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audiophile needles

meshmesh 925 Posts
edited September 2005 in Strut Central
i am advising someone on their recording setup, basically, all they want to do is record their records to computer and want the highest level recording chain possible. i got him buying the mini-me AD from apogee to handle his digital conversion, and he is running his turntable through a rane ttm 56 with m44-7s. he wants to have the best recording chain possible, so i was thinking about suggesting some better needles. any audiophile needle having dudes around here?and i just thought about this, should he consider replacing the rane with an audiophile preamp specific for turntables?what are you guys working with when it comes to audiophile equipment?i am a little new to that side, being a dj/engineer and not so much the audiophilesitathomelisteningtorecords steez.

  Comments

  • JLRJLR 3,835 Posts
    For $89 the Audio Technica AT440ML is a great buy. Entry level audiophile. Micro line stylus.

    If budget is not a problem, the now discontinued Shure V15 is a killer.

    Both are MM, but true audiofools, I mean, audiophiles like the MC cartridges better.
  • meshmesh 925 Posts
    thanks dude.


    keep em coming people, he is on this site so i am just going to direct him to this thread.


    thanks again.
  • johmbolayajohmbolaya 4,472 Posts
    http://www.amusicdirect.com
    http://www.redtrumpet.com
  • speshboogiespeshboogie 105 Posts
    For the most part, if you are more interested in sound quality as opposed to scratching/loudness, move away from the "DJ" cartridges.

    I just ordered one of these:

    http://www.needlz.com/cartridges/m97xe.asp

    Which is next in line to the (discontinued) V15VxMR.
    Ortofron makes a pretty good audiophile cartridge as well, which I think you can swap & use a DJ needle on.
    I forgot the model though.

    If you want better overall sound quality, I would go for a good quality standalone Phono Preamp, which will most likely be better than any DJ mixer, yes even a Rane mixer.
    Buyer beware, The "audiophile" stuff can get more expensive than "Pro" DJ gear real quick, so unless you have golden ear syndrome, you could probably settle for something mid range.
    I was debating the standalone phono preamp, but decided to stick with my Rane mixer, as I would like to still have the cross fader available.

  • prof_rockwellprof_rockwell 2,867 Posts
    For the most part, if you are more interested in sound quality as opposed to scratching/loudness, move away from the "DJ" cartridges.

    I just ordered one of these:

    http://www.needlz.com/cartridges/m97xe.asp

    Which is next in line to the (discontinued) V15VxMR.
    Ortofron makes a pretty good audiophile cartridge as well, which I think you can swap & use a DJ needle on.
    I forgot the model though.

    If you want better overall sound quality, I would go for a good quality standalone Phono Preamp, which will most likely be better than any DJ mixer, yes even a Rane mixer.
    Buyer beware, The "audiophile" stuff can get more expensive than "Pro" DJ gear real quick, so unless you have golden ear syndrome, you could probably settle for something mid range.
    I was debating the standalone phono preamp, but decided to stick with my Rane mixer, as I would like to still have the cross fader available.


    co-sign on these - the shure m97xe's are high quality.
  • 4YearGraduate4YearGraduate 2,945 Posts
    I would go to KAB Usa (if i remember the website is www.kabusa.com) the dude sells a kit to hot rod a 1200 into an audiophile turntable and, in my opinion, it works well. I would also look at his modified stanton with the vintage stylus. I love it (though I just bent mine on accident). In the world of audiophile gear, this is about the most innexpensive stuff that functions well that you can pick up. A stand alone phono pre of better quality will make a difference as there is an enormous amount of gain involved in phono pre amps. good luck.
  • meshmesh 925 Posts
    great suggestions everybody. thanks a bunch.

    keep em coming.
  • DonkeyPunchDonkeyPunch 10 Posts
    i use the V15VxMR.. nice cartridge. i modded both my technics .. one with an Origin Live Silver arm and one with KAB fluid dampening arm. OL is the way to go.. but it costs a lot more (more than the cost of two brand new decks). i recommend looking into dampening the platter too.

    also, stay away from tube preamps.. great sound in the listening environment but too much tube rush for recording well.. keep it solid state.

    peace
    jm.
  • JxarchiveJxarchive 23 Posts
    I also mix audiophile and DJ equipment. What's the budget?
    Better amplification and even an entry level turntable such as a Rega will help.
    I added a Plinius 8100 integrated amp to my setup with excellent results.
    How quiet is the Rane with the volume up and no music playing?

