Introducing the Phono Cartridge Measurement Library

[Palmer]

Измеренные характеристики недорогих МC-головок

В заключительной части нашего исследования будут показаны результаты измерений недорогих МС-головок, которые подойдут как к отечественным ...

www.salonav.com

Russian, but Google does a fair job on the translation. Micro Seiki, bonus

 

[red_delta]

@USER He told me that the reason for the higher then normal tracking is that when he was setting it up it tracked best in his testing at 1.8g. I have attached the file he sent me here for correction. This is the same CBS STR100 that I have used for all of my prior posted measurements if that helps.

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

 

[USER]

@USER He told me that the reason for the higher then normal tracking is that when he was setting it up it tracked best in his testing at 1.8g. I have attached the file he sent me here for correction. This is the same CBS STR100 that I have used for all of my prior posted measurements if that helps.

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

As I always state, this is not an exact correction so be wary, but the FR should be closer to what it really is and helpful for things like EQ. More, every test record has its idiosyncrasies. Unfortunately the conversion EQ is not something I can share because it is a mess, program specific, and I tailor it to each record a little.

I'll send you the files this evening.

I estimated the loading by looking at equipment specs. Note to others that Soundsmith recommends this MM phono stage for medium and high output MC cartridges.

 

[USER]

Shure M97HE Part II
Click to increase size

Julian Hirsch review measurement using CBS STR-100 - Stereo Review, 01-1981

Marketing blurbs from various audio magazines from the late 1970s to early 1980s. See worldradiohistory.com.

Notes

• This is a NOS copy
• Nude, hyperelliptical diamond on a telescoped aluminum cantilever
  • A lot of these elements were taken from the top-of-the-line IV series
  • We have seen how the brush helps already
  • Telescoping the cantilever was a neat trick to reduce mass and improve both FR and tracking
    • Likely also helped cut some manufacturing cost and help meet price point
    • Reviews showed excellent performance comparable to the V-15 line at slightly higher tracking force
    • Shure had some very clever engineers
  • The hyperelliptical diamond cut is an improvement over elliptical and biradial elliptical ones
    • It provides a more consistent FR over the course of the record as it moves toward the inner grove
    • Also helps with distortion, crosstalk, and playback of worn or damaged records
  • I believe there is no reason to buy an elliptical cartridge today
• The advertising shows that customers used to be respected and accordingly were more knowledgeable and demanding
  • These are dark times
• It is interesting to compare these to those of the great Julian Hirsch
  • It *seems* that he overcompensated the capacitance load because the test record was not flat
• FR begins to drop above 10kHz with capacitance load of more than 250pF
• The brush hinge needed lubrication and was giving me a hard time
  • I believe that bump at 10kHz is related to it as I saw a variety or resonances
  • Otherwise this is essentially the same result as before (accounting for capacitance load difference)
• Crosstalk in actuality should be closer to -30 dB (I'll confirm with a DIN 45 543 test record later and update the post)
• I hope to create a comparison against the Shure V15 V-MR some day
  • In order to see if this "taste of the state of the art" is all that you really need
  • How far off is a hyperelliptical cartridge from a micro-ridge or microlinear one?

 

[narud]

Shure M97HE Part II
Click to increase size
View attachment 399591View attachment 399592
View attachment 399609View attachment 399612
Julian Hirsch review measurement using CBS STR-100 - Stereo Review, 01-1981

View attachment 399601View attachment 399604View attachment 399605View attachment 399595View attachment 399608View attachment 399594
Marketing blurbs from various audio magazines from the late 1970s to early 1980s. See worldradiohistory.com.

