Musical Fidelity XLPS What cartridge would work?
The X-LPS does the basic stuff really well. It doesn't buzz. It doesn't hiss. As a matter of fact, it's dead quiet. And it looks pretty sweet. But when you get the itch to bring your vinyl to the next level (to make things come alive), the first thing I suggest replacing is the X-LPS. As cool as that little canister looks, it didn't place instruments in space and it didn't create a three dimensional sound stage in my system. I lived with it for more than a year and could never get that out of it. If you plan to keep your Clear Audio Emotion for a while, focus on finding a cartridge that matches the Satisfy tonearm. This will be your best upgrade right now. The Satisfy has an effective mass of 9g. Use the formulas at The Analog Depot to determine the best cartridge match. resonant frequency = 159 / sqrt [(eff. mass + cart weight + fastener weight) * (compliance)] If you do the math, you'll find that a Grado Reference Sonata would be an excellent choice resulting in a resonant freq of 9 Hz. The ideal range is 8 to 12 hz. You can find this cart used for about $250. I hope this helps. -Mark |
Ron: I haved owned both LP2 and LPS phonostages in the past. The phonostages themselves are very flexible in that they can drive a wide array of cartridges. I owned several decks and arm combinations utilizing Rega and Roksan Arms mounted on Roksan and Sota decks with good results. (the cartridges that were mounted ranged from an Audioquest 4004i to an Audiotechnica OC09). I would suggest getting the best cartridge that matches well with your tonearm. |
