Moving on - upgrading MM to MC, or..?

[Daniel Quinn]

Im aware of the sales pitch , im just not having it :D . If the liquid acts as an agitator , I see no reason why judicious rinsing would not be as effective , i grant you a rcm is much easier and quicker .

[jammy395]

Shona reckons they would come up nice in the dish washer - Think she may have a valid point....

[Anesthetise]

Hahaha, a record cleaner is probably the last thing I'd ever get :D Whenever I buy 2nd hand I clean it with wood glue, then I just don't stick my fingers when I shouldn't. I have an anti-static brush that I use whenever there's a noticeable ammount of paper dust.
Jammy, I've considered Goldring 1042 - some reviews say it's more musical than Ortofon 2M Black that Gromit mentioned to be the finest cart he's ever heard. I just worry these might be too... soft (?) for the music I listen to. I've looked up the prices, 2nd hand once went for 80 pounds, once went for 140, once for 160-ish, which I could afford.
Meanwhile, I've found something interesting. I guess that's what my cart is missing. The juice. That's what I'd like to get, and it's pretty well audible here, considering it's a youtube video that provides average quality:
[BBvideo 425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NuyIC-ZI_78[/BBvideo]
I need something more musical, open,, airy, that sings instead of playing. You probably know what I mean. The AT's treble sounds a bit too bright for me here, though judging a cartridge through a video is a silly thing to do.

I guess I'll just take my time to explore ebay/classifieds for some 2nd hand, then sell if I don't like it. Thanks for all these suggestions guys, now I know what should I look for. There's an Ortofon 2m Blue for 85 shipped now on PFM I think, with less than 50 hours use, but I don't really know what to expect. Do you have any experiences with that one?

EDIT: There's an AT150MLX now on PFM, for 210 shipped! Out of my range though

[Gromit]

Jammy, I've considered Goldring 1042 - some reviews say it's more musical than Ortofon 2M Black that Gromit mentioned to be the finest cart he's ever heard.

I wouldn't say it's the finest cartridge I've ever heard, it's most definitey the finest MM one though. I'm not a big fan of the Goldring myself to be honest, nor any of its derivatives, always finding it rather 'hifi' and lacking dynamic prowess. Could never see what the fuss was about, and the 1042's price has gone way too far for its sonic prowess imho. The only one which I liked was a Reson Reca which Neil (Yomanze) was kind enough to let me borrow recently.

The only downside to the 2M Black is that it's extremely fussy about its set-up in the arm. You have to get the alignment absolutely spot on.

[jammy395]

I would suggest both the Goldring 1042 & Ortofon 2m black are both superb MM cartridges - & both have interchangable stylus.

BUT - And here is the rub.

A (quick) search on the web shows the best price's to be around..... Ortofon £470 / stylus £350 - Goldring £240 / stylus £148

At half the price its a no fukin brainer.....

[Gromit]

At half the price its a no fukin brainer.....

Having heard both I'd still take the Ortofon, it's a much better cartridge IME.

[Daniel Quinn]

Hmmmm, a different perspective from moi :D - never heard the 2m black , however for £100 quid more you could buy a moving coil with a boron cantilever and fine line stylus and you wouldn't be any worse of when it came to buying a new one as the trade in price would be roughly equivalent to ortofon new stylus .

[jammy395]

At half the price its a no fukin brainer.....

Having heard both I'd still take the Ortofon, it's a much better cartridge IME.

Having heard both i'd still take the Goldring, it's twice as good and half the price IME.

[Andrew]

Told ya! There's Nowt like a choice of cartridge to cause a big debate. People really seem to love certain ones and utterly detest others. I find it fascinating. They just seem to put their stamp on a system in an emphatic way.

Of course, there's always compatibility to account for, but I e never heard a sound I didn't like from a DL103 or a P77. They just seem to have a "signature" I warm to.

[Dr Bunsen Honeydew]

When ever I play people my Shure M3D on the PL71 they look at me as though I am bonkers. It doesn't sound like other carts but by heck it boogies. I had a Decca London Super Gold which was completely magical and could even at times be better than the SPU, but on other times it made me wince and it is so difficult to keep on song and I really don't know why. I probably spent more time fiddling with it than playing it - so I sold it (I had two I sold both). I want to get an original mk4 (black plastic case) when I find one at the right price as I think the flimsy mounting on the later Decca Londons does them no favours.