View attachment 399596View attachment 399598View attachment 399599
Notes

• This is a NOS copy
• Nude, hyperelliptical diamond on a telescoped aluminum cantilever
  • A lot of these elements were taken from the top-of-the-line IV series
  • We have seen how the brush helps already
  • Telescoping the cantilever was a neat trick to reduce mass and improve both FR and tracking
    • Likely also helped cut some manufacturing cost and help meet price point
    • Reviews showed excellent performance comparable to the V-15 line at slightly higher tracking force
    • Shure had some very clever engineers
  • The hyperelliptical diamond cut is an improvement over elliptical and biradial elliptical ones
    • It provides a more consistent FR over the course of the record as it moves toward the inner grove
    • Also helps with distortion, crosstalk, and playback of worn or damaged records
  • I believe there is no reason to buy an elliptical cartridge today
• The advertising shows that customers used to be respected and accordingly were more knowledgeable and demanding
  • These are dark times
• It is interesting to compare these to those of the great Julian Hirsch
  • It *seems* that he overcompensated the capacitance load because the test record was not flat
• FR begins to drop above 10kHz with capacitance load of more than 250pF
• The brush hinge needed lubrication and was giving me a hard time
  • I believe that bump at 10kHz is related to it as I saw a variety or resonances
  • Otherwise this is essentially the same result as before (accounting for capacitance load difference)
• Crosstalk in actuality should be closer to -30 dB (I'll confirm with a DIN 45 543 test record later and update the post)
• I hope to create a comparison against the Shure V15 V-MR some day
  • In order to see if this "taste of the state of the art" is all that you really need
  • How far off is a hyperelliptical cartridge from a micro-ridge or microlinear one?

after seeing this, i have to re-measure my m97 with nos hyper elliptical n97lt stylus but with lower capacitance. iirc, i was well over 300pf and i had a pretty dramatic roll off.

 

[narud]

M97 cart with n97lt stylus

nos n97dlt stylus. this is the hyperelliptical stylus for the p mount version of the m97. no stabilizer brush and non telescoped cantilever.

i usually use this cart with an old rivertone stylus thats a bonded elliptical with the stabilzer brush. i run it at higher capacitance and get a similar response to the shure stylus with lower capacitance. running the rivertone at 220pf ends up with a 3.5db peak in the highs.

 

[USER]

Stanton 681EEE MkIII
Click to increase size

Stanton 681EEE measurements from Stereo Review (1975) and Stanton 681EE measurements from Stereo Review (1968)

Notes

• I wanted to take a look at this again using my CA TRS-1007 given its status as a classic
  • I regretted selling this almost immediately even though it is not a cartridge I would use
• Lightly used, special elliptical stylus with a "shortened" aluminum cantilever
• This is a hard cartridge to set-up consistently
  • You can see the range I got in terms of the downward slope
  • Part of it is the brush, which with age may become more stiff
    • It is hard to get the tracking force right and you will need various test records (for FR and tracking)
  • Part of it is the thin and pliable metal frame, especially the wings that hold the screws (be careful not to bend them!)
    • This can affect azimuth adjustment
  • I wonder if the shortened cantilever amplifies overhang effect
• I am getting a sharp resonance at around 16kHz
  • It seems to affect the right channel more
  • It is not related to the brush
  • Is it in the Stereo Review measurements as well?
• Crosstalk is at around -34 dB
• I still find it interesting that this cartridge was regarded as accurate
  • The 1968 Stereo Review measurements show that the antecedent 681EE model did measure flat (adjusting for STR-100)
  • Stanton strongly claimed that the 681EEE was flat as well, though the 1975 Stereo Review measurements show otherwise
    • And yet, "the Stanton 681EEE sounded as neutral as its linear frequency response and low distortion would suggest"
  • Julian Hirsch suggests that the cartridge was tuned for home use
    • As it could help mitigate the excessive highs of many speakers of the era
      • B&W speakers come to mind and I can see them benefitting from this cartridge
    • Times have changed and this shows how measurements can tell more reliable stories than anecdotes and opinion
      • The comparison to the 681EE is kind of a leap
• Regardless, this is still a well-loved cartridge with a popular FR curve
  • If the above is true it's interesting to see that people like the cartridge either for helping their system sound neutral or for the sloping FR curve and resultant mellow sound
    • Two different (and perhaps contradictory) reasons
  • It also doesn't hurt that the cartridge tracks very well
• It would be interesting to measure a MKI version of the cartridge

 

[DSJR]

I'm still fond of my original 681EEE. It's clean enough that the 'restrained sounding' top should be fixable with eq.

 

[USER]

I'm still fond of my original 681EEE. It's clean enough that the 'restrained sounding' top should be fixable with eq.

