| BUYING GUIDE & REVIEWS - CARTRIDGES - UNDER £200 |
| PRICES SHOWN ARE THOSE AT THE TIME OF REVIEW |
| Cartridges |
£ |
Year |
Verdict |
| Audio Technica 120E |
£52 |
Nov 01 |
A big sound with lots of treble detail make the AT120E great for Rock. Lots of fun. |
| Audio Technica AT440ML |
£89 |
Aug 01 |
Bright, fast sounding and detailed, with fulsome bass. The AT440ML can be spitty at times. |
| Clearaudio Alpha |
£130 |
Apr 99 |
Tends to sound quite hard at the top but imaging and detail are good. Best in a warm system. |
| Denon DL103M |
£110 |
Aug 97 |
First manufactured in 1963, it sounds mature and sure-footed rather than over the hill. |
| Denon DL110 |
£65 |
Mar 94 |
May be a little soft-natured for some. Splendid dynamics and an even tonal balance. |
| DNM Mica |
£185 |
Feb 98 |
Betters Goldring's 1042 without difficulty. MC quality from an MM. |
| Dynevector DV10X4 Mk2 |
£199 |
Jul 01 |
The most musical cartridge at or near its price, the baby Dynavector is a classic budget audiophile product. |
| Goldring Elektra |
£30 |
Nov 01 |
Not the most exciting performer around but does the job well enough, and at £30 it's as cheap as chips. |
| Goldring 1006 |
£70 |
Nov 01 |
A tad bright but very detailed with good bass. a little expensive all the same. |
| Goldring 1012GX |
£60 |
Jul 93 |
Great with Rock music, the 1012GX is the best value low-price MM. |
| Goldring 1042 |
£90 |
Jan 93 |
One of the best MMs at the price with strainless delivery. |
| Grado Prestige Silver |
£119 |
Apr 97 |
Good tracking and inoffensive sound, but somehow lacks sparkle in any department. |
| Linn K9 |
£58 |
Sep 94 |
Rhythmic bite compensates for a lack of vibrancy in music (MM). |
| Ortofon 510 MkII |
£40 |
Jul 99 |
Excellent tracker at a good price. Warm amplification is needed to tame this sure-footed budget entry. |
Ortofon 540 |
£100 |
Jan 93 |
Smooth operator and very good value for money (MM) |
| Ortofon MC15 Super II |
£110 |
Mar 95 |
In the right system, can be masterful with its dry and accurate response. |
| Ortofon MC25E |
£170 |
Sep 95 |
A considerable achievement that adds true verve a pizzazz to the MC15 Super II |
| Ortofon Super OM10 |
£32 |
Nov 01 |
A fine detailed performer, but lacks a bit of bass grunt. |
| Roksan Corus Black |
£120 |
Jan 93 |
Light and dry presentation with good presentation (MM). |
| Slate Brazen MM |
£185 |
Sep 97 |
If you like the V15 you'll love the Brazen. Works well with an SME 3009. |
| Sumiko Blue Point |
£100 |
Oct 92 |
Excellent value for money. It does its job of transcribing the information on the disc without fuss or bother. |
| CARTRIDGES - OVER £200 |
| Clearaudio Victory Gold |
£960 |
Aug 00 |
Dry, fast and forward sound, but lacks the neutrality and even-handedness you'd expect from a mid-price moving coil. |
| Cartridge Man Music Maker |
£549 |
Feb 99 |
Good price, high output and a winning musicality make this Moving Iron cartridge the one to beat. |
| DNM Lexe |
£1300 |
Jan 99 |
A Goldring make-over that tracks well and sounds good. Pricey, though. |
| DNM Rica MM Cartridge |
£255 |
Jun 98 |
This betters the Mica, has super-MM virtues. |
| Dynavector 17 DM Mk2 |
£449 |
Mar 00 |
A glorious taste of the high end at real world prices, but match carefully with top quality ancillaries. |
| Dynavector DV20X-H |
£299 |
May 99 |
Delightfully musical sound makes the Dynavector a very strong contender in the budget MC stakes. |
| Dynavector DV XX-IL |
£998 |
Nov 00 |
Warm, sweet, beguilingly musical cartridge with a charming personality, but not quite the class of its field. |
| EMT HST6 |
£850 |
Oct 96 |
Solid bass and smooth, musical sound make this rare MC cartridge worth the money. |
| Goldring Excel VX |
£495 |
May 97 |
Has fine midrange clarity, but is bettered in other areas by cheaper competitors. |
| Linn Arkiv |
£1200 |
Dec 97 |
Linn fans will love it but its up against strong competition. |
| Linn Arkiv |
£1200 |
Mar 01 |
A wonderfully fluid and musical cartridge, there a few better ways to play vinyl. |
| Linn Klyde |
£489 |
Jun 95 |
Sumptious sounding cartridge that borders on the bass heavy but has a good feel for music. |
| Lyra Lydian |
£649 |
Jun 95 |
Extermely smooth, civilised MC with no obvious weaknesses. |
| Ortofon Jubilee |
£1250 |
Mar 99 |
Detailed, musical and sure-footed, the Jubilee goes a long way towards justifying its elevated price tag. |
| Ortofon Kontrapunkt B |
£750 |
Sep 01 |
One of Ortofon's best yet, a natural music maker with tremendous clarity. Match carefully though. |
| Ortofon MC25F |
£225 |
Sep 95 |
Delightfully sweet, musical sound with added refinemet on FL that takes some beating |
| Ortofon MC30 Supreme |
£450 |
Jun 95 |
Involving yet refined presentation but some could feel itís slightly coloured. |
| Ortofon MC7500 |
£2000 |
May 94 |
Conveys the full gamut of emotion from A-Z with the fervour of a live concert. Expensive, but the business |
| Ortofon Rohmann |
£1000 |
Apr 96 |
A top quality MC with superb tonal quality and excellent imagery |
| Shure V15VxMR |
£295 |
Mar 97 |
Warm, dynamic rendition of music with great detail and impact (MM) |
| Transfiguration Spirit |
£1000 |
Jul 98 |
A balanced all-rounder that misses out only on the last ounce of detail and bass weight. |
| Van Den Hul MC10 |
£840 |
Jun 95 |
The MC10 is very hard to fault. A honey, pure and simple. |
| VDH Grasshopper IV |
£3750 |
Dec 95 |
Allows music to flow with superb fluidity and reveal things which were previously unheard - at a price! |
