best choice cartridge for my Lamm LP 2

I agree with Cmk, and I've always wondered what sort of cartridge the LP2 was designed for.

57db of gain is appropriate for cartridges of at least.5mv output, a bit higher would be better.

OTOH, 40 ohms input impedance is optimal for cartridges with coil resistances somewhere around 1.6 ohms. A coil resistances that low would typically imply extremely low output, like .1mv or less.

No cartridge I know of with a coil impedance below 2 ohms produces anything close to .5mv output. If there is such a cartridge it is very unusual, and LP2 users would be fairly locked into it.

Frankly, the LP2's gain and impedance specifications just don't belong together in the same phono circuit, and raising either one is not something many users could do.

Asking Vladimir is certainly a good idea, but friends of mine who've asked him did not get very useful answers. That eventually led them to different phono stages, ones designed for cartridges that actually exist. :-(

Fjn04,

Check my system for one option that you won't run into anywhere but via existing owners, since it's custom built. It has enough gain for any cartridge and a 3-way impedance switch with user selectable values.

There's a 4+ month wait at the moment, but FWIW at least two Io/Callisto Signature owners have abandoned their Aesthetix gear after demoing this preamp. I've personally A/B'd it against an LP2/LL2 setup, in the Lamm owner's system. He sold them within a week of hearing Nick's preamps. It's worth a look.

The question with the LP2 isn't particularly its 56db of gain. As Cmk and Jtimothya point out, there are many great cartridges with ample output for that amount of gain.

The real question is that 40 ohm input impedance. That isn't close to optimal for any of those cartridges, and Lamm refused to adjust it for two owners that I know.

If you like the Lamm it's worth asking again of course. Perhaps they've changed their tune.