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Looking for a Warmer Sounding Phono Cartridge

I've grown tired of the sound of high end MC cartridges. Detail aplenty, but I've begun to detest to the screechinesssssss.

No, my system is not biased that way. I'd consider my system neutral. Components are listed below. The Koetsu RS sounds wonderful. The other cartridges in my rotation are the Hana ML and the Shelter 901 MK III. These are not described in the literature as very etched sounding nor very detail rich. They are mostly characterized as neutral.
My ears no longer tolerate the highs, anything above 3KHz I would estimate. My hearing disappears at about 8KHz. I don't have any hearing problems except for the loss of higher frequencies. I find also that I'm not as interested in "getting everything that's on the vinyl". Not anymore. I want warmth with quality. I listen to the "audiophile" recordings, to R&R LPs from the 70s and classical and opera from all eras. Some LPs are very good, some not so, but performance overrides the defects. I want to continue to enjoy all of them.

So I'm searching for a good quality warm sounding cartridge, MM, MI, MC or some other, doesn't matter.

I've been researching the field and have come up with these candidates:

- GradoTimber Master 3
- Shelter 501 Mk III
- Soundsmith Zephyr MK III

I was pretty sold on the 501. based mostly on the article by Michael Fremer, but a very helpful contact at Upscale Audio turned me onto the other two. His advice sounds very sound and seems to come from experience with all three.

I would like to keep the discussion limited to the above three and to cartridges less than $1500 USD, unless there's a really great one that I've missed.

Thanks for your help.

My stuff:

Koetsu RS, Hana ML, and Shelter 901, Musical Surroundings Nova II phono pre. Alternate pre is Paragon System E (tubes) and a DIY SUT with Cinemg 1254 trans, sometimes Apt Holman Preamp 1, Technics SL-1200G, Denon DP-57L, Levinson #38s preamp, Rane EQ and Crossover, Bryston 2.5B cubed amp, Revel M105 bookshelf speakers, and HSU 15" Sub.

128x128Ag insider logo xs@2xkevemaher

Showing 6 responses by lewm

lewm
12,503 posts
 

This is a tempest in a teapot. If you like 47K, you might also try 100K, and then choose what you like best. Results may vary in relation to total capacitance and personal preference. IMO, there’s no right or wrong.

lewm
12,503 posts
 

"stylus kept skipping across the LP..."

This suggests the tonearm is hanging up on something external, like the cueing device (if you have altered VTA in connection with changing cartridges, there is a chance the tonearm is fouling the lift on the cue), or there is drag on the internal tonearm wires (can be invisible rubbing, where the internal wires enter the vertical pivot shaft).  Also, if you have even a modest magnifying glass around the house, take a look to see whether the stylus is still attached to the cantilever. Also, check out the anti-skate device on your tonearm.

lewm
12,503 posts
 

It's just that I have never found alignment to make such a quantitative difference in apparent frequency response. But this is very subjective, I suspect.

lewm
12,503 posts
 

Most MC cartridges exhibit electro-mechanical resonance at very high frequencies, well above the range of human hearing, depending upon load and etc.  But many do exhibit a slight 1-2db rise in FR at the very top of the audio spectrum.  Anyway, it is sufficient to say that you are sensitive to something about MC cartridges that manifests in the upper frequencies, without nailing down exactly what that is. Which is why I mentioned tinnitus. For me, I find many of them to be "thin" sounding in parts of the spectrum especially on piano and some voices.  I am guessing that this is due to very subtle mistracking, because sometimes I  can "cure" a particular cartridge by increasing VTF ever so slightly. But it's just a guess.

lewm
12,503 posts
 

Any of the classic MM cartridges will be high compliance.  I have a Grace Ruby with an SS OCL stylus on the correct sapphire cantilever.  It's a marvelous cartridge.  But I am not aware that the required degree of alignment accuracy for a happy outcome is dependent upon cartridge type (MM vs MI vs MC).  Probably the elliptical stylus shape is more tolerant of small errors in alignment than are modern stylus shapes, if indeed that has anything to do with this story.  I am what I call an "alignment nihilist".

lewm
12,503 posts
 

Kavemaher, have you been to an ENT specialist or an audiologist? Could it be that you have tinnitus?

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