Thomas³ Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 I can't decide if I try try one of those LPGear VL styli for my AT95E, or get a 8MZ for my Grado Green. The VL is $90 vs the $150 for the 8MZ. I wonder if either are even worth the upgrade, or if I should just save for a better cartridge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 5 hours ago, Thomas³ said: I can't decide if I try try one of those LPGear VL styli for my AT95E, or get a 8MZ for my Grado Green. The VL is $90 vs the $150 for the 8MZ. I wonder if either are even worth the upgrade, or if I should just save for a better cartridge. I Don't know about the VL on the AT95 as I haven't tried that but the 8MZ on any Grado body is quite an upgrade, It's basically a $400 plus Grado for $150 and your old body. I have one and have always been very impressed with it. There's also another one higher up the food chain that I can't remember the name of which I might try on another spare Grado body. The only caveats I will give is that obviously it's subjective and like all cartridges it's arm mass specific but if the Green sounded good in your arm then the 8MZ should be very good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCF Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 8 hours ago, Thomas³ said: I can't decide if I try try one of those LPGear VL styli for my AT95E, or get a 8MZ for my Grado Green. The VL is $90 vs the $150 for the 8MZ. I wonder if either are even worth the upgrade, or if I should just save for a better cartridge. I doubt that updating a $30 cartridge with an $90 stylus is good match. The body itself is not that important, but i feel it should at least have decent tolerances for its fitting etc. I'd prefer a "full" upgrade, maybe a used one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas³ Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 4 hours ago, allenh said: I Don't know about the VL on the AT95 as I haven't tried that but the 8MZ on any Grado body is quite an upgrade, It's basically a $400 plus Grado for $150 and your old body. I have one and have always been very impressed with it. There's also another one higher up the food chain that I can't remember the name of which I might try on another spare Grado body. The only caveats I will give is that obviously it's subjective and like all cartridges it's arm mass specific but if the Green sounded good in your arm then the 8MZ should be very good. Surprisingly the Green does sound good, even though the tonearm is very low mass. I'll probably go that route then, since I don't think the AT95E likes low mass arms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 6 hours ago, DCF said: I doubt that updating a $30 cartridge with an $90 stylus is good match. The body itself is not that important, but i feel it should at least have decent tolerances for its fitting etc. I'd prefer a "full" upgrade, maybe a used one. Do you know the differences? Because to me, diamond shape is a huge difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas³ Posted July 9, 2016 Share Posted July 9, 2016 21 hours ago, ajxd said: Do you know the differences? Because to me, diamond shape is a huge difference. Pretty much. Allen, should I realign the cartridge after I install the 8MZ? I didn't know if the new diamond shape would have that much of an affect that it would need to be realigned or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 On 08/07/2016 at 11:09 AM, DCF said: I doubt that updating a $30 cartridge with an $90 stylus is good match. The body itself is not that important, but i feel it should at least have decent tolerances for its fitting etc. I'd prefer a "full" upgrade, maybe a used one. The Grado bodies are identical mechanically and the current range are pretty much identical electrically so in the current range and pretty much all Grado bodies all the styli are interchangeable and the stylus profile and cantilever material are by far the biggest factor in determining how it performs. On 09/07/2016 at 3:09 PM, Thomas³ said: Pretty much. Allen, should I realign the cartridge after I install the 8MZ? I didn't know if the new diamond shape would have that much of an affect that it would need to be realigned or not. In theory no you shouldn't need to apart from resetting the tracking force as from memory its different, in general the stylus on the 8MZ is easier to line up correctly and the cantilever dimensions should be identical but I would check it anyway as it can't hurt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas³ Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 9 minutes ago, allenh said: The Grado bodies are identical mechanically and the current range are pretty much identical electrically so in the current range and pretty much all Grado bodies all the styli are interchangeable and the stylus profile and cantilever material are by far the biggest factor in determining how it performs. In theory no you shouldn't need to apart from resetting the tracking force as from memory its different, in general the stylus on the 8MZ is easier to line up correctly and the cantilever dimensions should be identical but I would check it anyway as it can't hurt. That was the plan, thanks. I might grab a cheap ZF3 body off ebay to have as a secondary, just incase too. I believe the body is the same as the current blue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wpgblink Posted July 12, 2016 Share Posted July 12, 2016 Hey fellas. Absolutely new when it comes to this stuff - but doing some research into it and I am really excited to get into the game. Just going to ask some opinions on the Pro-ject Essential II? Local store has a pretty fair price on it. What do you guys think about this an introductory unit? If some people have it, or had it, and would be willing to shoot some feedback on the Essential II that would be greatly appreciated. Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas³ Posted July 19, 2016 Share Posted July 19, 2016 Anyone ever try the AT110E? I'm looking for a cheap back-up cartridge, and it's compliance seems to fit my tonearm a lot better than the AT95E. Stylus is the same size too. I can't find more than a few reviews, all positive though, on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
