SL1210 Mk2 cartridge choice

[matthewpiano]

Any recommendations for an affordable cartridge for a stock SL1210 Mk2? I'm seriously considering one to use as my main hi-fi source but I have no idea about what cartridges would work well on the standard Technics arm. Nothing too expensive at this stage but certainly something better than the Ortofon OM5e on my Debut III.

Any thoughts gratefully received.

 

[Anonymous]

The beauty of the Technics is that just about anything will work well on it it really depends on your budget. Any of the Ortofons will work very well on it including the DJ cartridges which are generally cheaper if you shop around but still give very good performance this is a random example

 

[chebby]

Audio-Technica AT440MLa

 

[fatboyslimfast]

Or a Denon DL-110, if you want a smoother choice. The AT is a great cart with huge levels of detail and great tracking though.

Horses for courses, but those two would be top of my list. Circa £130ea.

 

[Henley]

Spacehopper:
The beauty of the Technics is that just about anything will work well on it it really depends on your budget. Any of the Ortofons will work very well on it including the DJ cartridges which are generally cheaper if you shop around but still give very good performance this is a random example

Whilst the DJ cartridges are good, please accept them for what they are - very robust products that are designed to be abused. Spend the same money of a HiFi cartridge and the performance will be far superior.

 

[kusum65]

I read an article by a New Zealand Hi Fi journalist who has been trying a 1200 for a year and hated its dark sound but found salvation with the ortofon 2mm blue and the way it opened up the sound. I replaced my Audio technica 120 with a blue and i loved the result, very much in keeping with the guys findings.

 

[matthewpiano]

Thanks for the suggestions. For now I've put my Ortofon OM5e off the Debut on it and I have to say it sounds excellent - already a BIG upgrade on the Pro-ject.

I like Ortofon carts so I'll probably look at the 2m Blue (thanks Kusum65), but also the upgrade styli for the OM series, which might be a convenient idea now I've got the cart aligned well.

Will post with more thoughts in a few days.

 

[Anonymous]

the om series sounds a bit different from the newer carts

why not upgrade by buying a stylus upgrade to om30 from jico their really good and much cheaper

 

[matthewpiano]

Seems to be an eminently sensible suggestion one off, and probably the route I'm going to take. I like the sound of the OM series carts and if I can get more of the same by simply upgrading the stylus I'm all for saving a bit of money. My cart is only about 9 months old (the Debut III didn't satisfy me for very long) so it seems a good plan to get some more use out of it in this way.

For what its worth, I used to have a Michell Tecnodec with a Sumiko BPS Evo III but found the combination cold and clinical and the Tecnodec was a complete pain to keep clean, even with the Unicover. The Technics is a much more musical deck.

Thanks.

 

[gpi]

If you like what the Ortofon OM5e does (and it's an excellent starter cart), simply keep the cart and upgrade the replaceable stylus to an OM20. This will give you a nude elliptical stylus which is a significant upgrade to the basic OM5e.

 

[matthewpiano]

Update: I couldn't stop messing with the alignment on the Ortofon and ended up damaging the stylus, so I've bought into a new entry-level cart/stylus in the form of a Goldring Elan and it sounds far better than the Ortofon. Its a more musical cartridge and much less susceptible to surface noise.

I'm going to live with the Elan for a few weeks and then, if I still feel the same, will look further up the Goldring range, although this will now be after I have sorted out the rest of my system.

Thanks for all the suggestions on this thread. Its been very helpful indeed.