lewm,
cost seems to define ’mediocre’ for you and many. I defend my ’mediocre’ choices.
there is nothing mediocre about using Shure’s damped brush when needed for warped lps.
"Agreed. The brush was one of the prime reasons the cartridge could handle the original stamping of the Telarc 1812 at 1 gram, with no trace of mistracking, in some arms.".
Several new ’superior’ 180g lps arrived warped. Out of my own and inherited, I have many with desirable content and slight warps. The brush can also help with slightly off-center lp’s otherwise unplayable. If the most esoteric cartridge cannot play them, that’s far below mediocre. You could even break a very costly cantilever without the damped brush’s protection.
ONLY by retrofit,
I’ve now got an advanced stylus with damped brush you cannot buy new (unless you find a NOS V15Vxmr with it’s micro-ridge on beryllium). My ’mediocre frankenstein’ fits both my V15Vxmr and 97xe bodies. I’ve also got the Jico, non damped brush with SAS on boron that fits either body. Brush up or brush down as needed.
AT33 MONO comes new with conical. I'm gonna end up with a MC Mono with advanced tip for new mono lps. That combo: ONLY BY RETROFIT.
there is nothing mediocre about lightly tracking at 1.0g; 1.25g; 1.5g rather than 2.0g or higher. The Shure’s and Audio Technica’s I choose do that. Less wear to both stylus tip and grooves, yielding longer stylus life.
there is nothing mediocre about stiffer cantilevers like boron, sapphire tube, beryllium and the results.
there is nothing mediocre about wide channel separation and tight channel balance, specs that improve with price in all lines. I find them at mediocre prices.
an intelligent combo of signal strength and coil impedance that works with a SUT’s x-factor and that resultant impedance, into a wonderful sounding MM tube phono stage like my mx110z produces trouble free, hum free results far beyond mediocre
combine those attributes with proven motor systems from Shure, Audio Technica, Sumico, oh yeah.
I’ve heard a lot of expensive cartridges in showrooms (and past audio shows) (when I worked in NYC for 46 years) thru expensive equipment, I haven’t been inspired beyond what I have. Thus I always say: ’not better, preferred’.
friends, including 3 new ones I met thru audiogon, like their own and like my very revealing system. I have marks for alternate toe-in for 1/2/3 listeners, and of course put visitors in the center and single listener toe-in. IOW, ’friendly’ rather than a nailed down single listener setup. In addition my 3 tonearm setup enables instant cartridge comparisons, they bring their favorite cartridges here and we get to hear the favorite/familiar lps they bring, as well as some of mine they have heard here before, very enjoyable. (gotta pre-figure volume knob positioning first to be fair). We hear subtle differences.
Friends wanting to buy something new research, listen in showrooms, get ready to spend ’big money’, then listen here, hmm, that ’mediocre’ cartridge sounds better/preferred to what I just heard at .......
of course we are hearing the combo of table/arm/sut/tube preamp/tube amp/interconnects/spkr cables/speakers and horns/15". already familiar with that, cartridge differences can be heard.
Remind me to look for a used/broken adcom crosscoil, Jim’s sounded excellent here. (his has new cantilever/tip by Steve at VAS).
I love mediocre prices for terrific sounding results.
