Why is my turntable so loud?

The MF shold be very slightly warm sounding rather then lean.

You definitely want the MM setting with the Ortofon 2M Red.

If you are using a high output cartridge in conjunction with the gain setting for low output moving coils, there's a good chance that distortion is being generated in the phono stage that subjectively could be perceived as reduced warmth.

Regards,
-- Al

Thanks to all that responded. Since I have not had a turntable with this pre-amp until now, I was not aware of the switch on the back. So it might be on MC instead of MM? I like that my MF pre is dual mono as is my Aragon power amp, but I admit it isn't exactly a warmish piece. I also have been thinking about a tube pre. I will look in to all of your suggestions. First things first I will check that switch. Thanks again all and if you have any pre-amp suggestions I would love to hear.

Here's the manual for the A3CR:

http://www.musicalfidelity.com/uploads/manuals/English/a3crpre_eng.pdf

The A3CR has an MC/MM switch on the back. Turn the volume all the way down before toggling the button.

They list the sensitivity of the MM section as 2.5 mV, which is on the low side (lower sensitivity => higher gain). That sensitivity seems more optimal for the high-output MC cartridges which are typically in that range. The output of the Ortofon is 5.5 mV.

As for the warmth issue, it could be a less than optimal match with the A3CR, but it could also just be the sound of that cartridge. I'd suggest exploring some of the more affordable MC carts. Note that you'd still use the MM setting for high-output MCs.

Sounds like your MF pre amp phono stage might be set to MC instead of MM (the 2M Red is most definately a MM)

or get a different cartridge with lower output

Your CD player sends a "line level" voltage to the preamp while the Ortofon is a moving magnet phono cartridge that sends only millivolts to the preamp. The phono input of your preamp has an additional gain stage to bring the low level phono input up to line levels.

In your case, it looks like the phono preamp section either has more gain than necessary (or your CD player has a lower output level than average).

Some phono preamps have internal switches for different gain levels, but many don't. Same thing with CD players - some have a variable output to better match volume with other sources, but most don't.

If none of your components have input or output level adjustments, then your two main options are either to modify the preamp or live with the issue.