 350 pF). Don't forget the turntable interconnect capacitance.

What with this pickup loading issue and all the arm setup angles and forces, it's enough to drive you digital!
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