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Need New MM Cartridge Recommendation

Hello All!

I need a recommendation on a new moving magnet phono cartridge. 

Here's my system:

Roksan Radius 5 (I think MK1 or 2) turntable 
Creek Evolution 100A integrated amplifier with Creek Sequel MM board
PSB Imagine T2 loudspeakers 

The Roksan came with a Roksan Corus Black MM cartridge, which was likely a Goldring manufactured cart.  It was great!  The stylus broke off after about 8 years use. 

I was wondering about the following but am open to all recommendations: 

Clearaudio Maestro (yikes! It's $1200)
Ortofon 2m Black
Goldring carts similar to Corus
Audio Technica AT150MLX

Any insight and recommendations will be super appreciated!

PS:   Sequel 40 mk2 MM Phono pre-amp is the device specifically suited for most types of Moving Magnet cartridges, with an output between 3.5 to 5mV and a matching impedance of 47k Ohms.
jbhiller

Showing 1 response by sdcampbell

sdcampbell
2,136 posts
 
The "short list" in your post included the Clearaudio Maestro v2 Ebony, which is a stellar choice. I owned one for nearly a year and passed it along to my son when I upgraded to another cart that sells for about 3X the price. Interestingly, there was no dramatic improvement, which led me to conclude that the CA Maestro is a bargain that offers a very high price-to-performance ratio. A number of audio mags have given high marks to the Maestro, so if you can get a loaner to audition in your system, I think you'll like it very much.

For comparison purposes, you might look at my virtual system for details about my analog front end. The name of my virtual system is "Scott's penultimate system".
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