Advise: Buying My First Vinyl Player

[02audionoob]

Oh, I don't know about overrated, given that I don't read a lot of posts on various forums that rate the importance of the cartridge. Just look at this thread, or most other threads dealing with vinyl. What are they primarily asking about? The turntable itself. If not for my bringing up the subject, I doubt it would have been discussed at all. And for a vinyl newbie, the importance of the cartridge cannot be stated enough, because that's rarely mentioned at all in discussions about these entry level turntables (and with good reason, because most of the factory installed carts on those decks are crap).

Indeed, the turntable is an important starting point, but it's not where things end. And in my experience, an inferior cartridge will absolutely handicap the turntable, no matter how good it is.



Well, my experience with the OM series is that it's one of the better budget choices out there. Regardless of whether it's upgradable, I think it's an advantage over many of the other choices out there.

For someone just getting into the vinyl game, ease of upgrading is definitely a consideration. With the Ortofon OM series, it's as simple as swapping out the stylus. No need to unmount and remount the cartridge body, no need to redo the overhang or azimuth, no need to redo the counterweights, etc. These tasks are not inconsequential to a beginner.

The cartridge body between the OM and OM Super isn't the main determinant of any differences in the specs. It's nearly all in the cut of the stylus. I've used the 10 and 20 stylus with both the OM and OM Super bodies, and the performance difference between the cartridge bodies is minimal.

The turntable and tonearm can handicap a cartridge every bit as much as the other way around. Members of another forum with far more talk of turntables than this one tend to overrate the importance of the cartridge. The OM series isn't so good that it warrants basing a turntable decision on it. It's all that simple.

I only posted previously because I didn't want to just leave your points there uncontested giving the impression that there's no disagreement on the topic. I'll leave it at that.

[Woochifer]

The turntable and tonearm can handicap a cartridge every bit as much as the other way around. Members of another forum with far more talk of turntables than this one tend to overrate the importance of the cartridge. The OM series isn't so good that it warrants basing a turntable decision on it. It's all that simple.

If this were a general audiophile discussion about turntables, I'd agree with you. But, the topic is the entry level market, and from what I've seen in this market, the OEM-installed cartridge is very much an afterthought.

Music Hall doesn't even disclose which vendor supplies the cartridges for their entry level MMF 2.2 model. And the flood of USB turntables I've seen coming onto the market similarly don't typically disclose the cartridge make and model, and often use inferior conical styli. Indeed anyone can simply upgrade the cartridge, but that's yet another learning curve for a vinyl novice and an added expense on top of whatever the turntable itself costs.

I'm not claiming that the Ortofon OM series is the last word in cartridges, but it does offer up decent performance in the entry level price points and a seamless upgrade path. Given all that, its inclusion with the Pro-Ject turntable is a plus, especially for someone who's just getting into vinyl and doesn't have a huge budget.

[02audionoob]

If this were a general audiophile discussion about turntables, I'd agree with you. But, the topic is the entry level market, and from what I've seen in this market, the OEM-installed cartridge is very much an afterthought.

Music Hall doesn't even disclose which vendor supplies the cartridges for their entry level MMF 2.2 model. And the flood of USB turntables I've seen coming onto the market similarly don't typically disclose the cartridge make and model, and often use inferior conical styli. Indeed anyone can simply upgrade the cartridge, but that's yet another learning curve for a vinyl novice and an added expense on top of whatever the turntable itself costs.

I'm not claiming that the Ortofon OM series is the last word in cartridges, but it does offer up decent performance in the entry level price points and a seamless upgrade path. Given all that, its inclusion with the Pro-Ject turntable is a plus, especially for someone who's just getting into vinyl and doesn't have a huge budget.

I'm just saying I disagree, specifically about the turntables and cartridges at hand in this discussion. That's the sum total of it.