Good low-price cartridge for listening to rock.

06-29-07: Marntz4me
With my above mentioned setup (MMF5 + Ortofon Super OM-10) CDs in my opinion seem to sound more detailed.

How do you have your MMF sited? What kind of rack, platforming, and mat are you using? A turntable is far more vulnerable to internal component noise, feedback, and room resonances than other electronic components because the cartridge is far more microphonic. Until I sorted out the platforming and turntable mat on my current rig (Technics SL 1210 M5G and either Ortofon OM 10 or Shure M97xE), I blamed a lack of inner detail on the cartridge. Isolating the turntable better and using a better mat revealed that either cartridge was plenty detailed for my taste. My CD player in the same rig is a Sony ES series CD/SACD player which was a big leap in detail over the CEC I had before. Yet, compared to the turntable, it's not so much the detail that I find so winning in the LP playback (though I don't find it lacking, either), it's the body of the sound and how it somehow communicates the emotion of the music better. Everything improved mightily when I put the turntable on a butcher block cutting board and put the cutting board on a set of Vibrapods. YMMV of course.

After doing some research, I couldn't find any reviews that raved about the OM20 stylus being much better.

There's a bit of buzz over the OM 20 and it's definitely perceived as an overachiever. See http://www.furious.com/Perfect/vinyl48.html. Absolute Sound named the OM 20 and 30 (Super) both as Editor's Choice budget components, giving a slight subjective edge to the 20. See http://www.lpgear.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=LG&Product_Code=OROM20S. For a link to download the full TAS review, go to http://www.avguide.com/products/product-2771/.

Here are a couple of reviews at www.audioreview.com: http://www.audioreview.com/cat/analog-sources/Cartridges/ortofon/PRD_337138_5823crx.aspx
Note that the first review is written by someone who had the OM 10 for some years but decided to upgrade to the OM 20 replacement stylus.

Linn Adikt. Excellent mm for the price, and has real slam. Also allows you load replacement tip when you need one for less than half the cost of the original cartridge.

Etbaby, it helps to spell my user name correctly when asking a question. Here it is $65.00 including shipping. These are good folks, I have dealt with Jack for many years. No affiliation, your mileage may vary, blah, blah, blah:

http://www.jacksmusicfactory.com/default.asp?productid=8002_Shure_M97xE_Cartridge_OUT_OF_STOCK

Here's a link to the Shure M97xE for $60.93 where they aren't out of stock at the time of this posting:

http://www.amazon.com/Shure-M97xE-High-Performance-Magnetic-Cartridge/dp/B00006I5SB/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/102-1597082-1738535?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1183224206&sr=8-1

Thanks again for your input, and I would like to add that I have seen some of the reviews mentioned. As for my cartridge setup, I followed the directions that were given to me with the MMF-5 and set the tracking force at about 1.5 grams, and then later to 1.25 grams as i had read on the net. When my new amp arrives (I am anxiously awaiting it after having auditioned a demo Cayin 50 T) I will check out the cartridge setup thoroughly. I demoed the amp with my turntable using the OM10 stylus.

BTW...I really loved the Cayin 50T it runs about 16 watts in Triode and 35 in ultralinear. The only disappointment I have is that it is not made in the USA. The build quality appeared spectacular for a starter amp.