    Check http://www.needledoctor.com/
  • knewjakknewjak 1,231 Posts
    i use the V15VxMR.. nice cartridge.


    this is made by SHURE. Anyway, I have the M97xE (one step down, blue color) and I love it.



    I love it. I love it, I love it, I love it.

  • AserAser 2,351 Posts
    if money truly was no object

  • CousinLarryCousinLarry 4,618 Posts
    if money truly was no object


    Holy Shit hand made carts =
  • JLRJLR 3,835 Posts
    if money truly was no object


    Holy Shit hand made carts =

    THAT'S NOTHING! I use of of those just for scratching and I'm not even a DJ.

  • dj_pidj_pi 335 Posts
    There's two different types of cartidges which play a HUGE roll into how the music will sound coming from the turntable.

    The "moving magnetic" cartridges are the cartridges that us DJ's use for the clubs and scratchin and what not. The "moving coil" cartridges are the high end stuff and can get VERY expensive. I used to work with an audiophile at my internship who could give this guy a 4 hour lecture about audiophile stuff.

    In terms of A/D conversion, for most cases, the higher sampling rate, the better. I'll try to contact that guy at work and see what kind of equipment he recommends.
  • NewLifeTrioNewLifeTrio 271 Posts
    if money truly was no object


    There are some folks in London who regularly (3-4 times a year) bring David Mancuso over to DJ at their special parties. Tickets are about ??20 a pop ($35), but they put the profits back into their sound system which is truly

    Here is an excerpt from one of their email

    for those of you who are interested and we know that many of you are we have just taken out a huge loan in order to take our sound to the next level. as we speak, six klipschorns are being built and shipped to london. we just hope they arrive in time for the party! these speakers will complement our urushi gold koetsu cartridges and modified technics 1100 turntables that have been fitted with koetsu tone arms. there can be no doubt that we are well on our way to building a truly musical sound system.

    Now there's a system I'd love to play on...
  • JLRJLR 3,835 Posts
    There's two different types of cartidges which play a HUGE roll into how the music will sound coming from the turntable.

    The "moving magnetic" cartridges are the cartridges that us DJ's use for the clubs and scratchin and what not. The "moving coil" cartridges are the high end stuff and can get VERY expensive. I used to work with an audiophile at my internship who could give this guy a 4 hour lecture about audiophile stuff.

    In terms of A/D conversion, for most cases, the higher sampling rate, the better. I'll try to contact that guy at work and see what kind of equipment he recommends.


    Nope, the shure V15 for instance is a MM ("moving MAGNET") cart and still is considered audiophile.

    But it's true, best audiophile carts are MC (moving coil, not MC as in MC Hammer). And the best of the best are the low output MC carts, which require a lot of gain in your phono preamp.

    While a Shure V15 has 4.5 mV of output, a low output MC can have 0.5 mv.

    Nerdy yours,

    JLR
  • meshmesh 925 Posts
    What's the budget?

    don't know. i steered him away from buying a protools HD system into buying that mini-me AD converter.

    so i would assume he has a little extra money left over.

  • mrfinewinemrfinewine 157 Posts
    if dude will be playing mono recordings, he's going to want a mono stylus for the best fidelity: the groove's shaped different, and you need a mono needle to hit it just right. you wouldn't want to use it for stereo recordings, though. amazing what a mono needle can do for a "cue-burned" mono 45 that's been burned by a standard (i.e., stereo) dj stylus.
  • johmbolayajohmbolaya 4,472 Posts
    if money truly was no object


    The people who can afford these have nothing but praise for it. They might be playing Al Stewart's Year Of The Cat[/b] on it but...
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