Cartridge loading question

@bdp24 soundsmith zephyr MKII high output moving iron; thanks.

High output moving iron: The lower the load resistance, the more it will roll off. There is a particular resistance value such that the cartridge will neither ring (overshoot) or be rolled off, this value is known as the 'critical damping' value.

If at critical damping, the cartridge will not have reduced output in any way.

Please note that when insufficiently loaded (load value too high) the cartridge will 'ring' (distort). The distortion will interact with the human ear/ brain system in such a way as to suggest that it is more dynamic. Don't be fooled by this physiological phenomena.

None of this applies to low output moving coil cartridges- that is a different discussion entirely.

@atmasphere thanks, how will one know when they've reached critical damping by ear without the help of a program or device when having to consider various phenomenas?

You can get pretty close by ear, but to do it you need a stereo potentiometer, wired as a stereo rheostat, loading the cartridge. I usually use a 100K device.

Turn down the control until the highs seem to go away and then back off. There should be no change in volume, just the highs, which should sound normal and extended but not bright.

You will be compensating for other factors in your system but without instrumentation this means works pretty good.

That’s the way Harvey Rosenberg taught me to tune Decca cartridges, also a moving iron (actually, variable reluctance) design; loading resistance and capacitance to critically damp the particular specimen of the cartridge one owned (back then every Decca was different!). I think he called it a tuned circuit. I miss Harvey.