Cartridge recommedations

Good thread.  I am also looking for a new cart and money is tight.  AT, Hana, and ZYX are on my radar.  I am not allergic to MM and Nagaoka also on the radar.  

I've just ordered the Rega Ania and expecting it tomorrow. It will be used on a Sony PS-x50 turntable and is my first MC cartridge so,,, fingers crossed I can set it up properly. I'll report back once I have an impression.

I've had the Dynavector 10X5 for years and love it. This replaces a Rega cartridge that cane with with Rega 3 table.

Haven't tried any of the others...

GB

Hello,

The good thing is these carts are all a little laid back. The Dynavecktor 10x5 mk2 comes in low and high output. The low is used like a typical MC cart and the high is used as a MM cart. I have the low output and it is great. A friend of mine had the Hana SL and said it was the best $750 cart he ever had. In fact he said he would put it against carts that are 3-4x more expensive. He now has a $4000 cart and that is the only reason he sold it. I think think the Hana SL is the cart for you because none of the other carts have this many great reviews. I have the Quintet Black by Ortifon and the Shibata stylus on a Mark Levenson 5105 tt is a PITA to set up, but once dialed in it’s amazing once it’s dialed in.  The Ania is a great cart but a little on the high side of price that is better for the Rega tt due to the easy setup because of the third Head space screw. The Ania and the Ania pro are great on a Rega P6 or P8. I wish the Ortifon came with the same stylus as the Cadenza series but it doesn’t. So I say skip it. I did install a Dynavecktor 20x on a VPI prime with unipivot arm and it was great. So bottom line. If you want to use a MM setting on your phono stage go with Dynavecktor 10x5 mk2 high output. If you want to go with the MC setting go with the Hana SL. I hope this helps. 

Hi Greg,

I have a Hana SL on my VPI Scout (unipivot arm) and absolutely love it. I did an a/b comparison when I had the Nagaoka MP300 and the Hana beat it in my opinion. The Hana had a larger soundstage and  seemed more rhythmic than the Nagaoka. I can’t comment on the comparison with Dynavector. 
 

Best of luck on your journey, it’s a lot of fun!