Having just made the jump from a Beta S myself, I spent a good bit of time researching MC's and decided on a Shelter 901($1,300). The 901 sounds too expensive for you and therefore the Shelter 501 at $800 may be worth a wallet stretch. I auditioned both and went with the 901 because it seemed to pull 100% of the music out of the groove vs. 85 to 90% with the 501. Both have detailed bass and excellent highs without a sense of briteness and best of all a warm, open soundstage. Thanks to a local friend, I also tried a Benz LO4, and a VDH Frog and both of the Shelters beat the other choices (the VDH seemed too analytical and the Benz was too similar to the Beta S to warrent a change) . I am no expert on gain and the shelter output is.4mV so if that is sufficient, it's worth considering.
Help with NEW MC cartridge putchase
I am certain that this question has come up before, but here it goes again. I would like to purchase a good quality MC cartridge to go with my tube phono stage (40 db of gain). The rest of my equipment are all based on tubes and I use SET amps. I currently am using the ClearAudio Aurum Beta S model, which is a MM cartridge. But I want to experience-- hopefully towards a positive direction--the sound of the MC cartridge. I am not looking for anything that costs an arm and a leg. No more than $750. If you have any suggestions, I would really appreciate it. Thank you