The difference isn't really high output versus low output; it's moving coil versus moving magnet.
A cartridge consists of a coil of wire and a magnet. The stylus moves in the record groove in response to the vibrations in the record groove. When you move a magnet and a coil of wire relative to each other, an electrical current is generated. This contains the musical information that is amplified.
A moving coil cartridge has the coil attached to the sytlus. The magnet is fixed in the cartridge body. A moving magnet cartridge is the opposite. The magnet is attached to the stylus; the coil of wire is in the cartridge body.
Having a heavy magnet on the stylus can dampen the response of the stylus to the record groove vibrations. Having the coil of wire on the stylus makes it lighter so more vibrational information is picked up from the record. In order to keep the stylus light, the moving coil cartridge has only a few turns of wire. Therefore, output is less; therefore you need greater amplification.
A moving coil cartridge is superior to a moving magnet cartridge in terms of information retrieval. But the trade off is lower output. And it is more expensive to manufacture.
Some moving coil cartridges use more turns of wire to increase the output. These are "high output" moving coil cartridges. But you start to increase weight, like the moving magnet, and thereby start to dampen and mask vibrational information. It defeats the purpose of using a moving coil in the first place over the less expensive moving magnet.
So it isn't the low output that gives better quality. It is the more responsive stylus of the moving coil that gives better quality. The low output is just a byproduct of the lighter stylus assembly.
A cartridge consists of a coil of wire and a magnet. The stylus moves in the record groove in response to the vibrations in the record groove. When you move a magnet and a coil of wire relative to each other, an electrical current is generated. This contains the musical information that is amplified.
A moving coil cartridge has the coil attached to the sytlus. The magnet is fixed in the cartridge body. A moving magnet cartridge is the opposite. The magnet is attached to the stylus; the coil of wire is in the cartridge body.
Having a heavy magnet on the stylus can dampen the response of the stylus to the record groove vibrations. Having the coil of wire on the stylus makes it lighter so more vibrational information is picked up from the record. In order to keep the stylus light, the moving coil cartridge has only a few turns of wire. Therefore, output is less; therefore you need greater amplification.
A moving coil cartridge is superior to a moving magnet cartridge in terms of information retrieval. But the trade off is lower output. And it is more expensive to manufacture.
Some moving coil cartridges use more turns of wire to increase the output. These are "high output" moving coil cartridges. But you start to increase weight, like the moving magnet, and thereby start to dampen and mask vibrational information. It defeats the purpose of using a moving coil in the first place over the less expensive moving magnet.
So it isn't the low output that gives better quality. It is the more responsive stylus of the moving coil that gives better quality. The low output is just a byproduct of the lighter stylus assembly.