Distortion is at around -25 dB at 10kHz so I think there is some headroom for EQ. That said, there is little content up there so even if it shoots up past the standard -20 dB it may be OK.

My bigger concern is that playback of tracks near the outer groove will suffer as the cartridge is "starting from behind." Certainly the first couple of tracks on each side will sound good, but then...

These are the results from the sweeps in the middle of the CA TRS-1007 test record. Keep in mind that we haven't confirmed its dependability yet, but the results make sense given the stylus type. Note that azimuth needed further adjustment here so the right channel is a little worse than it should be at the tail end.

I really need to find a good outer groove track to use as a comparison recording.

 

[mglobe]

Stanton 681EEE MkIII
Click to increase size
View attachment 400529View attachment 400530
View attachment 400532View attachment 400533
View attachment 400537View attachment 400545
View attachment 400418View attachment 400420
Stanton 681EEE measurements from Stereo Review (1975) and Stanton 681EE measurements from Stereo Review (1968)

View attachment 400419View attachment 400547View attachment 400546
View attachment 400415View attachment 400416View attachment 400417
Notes

• I wanted to take a look at this again using my CA TRS-1007 given its status as a classic
  • I regretted selling this almost immediately even though it is not a cartridge I would use
• Lightly used, special elliptical stylus with a "shortened" aluminum cantilever
• This is a hard cartridge to set-up consistently
  • You can see the range I got in terms of the downward slope
  • Part of it is the brush, which with age may become more stiff
    • It is hard to get the tracking force right and you will need various test records (for FR and tracking)
  • Part of it is the thin and pliable metal frame, especially the wings that hold the screws (be careful not to bend them!)
    • This affects getting azimuth just right
• I am getting a sharp resonance at around 16kHz
  • It seems to affect the right channel more
  • It is not related to the brush
  • Is it in the Stereo Review measurements?
• Crosstalk is at around -32 dB
• I still find it interesting that this cartridge was regarded as accurate
  • The 1968 Stereo Review measurements show that the antecedent 681EE model did measure flat (adjusting for STR-100)
  • Stanton strongly claimed that the 681EEE was flat as well, though the 1975 Stereo Review measurements show otherwise
    • And yet, "the Stanton 681EEE sounded as neutral as its linear frequency response and low distortion would suggest"
  • Julian Hirsch suggests that the cartridge was tuned for home use
    • As it could help mitigate the excessive highs of many speakers of the era
      • B&W speakers come to mind and I can see them benefitting from this cartridge
    • Times have changed and this shows how subjective opinions are undependable and measurements can tell a more reliable story
      • The comparison to the 681EE is kind of a leap
• Regardless, this is still a well-loved cartridge with a popular FR curve
  • If the above is true it's interesting to see that people like the cartridge either for helping their system sound neutral or for the sloping FR curve and resultant mellow sound
    • Two different (and perhaps contradictory) reasons
  • It also doesn't hurt that the cartridge tracks very well
• It would be interesting to measure a MKI version of the cartridge

Really appreciate the commentary to go along with the measurements.

My recollections of my opinions of the 70’s cartidges, (fuzzy memories to be sure) are pretty well aligned with what we are seeing in the measurements.

 

[melloncolliecat]

Stanton 890 w/ D81S

• Essentially same cartridge as the Stanton 880/881S
• Original D81S stylus (for 880/881)
  • Nude stereohedron tip (71x8um), brush on
  • NOS, allegedly, but did look like it
• Test record: Clearaudio TRS-1007 side A track 1 & 2 sweeps
  • Warped and hole is off-center
• Cable capacitance estimated, not actually measured, to 125 pF.

As stylus is better suited for a low mass arm, I did not aim for perfection in setup. Recommended VTF is 1g, +-0.25. Maybe getting closer to, or even below, 1g will slightly raise that last HF droop, but I doubt it. Less capacitance could help, but not possible for me at the moment. I am 100pF under recommended value, though.

Yes, recommended capacitance is 275pF. Going up to that brings things up about 0.5dB from around 2kHz and onwards. But 175pF was the perfect balance for me.

(I set VTF to 1.25g with another stylus that came without a brush.)

