Are MC step-up transformers better?

Excellent results can be achieved with MC step-up transformers, but requires careful selection and system matching. A few years ago I went on a quest to find the best step-up for my Ortofon MC3000 MKII cartridge (0.1mV output). I tried a Klyne active step-up (bad sound, not quiet enough), a Jensen transformer (really bad sound, no dynamics, poor resolution), and a few others. I ended up building my own using ultra-low noise Toshiba JFETs in a battery powered configuration. That sounded great! Later, I found an Ortofon T-5000 transformer. Now, also sounded good! Transformers are very sensitive to grounding, placement, and cable capacitance. So, the moral of the story is: Try before you buy and listen for yourself.

I haven't tried the T-30, but if it is anything like my T-5000, then I'm sure it sounds great! I was on Ebay last night and typed in Ortofon. I found 4 transformers for sale: T-2000, T-3000, T-5000, and a T-20 MkII. A friend ownes a Forsell Air Force One turntable with a Koetsu Onyx Platinum Diamond cartridge (life must be rough!). Anyway, we tried my Ortofon transformer with his Koetsu and it sounded great! So, it appears that they will work well with other cartridges besides their own. Another thing to keep in mind when shopping for transformers is impedance matching. Some MC's have a low internal impedance (sub 10 ohms) while other are somewhat higher (30-50 ohms). Typically, a higher gain transformer likes to see a low impedance cartridge, due to the turns ratio and subsequently reflected input impedance.