Cartridge upgrade question


Ok, I am using a VPI HW-19jr with a Sumiko MMT tonearm. Currently I have a Grado Gold of some unknown age mounted. I am feeding this into a Luxman c-120a pre with a pair of Luxman m-120a's driving A/D/S L810's.

The pre has both MM and MC phono stages, but there are no adjustments that I am aware of for loading/gain on the MC stage. From what I found online, it looks like it has an impedence of 390 Ohms and 20 db of gain.

I want to explore the MC stage on the pre so I am looking for an economical MC cart that will match well with the equipment I have now. I was considering a Denon 103 or 103R, but I'm not sure if those are a good match for the tonearm. I've also seen the AT OC9, but it looks like it isn't a good match for my pre.

My listening really runs the gamut, but if I were forced to choose one genre to listen to for the rest of my life; it would be jazz.
ninetwofour
Absolutely Ninetwofour, I agree with your ideas 100%.
For sure, my word, or opinions aren't gospel, and there are others both here, and at Karma who may offer better, usable advice, differing from mine.

The one thing I'm sure none of us want to see you do, is buy a really decent MC Cartridge, and then sadly discover the Cartridge won't work for you.

There's certainly nothing at all wrong with going MC, and I do believe your rig (Tonearm+Arm) could nicely showcase a very nice MC Cartridge, let's say the Benz Glider, Benz Wood, Dyna 20, ZYX Bloom, or Fuji, and Cartridges of other makes in this price range, but without good Phono Stage compatibility, you might very well likely hit a roadblock.

Still, not all is lost, as most of us been down this path at one time, or another, and the answer is, either a Step Up Trasformer, or External Phono Stage.

I myself upgraded about two years ago, right here, with a used purchase from another member, and bought a mint Sutherland PhD Battery Powered Stage at a substantial savings versus new. Previous Stage was the MacCormack Micro Phono Drive, which was very nice as well for the money I spent.

While the MacCormack only had two gain settings of 40db and 60db (I think) it had infinite settings for loading, via end user insertable resistors. I sold this mint phono stage to another a-goner for I believe $300.
Best of luck, and do let us know your outcome. Mark
Mark,
Thanks for your replies.

Posted in both places; can never get too much feedback. Especially from divergent viewpoints.
Ninetwofour asked this very same question over on Karma, and one good post here reflects mine, a good MM, that won;t be a mismatch for the pre-amp.

As I mentioned in Karma 9-2-4, there are killer MM's, that will deplete your bank account, such as the Clearaudios, which I understand some are built with Audio-Technica Parts.

One of course in "all" cases wants to get away with the best sound for the least cash outlay. The cash outlay of course is dependent on just how deep one's pockets are? Mine was deep enough, that I bought both a Benz Ruby 3, and then 4 months later on a whim, bought a ZYX Airy 3X SB. I use a Sutherland PhD Phono Stage, which has quite a bit of adjustability, and is adead quiet Battery Powered Stage. Hey you only live once!

I made a suggestion on karma to you, and of course, you must be happy with your decisions, and the cost that comes out of your pocket.

Best advice, do considerable homework, and hopefully, you will come away from this hard reasearch-work a happy person, with a good product that was money well spent. It's tough putting a price on audio-nirvana. Mark
Maybe you've already been there, but if you haven't, try the Cartridge Database. It will take in your tonearm data, output requirements, price parameters and come up with loads of suitable cartridges of all types. It's great fun. and you can spend hours playing around with all the calculators. I've discovered several new cartridges this way.
I've got the same table with the same arm. Went from Grado to Clearaudio Aurum Beta S. Simply amazing. Very light sounding with amazing clarity and depth. This cartridge will keep up with anything.