A customer recently asked me this, and I thought it would be interesting to document the cartridges I’ve owned and recommend.
In chronological order, then, from oldest to most recent, let’s look at the cartridges I’ve owned over the years that I can remember. Note that some of them are discussed in more detail in my cartridge inspection and cleaning article.
| Cartridge | Notes | Rating |
| Ortofon OM-10 | Fitted to my first proper turntable, a Dual CS505-2 I bought new in 1985. These are cheap and cheerful, similar to a 2M Red now. Not very exciting, but it serves a purpose. | C- |
| ADC XLM Mk3 | A typical high compliance MM cartridge from the 1970s, this has good specs on paper, but I never thought it sounded very good. | C- |
| Shure M97xE | Fitted to my Kenwood KD-600, SME Series III, these are another decent, if somewhat low-resolution, compliant MM cartridge. Beautifully made and nice if you don’t care too much about the details, like all such carts! | C+ |
| Goldring Elite | This almost unknown gem replaced the Shure on my SME Series III. I ordered my Elite direct from Goldring UK. This is a superb-sounding highish-compliance MC cartridge, a very rare thing these days. Spectacular value, on the right arm, one of my all-time faves. | A |
| Ortofon MC Kontrapunkt h | I bought my Kontrapunkt h new, as my first ‘serious’ MC cartridge to be fitted to my Jelco SA-750D. A gem of a cart, super smooth, neutral, and never fatiguing. The Cadenza Red is the current iteration of this great cart. | A |
| Fidelity Research FR-1 Mk3 * | Purchased from Japan in NOS condition, this wonderful and legendary cart spent time on my Jelco and Koestu tonearms. Another gem, not the most neutral or resolving, but a genuine high performer and superb bang for the buck. | A- |
| Ortofon MC Jubilee | My best cartridge to that point, I bought this cartridge new and loved it for many years. This is better than everything that came before it, a true high-performer. RRP was around $3000 AUD. Brochure here. | A+ |
| Fidelity Research MC-202 * | My friend Jason gave me this lovely MC cart, in need of a re-tip. It’s a modest design but sounds lovely, though perhaps lacking the authority of the FR-1. | B+ |
| Ortofon MC A90 * | I purchased this limited edition best cartridge Ortofon made to that point, and it still sees regular service on my FR-64S tonearm. I love this cartridge. The new cost was around $4200 USD / $7000 AUD. A serious and superbly made transducer, it comfortably outperformed my MC Jubilee, which I sold. One of my favourites of all time. | A++ |
| Supex SDX-1100D * | My rarest and probably most valuable cartridge, the Supex SDX-1100D cost $3200 AUD in the ’80s, and yes, I’m serious. Featuring a diamond cantilever, line contact diamond gem and ultra-low impedance, these impossible-to-find carts sound sublime. I will never sell mine; it is at least as good as my MC-A90. | A+++ |
Notes
Some folks get stuck with various old MM carts or cheap coils, and I advise against doing that. If you believe that a 1970s magnet is better than any of the nice MC carts I’ve listed here, you need better gear, or at least to hear some.
You need the best gear to get the most out of good MC carts, though, and this is where most mistakes are made and bad information ‘generated’.
I suggest bypassing low-end cartridges where possible. This means saving for nice cartridges, but that’s part of turntabling. That said, pre-owned cartidges can offer superb value. Just avoid the only-50-hours ruse.
There will inevitably be questions like: “Why have you never owned XYZ?” etc. Each cartridge I have owned has been good in its own way and part of a learning curve that I’ve actually gone on, rather than read about somewhere. I’ve fitted and listened to hundreds of other cartridges, and there are many more I’ve not heard. There are a lot of cartridges out there!
This is a technical topic, requiring genuinely experienced and knowledgeable folks to assist, and they are about as rare as my Supex! Those needing advice on cartridge selection and matching, and anything turntable-related, are welcome to use our advisory service.
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