Ortofon Super OM-10 better than Music Hall Tracker?
MikeyD
Unregistered guest
Posted on
I recently purchased a Music Hall MMF-2.1 turntable, which came with the factory installed and set up Music Hall Tracker cartridge (Goldring Elan?). I have an Ortofon Super OM-10 that I just bought for my old Dual CS505-2 before determining that the cartridge wasn't the problem after all.
I'm not familiar with the Goldring cartridges, and haven't found any direct comparison information. Would the Ortofon represent an upgrade?
Depends on the mass of the tonearm. If it's a low mass arm, like a Linn, HK, B&O, etc you'll want a high compliance cartridge. If it's high mass, like Technics, Pioneer, etc, you'll want lower compliance. It's all about avoiding audable resonance in the arm/table/cartridge.
MikeyD
Unregistered guest
Posted on
I don't have actual specs on the effective mass of the tonearm or a recommended cartridge compliance.
Music Hall advertises it as a medium mass tonearm, but it is a straight, aluminum arm unlike the S arms used by Pioneer, Technics, etc. The Pro-Ject Debut comes with an Ortofon OM-5e, it is basically the same table although the arms are slightly different so comparison may not be completely valid. While I don't have specific numbers, I am reasonably confident that the cartridge/tonearm combination will not have a resonance in the audible range.
I have the OM-10, so there's really no out of pocket cost just to try it. Neither cartridge is broken in yet so it will be some time before I can do a valid comparison. Twenty years ago the process was the fun part, but at this point I'd just as soon skip it if one cartridge or the other is clearly better.
on a related topic, I know the ORTOFON OM-10/20/30 feature interchangable replacement styli (so one can upgrade). Is the OM-5 also a part of this bargain, or is it the odd man out, ORTOFONically speaking?
Or to put it another way: If I get a MusicHall or Pro-Ject TT w/the OM-5, can I later upgrade the cartridge with a better ORTOFON stylus?