Cartridges for Grace 707

I know some of the real hard core a-philes sniff at it, but I had a Shure M97xe on a 707/Thorens TD-160 Super and I thought it sounded a heck of a lot better than it should have for an $89 cartridge. I understand - sort of - that as a low mass arm it mates well with a high compliance cartridge, so MM might be a better way to go.

Yes - Grimace is correct. I was thinking of an ADC or Sonus, etc.

The Shure M97xe is a possiblity.....Ideally I'd like to find a V15.

Which model of ADC cart?

Thanks :)

Hi Rob,

An ADC MKII Improved is a pretty good moving iron cartridge from the old days. An ADC Astrion would be even better with its crystal cantilever, but very scarce. Even better would be the ever-elusive ADC TRX Series, with the TRX3 being the rarest, but best.

The Sonus is also nice, but the quality was always spotty. You could get a good, or bad, one. Sometimes, you win; sometimes, you lose. That's the way it is with Sonus.

Some of the Signets aren't bad. The 5.0 line contact model is rather nice for a moving magnet.

Of course, one not to forget is the Grace F9.

// Win

How about an Ortofon OM40 or new 2M Bronze or Black? They're all in the 22-25 compliance range. The OM series is much lighter and easier to match, at least theoretically.

Also, how about Cartridge Man MusicMaker? Recommended for medium-to-low mass arms of 13g eff. mass or less.

The Shure V-15 series is always a safe and high value choice.

I'd also look at the products from Soundsmith. He offers some high compliance cartridges that should work well with the Grace.

Dear Rob: +++++ " The Shure M97xe is a possiblity.....Ideally I'd like to find a V15. " +++++

IMHO the M97xe is a " surprising " good performer and in many ways better than the V15.VMR that's overpriced and not worth about.

The Sonus Gold Blue is a better choice ( you can find it on ebay for no more than 170.00 ) and through what I experienced with three different Sonus cartridge ( including the Dimension 5 ) it is a reliable cartridge.

The ADC ones are very good too specially the Astrion ( hard to find ) but you could find the XLM III or XLM II improved that works fine.

Now if you want something great then you could go for the original ( NOS or second hand ) MMC2 B&O cartridge, you could find it through the web.

As a fact there are plenty of very good MM cartridges, the Ortofon OM40 super is another one even the Sumiko Pearl.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

I don't know how the Shure sounds on the Grace, but it sounds pretty good on my Ittok/LP12 combo (even better than some HO MCs I tried). I also have a Grado 8MZ on a Grace 747/TD160S and it sounds wonderful. So much detail from a cartridge not known for it.

I'll just bet that he found a cartridge by now.

If he has not found one in five years, he must have a real problem!

A second vote for ADC XLM III, which I used with the Grace 707(mkII?)/Ariston 11e.