Newbie Question: High Output v. Low Output

For most audiophiles MC is considered better than MM, but there are good MMs. The high output MCs have additional wiring in the cartridge, to be very non technical, and this increases the complexity and the chance of something going wrong. BUT, there are good high outputs and sometimes they are better than the low output version. The High Output ones will work into phono stages that have less gain, you should check to see what yours is and compare it to the cartridge you are considering. There are some very good deals on turntables and cartridges available and if you will post your budget and listening taste you will get advice from many Audiogoners. Look at Vinyl Engine and Audio Asylum for detailed discussions as well as the forums on this site.

Your budget cartridges will mostly be MM the vast majority of analogue junkies prefer low output mc's but you need a more expensive phono with a mc input or a step up transformer to use a mc in a mm phono section because the signal is lower (low output).
Take your time read the forum threads look at the turntables for sale, Arms, cartridges and you will after a time gain enough knowledge to make a good decision.
For me MC's rule for 349.00 retail you can get a Audio-Technica OC9 low output mc Cartridge that is a super tracker and quiet in the groove. All depends on you budget,
995.00 for a Shelter 501 II Phono Cartridge is a great value as well

Thanks very much. I am looking at the scout/scoutmaster budget levels, though have not settled on any particular brand or table. Maybe around $2K, but would be surprised to end up spending a bit more then that on the table and tonearm if I thought it could well be what I have for years to come. Most of my lps are popular music, rock/funk/soul, but I am growing more interested in classical, and expect that to be a bigger part of the collection going forward. I am very appreciative of all advice.

Before you go with a MC, if you do, in addition to gain matching issues, make sure your phono stage provides for adjusting to the load requirements of the cartridge. While some sound good at 100 ohms, there are others that like to see 1000, 2000, or 10K. And, since it as much system synergy as well as cartridge/pho-stage synergy (usually recommended by the cartridge manufacturer) its not necessarily predictible.

One of the good things about MM cartridges, for the less than dedicated vinylophile is that they usually operate into 47k ohms, a standard setting for virtually all phono stages, and they have hi gain which makes them much quieter in operation as a mid/lo output MC might reveal noise or noise floors in a phono stage.