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Turntable Question
Posted: Tue Aug 31, 2021 10:58 am
by Kennelly Heaviside
Do the newfangled USB digital recording turntables, such as Ion, only have ceramic cartridges, or do some come with magnetic cartridges? Can you easily replace a ceramic to a MM cartridge and lighten the tracking weight?
Re: Turntable Question
Posted: Fri Sep 03, 2021 1:13 pm
by djb
I have a Numark TT-250USB. Has a built-in preamp, so I have the USB output or the LINE LEVEL output. