allenh Posted March 13, 2016 Share Posted March 13, 2016 Grado. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ntslash Posted March 13, 2016 Share Posted March 13, 2016 I'd go with Ortofon. I have a friend who bought a uturn with the Grado a few weeks ago. After a week of unsatisfactory playback, he returned it for an Ortofon Red. Best decision of his life. Okay, maybe a slight exaggeration, but he likes it much better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 13, 2016 Share Posted March 13, 2016 Grado's sound is not for everyone, and they are not the easiest carts to align, but they sound really good for their price point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinyl addict Posted March 14, 2016 Share Posted March 14, 2016 I'd go with Ortofon. I have a friend who bought a uturn with the Grado a few weeks ago. After a week of unsatisfactory playback, he returned it for an Ortofon Red. Best decision of his life. Okay, maybe a slight exaggeration, but he likes it much better. Did your friend check the alignment? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted March 14, 2016 Share Posted March 14, 2016 Grado's sound is not for everyone, and they are not the easiest carts to align, but they sound really good for their price point. Very true as audio is very subjective and the Ortofon Red gets a lot of bad press for being both toppy and at the same time bad at top end frequencies which the blue stylus seems to fix. It's the biggest problem with Grado's though, they have a very bad reputation for IGD and it's rubbish, it's always down to bad alignment as they are fussier than other cartridges in this department so the alignment has to be right, in extreme cases they show up if an arms alignment is wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YouTwo Posted March 14, 2016 Share Posted March 14, 2016 In case I misread something I don't think the Ortofon Red was the cartridge in question. The cartridge U-Turn offers is the OM 5E. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emokid9963 Posted March 14, 2016 Share Posted March 14, 2016 In case I misread something I don't think the Ortofon Red was the cartridge in question. The cartridge U-Turn offers is the OM 5E. You are correct. So would the Grado be better than the OM 5E? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 14, 2016 Share Posted March 14, 2016 You are correct. So would the Grado be better than the OM 5E? You can upgrade the stylus on the OM 5E to any of the OM line, all the way up to 40 and get a great sound. The grado can take up to the Gold stylus, or the older 8MZ or MCZ to make it a great cart as well. It's up to your sound preferences really. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emokid9963 Posted March 14, 2016 Share Posted March 14, 2016 You can upgrade the stylus on the OM 5E to any of the OM line, all the way up to 40 and get a great sound. The grado can take up to the Gold stylus, or the older 8MZ or MCZ to make it a great cart as well. It's up to your sound preferences really. That's the problem. I'm not really sure what I want. I just thought if one cart outweighed the other I would chose that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 14, 2016 Share Posted March 14, 2016 They are two completely different sounds, and both can sound great if you enjoy the sound. I love my Grado, but some people hate them. I've never heard any of the OM line to compare it to. Grado's are pretty neutral, and product a really natural sound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted March 14, 2016 Share Posted March 14, 2016 In case I misread something I don't think the Ortofon Red was the cartridge in question. The cartridge U-Turn offers is the OM 5E. Apologies you are correct, I'm getting mixed up with the red that's always fitted to the Projects that everyone complains about. The 5E is a bit lower down the Ortofon food chain but that doesn't make it bad in the same way as the red is not bad either as this is all a matter of what you actually like not anyone else. Taking things very basically the 5E isn't as good a cartridge as the Grado as it will be quite a bit brighter sounding, less neutral and bring out less fine detail than the Grado but you will only really notice that if the rest of the system is good enough to get the best out of the Grado and it might not be a sound you like. In short generally you get what you pay for but that doesn't mean you will like it. Thomas and I both like the Grado sound but that doesn't mean we're right. If you're thinking of going for the Grado black then I'd spend the extra $20. but if that $20 means you don't get the acrylic platter then I'd go with the OM5 as MDF is a very poor material to make a platter out of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebilljim Posted March 14, 2016 Share Posted March 14, 2016 That's the problem. I'm not really sure what I want. I just thought if one cart outweighed the other I would chose that. The best way to get a feel for what you want is to just go to a shop, and spend some time listening to each cart. Not sure if that's an option for you or not, but I think generally speaking, buying with your ear is better than buying based on specs, or even other people's opinions. Requiescat 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted March 15, 2016 Share Posted March 15, 2016 buying with your ear is better than buying based on specs, or even other people's opinions. It's the only way you should buy any hifi but because of the internet there is now more choice to see but less to hear. Requiescat 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted March 15, 2016 Share Posted March 15, 2016 All of you are wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted March 15, 2016 Share Posted March 15, 2016 Especially Allen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Requiescat Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 The best way to get a feel for what you want is to just go to a shop, and spend some time listening to each cart. Not sure if that's an option for you or not, but I think generally speaking, buying with your ear is better than buying based on specs, or even other people's opinions. I concur. Everyone has different tastes and different cartridges are going to sound better or worse to different people. Sure you can argue some carts perform better than others and because of that there's plenty of "good" general suggestions to offer but ultimately the decision is up to your ears and what sounds best and also your budget. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 Especially Allen. Only if my Wife's in the room Dominic_ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aju2streets Posted April 16, 2016 Share Posted April 16, 2016 https://thirdmanrecords.com/news/new-merchandise-and-record-store-day-merch-exclusives/ This looks interesting. A Third Man Records branded U-Turn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dominic_ Posted April 16, 2016 Share Posted April 16, 2016 https://thirdmanrecords.com/news/new-merchandise-and-record-store-day-merch-exclusives/ This looks interesting. A Third Man Records branded U-Turn Doesn't Deathwish have one too? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jks124 Posted May 27, 2016 Share Posted May 27, 2016 Does anybody have an opinion on weather to get the Q-up or U-turn's cue lever? Right now I think I'm leaning towards the Q-up. I really don't want the stylus running into the label and causing damage. But the cue lever looks like it is much better built. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas³ Posted May 27, 2016 Share Posted May 27, 2016 1 hour ago, jks124 said: Does anybody have an opinion on weather to get the Q-up or U-turn's cue lever? Right now I think I'm leaning towards the Q-up. I really don't want the stylus running into the label and causing damage. But the cue lever looks like it is much better built. Unless the labels are off center, then won't run into them. All records have a locked lead out groove. Tommy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boops_popmarket Posted May 27, 2016 Share Posted May 27, 2016 I have one or two used records that have labels that the needle jumps into. Frightening each time I learned the hard way which records have that unique feature. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MayCauseDeath Posted May 28, 2016 Share Posted May 28, 2016 9 hours ago, jks124 said: Does anybody have an opinion on weather to get the Q-up or U-turn's cue lever? Right now I think I'm leaning towards the Q-up. I really don't want the stylus running into the label and causing damage. But the cue lever looks like it is much better built. I have the cue lever and love it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YouTwo Posted May 29, 2016 Share Posted May 29, 2016 +1 for the cue lever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jks124 Posted May 29, 2016 Share Posted May 29, 2016 Thanks everyone I think the cue lever maybe the way to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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