[Banned User] Posted July 24, 2016 Share Posted July 24, 2016 (edited) There's a Pioneer PL-600 for sale on Craigslist for $80. It's in good working condition and I'm in need of a serious upgrade. I was saving up for an Audio-Technica, but this Pioneer looks great. I can't tell if it's automatic or not, but I'm considering buying it. Anyone have a PL-600? Worth upgrading to? EDIT: Just did some more research on here and other places. Doesn't look like it's worth $80. Edited July 25, 2016 by [Banned User] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donlombardo Posted August 12, 2016 Share Posted August 12, 2016 (edited) Bought a turntable used, bought a new stylus immediately, but just curious about the one that was on. It's an audio technica. is it supposed to be this black? what could have happened to it? Edited August 12, 2016 by donlombardo Added another picture. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas³ Posted August 12, 2016 Share Posted August 12, 2016 10 minutes ago, donlombardo said: Bought a turntable used, bought a new stylus immediately, but just curious about the one that was on. It's an audio technica. is it supposed to be this black? what could have happened to it? What cartridge is it? The AT91B, which also has a million different names is a black carbon fiber cantilever, and you have replaced it with one of it's counterparts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donlombardo Posted August 12, 2016 Share Posted August 12, 2016 Yeah, it sure looks like that one. That's why it's black, I guess. Cool to know. I bought a replacement no brand for the table, so I don't know if it's exactly that one, the replacement is not black though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas³ Posted August 13, 2016 Share Posted August 13, 2016 6 hours ago, donlombardo said: Yeah, it sure looks like that one. That's why it's black, I guess. Cool to know. I bought a replacement no brand for the table, so I don't know if it's exactly that one, the replacement is not black though. For $30 you can upgrade to an elliptical carbon fiber stylus (if that is indeed your cart.). It looks like you can upgrade all the way up to a Shibata stylus. http://www.lpgear.com/product/LPGCFN3600LE.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donlombardo Posted August 14, 2016 Share Posted August 14, 2016 It's for a friend who will play one-record-a-never, so the cheap one is fine for me, but thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andynz Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 A question about headphones... I'm looking to add headphones to my setup and wondering if I am ready to go with the amp I have already, or need a separate headphone amp? Current set up: Pro-ject P1.2 w/ Ortofon 2M Blue - Pro-ject Phono Box - Rotel RA-935BX - KEF Q100 My amp has a headphone jack (6.35mm) on the front, the manual says to use the "Remote Speaker" outputs for headphone only output. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slinch Posted August 31, 2016 Author Share Posted August 31, 2016 Not exactly sure what you're asking, but if you want to use headphones without the sound coming from the speakers at the same time, you have to hook up the speakers to the "remote" speaker terminals instead of "direct" terminals so that you can deactivate the speakers with the "remote" button on the front when using headphones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andynz Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 (edited) I guess my question is do I need a seperate headphone amp? Or will simply plugging headphones into my current amp work (with the speakers wired up to the remote terminals)? Edit: as I typed that, it seems like a really dumb question. However I guess I asked as it seems like a lot of people add components to their systems (DAC's?) for headphones. Is that because you get better sound through those, or that their amp's don't have a headphone output? Edited August 31, 2016 by andynz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mesi Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 3 minutes ago, andynz said: I guess my question is do I need a seperate headphone amp? Or will simply plugging headphones into my current amp work (with the speakers wired up to the remote terminals)? Just plug them in and you are ready to go, no seperate headphone amp needed. andynz 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas³ Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 You only need a headphone amp is you are using low powered headphones that need the extra amplification. As for the DAC, yes they can sound better. Usually the DAC in a computer's headphone port is an after thought, so it's not always great. A dedicated DAC will usually improve sound since it's build for that purpose and not as a cheap after thought. I'm sure there is a ton more to it too. andynz 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andynz Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Thanks for the replies. Following on from that. Any suggestions for a set of headphones that sound good in the $100-150 range that will run ok through the 40W Rotel RA-935BX amp? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freki Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 13 minutes ago, andynz said: Following on from that. Any suggestions for a set of headphones that sound good in the $100-150 range that will run ok through the 40W Rotel RA-935BX amp? Buy Tardcore's AKG Q701s. Tardcore 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slinch Posted August 31, 2016 Author Share Posted August 31, 2016 14 minutes ago, Freki said: Buy Tardcore's AKG Q701s. This. Tardcore 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dnl Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 I don't have much to contribute to this thread, but thought I'd leave this link here. U-Turn have been posting some pretty good basic info on turntables (with pictures and obvious advertisement). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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