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Cartridge or Pre Amp

I recently picked up the Pro-Ject Tube Box DS and I am tickled pink on how warm and yet dynamic it remains. I’ve noticed that there seems to be some front stage darkness on some older records. Nothing more volume can’t fix. Would upgrading my AT-ML150 cartridge or the pre amp would this phenomenon or it simply a characteristic of the production and pressing of its day?


My setup:

Technics MK1200 MKII various upgradeds: wires, tonearm, etc.
AT-AL150/OCC Cartidge
Pro-Ject Tube Box DS
Bryston 4B3
Bryston Model T speakers
Simaudio MOON NEO Preamp
OPPO UDP-205


joyofsound
chakster's avatar
chakster
2,482 posts
 
@basement 

Generally speaking, where low output MC's put more demands on phono stages that MM's, high output MC's put less demands than both.

In was quite normal to use MM stage for HOMC cartridges, but i never liked the result, actually optimal loading for HOMC is not 47k Ohm to my ears. Also moving mass is always higher with HOMC than with decent MM, so i think there is no advantages of the high output MC compared to some nice MM or MI cartridges. 
invictus005
597 posts
 
100K loading on most MM cartridges will create a very large peak around 10kHz. And possibly a small reduction throughout the midrange. In a fake way, this can make an MM cartridge sound more like MC. But is that really what you want?

There are three state of the art modern MM/MI cartridges available today:

Ortofon 2M Black (my favorite)
Nagaoka MP500
Audio Technica VM760SLC

My favorite phono preamplifiers:

Parasound JC3+
Micromega MyGroov




chakster's avatar
chakster
2,482 posts
 
hey @invictus005 have you compared Parasound JC3+ to Gold Note PH-10 ? 
joyofsound OP
18 posts
 
Thanks @chakster for the valuable information you provided. I'm all in for testing various components and hearing the results. Of course results may vary. I'd like to start out by testing the ATN170 / ATN180 styli, a high output MC.Testing various various tubes and finally different sound stages. Thanks for posting the links. This has been very educational even to a audiophile like myself.
joyofsound OP
18 posts
 
@invictus005 Unfortunately I need a subsonic filter due to my systems dynamic nature...alas the Parasound JC3 lacks one.
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