 

[melloncolliecat]

Stanton 890 w/ LP Gear Vivid Line for Pickering XUV-4500Q

• Stylus for close relative Pickering XUV-4500Q
  • Bonded vivid line tip, brush removed
  • Played a few hours before test
• Test record: Clearaudio TRS-1007 side A track 1 & 2 sweeps
  • Warped and hole is off-center
• Cable capacitance estimated, not actually measured, to 125 pF
• HF peak on par with the usual third party bonded tips
• Have tried this on a XUV-4500Q cartridge, and the peak is even higher.

Closest sibling to the Stanton 880/881/890 would really be the Pickering XSV 3000 or 4000, but it’s likely that these third party replacements are all the same for the Pickerings (3000, 4000, 4500, 5000, 7500). And possibly for the corresponding Stantons too. Jico's and Tonar's shibatas are likely close in performance too, though Jico's supposedly has a tie-wire like the original Stantons. (Will the tie-wire help tame that peak? I don't know.)

 

[USER]

SAE 1000E
& "The Big eBay Blowout"
Click to increase size

Effects of loose pin connection issues

Notes

• The second set of measurements correct the frequency response to my CA TRS-1007
  • Note that this is not exact but it reflects the FR a bit more accurately
• These are old measurements taken after the big vinyl forum event of 2022 when an old stockpile of SAE cartridges were sold on eBay for good prices
  • As per usual I didn't hear about this until it was too late
    • Luckily I was able to play with this one for a day
• NOS HOMC cartridge with a nude elliptical stylus
  • This is a rebadged Coral Japan cartridge
• Make sure you inspect and clean your cartridge before you load it even if it is in "new" condition!
  • Even a cheap $10 USB microscope like the one used is helpful (though not for determining wear)
  • That gunk (???) can very well add mass to the cantilever and cause resonances affecting FR above 10kHz
• The diamond seems improperly placed
  • This could be why my azimuth adjustment is off
  • Added: I also now want to keep that 2nd harmonic channel discrepancy in mind
• This cartridge gave me issues due to its thin connection pins
  • Some reported corroded pins as well
  • We can see a variety of effects from loose connections
    • I love these types of measurements as they useful for troubleshooting
    • The second gif in particular is helpful if you are getting a steeper FR slope than you expect
  • There were a few reports of dead channels during the hoopla and I wonder if instead this was the issue
• The cartridge was returned as everything about it felt off
  • An uncritical ear may not be able to tell something is wrong
  • Is an elliptical cartridge even a bargain at $100?

 

[Palmer]

• The diamond seems improperly placed
  • This could be why my azimuth adjustment is off
• This cartridge gave me issues due to its thin connection pins

It's the simple things in life... But seriously, if something seems awfully wrong, right off the bat - before going crazy, checking the basics eliminates the variables quicker.
Awesome pictures of the stylus.

 

[USER]

• The diamond seems improperly placed
  • This could be why my azimuth adjustment is off
• This cartridge gave me issues due to its thin connection pins

It's the simple things in life... But seriously, if something seems awfully wrong, right off the bat - before going crazy, checking the basics eliminates the variables quicker.
Awesome pictures of the stylus.

Ironically I think this cartridge had more value being defective as I got some interesting measurements that I can use in the troubleshooting section. I had to play around with the connections because I didn't want to crush the tonearm wire connectors right off the bat as I wouldn't be using the cartridge past that day. The pins were that thin. But yeah, no cartridge gets mounted on my turntables without visual inspection.

Now I am wondering if the difference in the 2nd harmonic distortion between the channels is related to the tilted diamond setting.

 

[Palmer]

Ironically I think this cartridge had more value being defective as I got some interesting measurements that I can use in the troubleshooting section. I had to play around with the connections because I didn't want to crush the tonearm wire connectors right off the bat as I wouldn't be using the cartridge past that day. The pins were that thin. But yeah, no cartridge gets mounted on my turntables without visual inspection.

Now I am wondering if the difference in the 2nd harmonic distortion between the channels is related to the tilted diamond setting.

I should have added that the connection pin issues drive me nuts, as those arise a lot. When the clips are at the end of the arm, it's even more of an issue.
Don't want to have to replace those.

