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Matching Cartridge to Hovland Phono

Question: I have the Hovland HP-100 with the MC 63db step-up transformer. Looking at their specs (below) is a Dynavector 20xl a good 'match' to this phono? I have some difficulty understanding what to look for in getting an ideal match.

Specs for the DV 20xl:

SPECIFICATIONS
Type High/Low output moving coil cartridge with flux damper and softened magnetism
Output Voltage 2.8mV / 0.3mV (at 1KHz, 5cm/sec.)
Channel Separation 25 dB (at 1KHz)
Channel balance 1.0 dB (at 1KHz)
Frequency response 20 - 20,000Hz (± 2dB)
Compliance 12 x 10-6 cm/dyn
Tracking force 1.8 - 2.2grams
DC resistance 150 ohms / 5 ohms
Recommended load
resistance > 1Kohms / > 30 ohms
Cantilever 6mm length, hard aluminium pipe
Stylus Micro-Ridge
Weight 8.6 grams


Hovland HP-100:
Phono Stage (46 dB gain)
Minimum input voltage: approx. 0.7 millivolt @ 1000 Hz
Input impedance: 1 meg ohm
Frequency response: ±0.15 dB, 25 Hz - 25 kHz
S/N ratio: 60 dB below 2 mv input wideband
75 dB below 2 mv input w/ 400 Hz high-pass filter

MC Phono Stage with MC-7 Transformer (63 dB gain)
Maximum input voltage: approx. 1.0 millivolt @ 1000 Hz
Input impedance: approx. 530 Ω (provision for reduced loading)
stickman451
04rdking's avatar
04rdking
178 posts
 
Need to know what your arm is. Arm/cart matching is more critical.
stickman451 OP
553 posts
 
Using a Dynavector DV 507MKII
dougdeacon
3,338 posts
 
Arm/cart matching is certainly critical, but so is cart/phono matching. If you've ever heard a significant mismatch you'd know it, so Stickman asked a good question and his specs provide good examples.

Stickman,

The DV-20XL puts out 2.8mv. Your MC inputs specify a maximum input of just 1.0mv, so clearly you shouldn't use those. If you did you'd have far too much gain. This might overload your line stage and/or amp and/or endanger your tweeters - not to mention your ears.

Your MM stage, OTOH, is reasonably well suited for a DV-20XL. No surprise, since that's a HOMC specifically designed for use with MM phono stages. While the "ideal" gain for a 2.8mv cartridge is more like 41db (according to the KAB Preamp Gain Calculator), your Hovland's 46db is close enough. You'd have ample dynamics and you wouldn't be pushing the phono stage hard, so its noise level should stay low.

Assuming you like this cartridge and don't mind leaving your MC stepups idle, your Hovland should work fine with it. You might find the sound a little bright (or not, it's system dependent) due to the very high input impedance of your MM stage. That can be adusted by inserting resistors across the inputs, so it's not a bar to using this cartridge.
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