Head-shells, not so much - I keep a variety of cart wires around to match ( hopefully ) the pins on the cartridge. Bought an FR -24 MKII to be able to change carts on shells.

The one arm I am still pondering to have, is the VPI unipivot, since you can align the cart on the arm and set the VTF on the arm-wand, and just switch out carts without going trough the motions. Gets expensive quickly, though.

As tilted as the diamond is, I'd say probably.

"As per usual I didn't hear about this until it was too late" - Yes, and often... can't be helped, I guess.

 

[Balle Clorin]

Hana HE unknown hours

• Roksan radius 5 with arm, unipivot.
• 2.5gram VTF, spec 2 gram, antiskate minimum , weight may not be original seem too heavy? tracking 60um Ortofon record
• Crosstalk Ortofon record -30/33
• use hours unknown, but distortion is high possibly worn
• Load 47k, pF unknown
• Arm resonance about 10hz both vertical and lateral, well dampened
• Test record; Clearaudio CA-TRS-1007, LESS THAN 10 RUNS, drop in right channel at 15k is not from record

Photo is questionable due to poor access, but some thread is sticking to needle and could not be brushed away

Spoiler: overglued

 

[USER]

Hana HE unknown hours

View attachment 401125

• Roksan radius 5 with arm
• 2.5gram VTF, spec 2 gram, antiskate minimum , weight may not be original seem too heavy? tracking 60um Ortofon record
• Crosstalk Ortofon record -30/33
• use hours unknown, but distortion is high possibly worn
• Load 47k, pF unknown
• Arm resonance about 10hz both vertical and lateral, well dampened
• Test record; Clearaudio CA-TRS-1007, LESS THAN 10 RUNS, drop in right channel at 15k is not from record

Photo is questionable due to poor access, but some thread is sticking to needle and could not be brushed away
View attachment 401126

Our first Hana. I take it its not yours. And, yeah, I agree with you that it may be pretty worn. Only one way to know for sure.

It seems to suffer from a high frequency resonance that is worse on one channel like the Stanton 681EEE above. Actually a few cartridges on this page show something similar, which is odd. Could it have to do with the cantilever? That broad dip doesn't look good, but at least its in the upper frequencies.

 

[melloncolliecat]

Pickering XUV-4500Q w/ LP Gear Vivid Line stylus

• LP Gear's Vivid Line stylus again, this time with the cartridge it should be voiced for
  • Bonded vivid line tip, brush removed
  • Used for a few hours before test
• Test record: Clearaudio TRS-1007 side A track 1 & 2 sweeps
  • Warped and hole is off-center
• Cable capacitance estimated, not actually measured, to 125 pF.
• Impressive cross-talk, also better match between channels than with same stylus in the Stanton 890
• Pickering recommended their usual 47kOhm and 275pF for stereo play, but 100kOhm and 100pF for quadraphonic.

"You'll have someone's eye out with that!"

Old test and measurements (with the original D4500Q stylus, of course) can be found here: https://www.gammaelectronics.xyz/audio_11-1975_pickering.html

 

[Thomas_A]

Pickering XUV-4500Q w/ LP Gear Vivid Line stylus

View attachment 401245

View attachment 401246

• LP Gear's Vivid Line stylus again, this time with the cartridge it should be voiced for
  • Bonded vivid line tip, brush removed
  • Used for a few hours before test
• Test record: Clearaudio TRS-1007 side A track 1 & 2 sweeps
  • Warped and hole is off-center
• Cable capacitance estimated, not actually measured, to 125 pF.
• Impressive cross-talk, also better match between channels than with same stylus in the Stanton 890
• Pickering recommended their usual 47kOhm and 275pF for stereo play, but 100kOhm and 100pF for quadraphonic.

"You'll have someone's eye out with that!"

Old test and measurements (with the original D4500Q stylus, of course) can be found here: https://www.gammaelectronics.xyz/audio_11-1975_pickering.html

Nice to see the vivid line. It seems heavy though, bonded, and peaky. Was thinking of getting it for the Shure V5Vx to test. They should have a naked diamond with it.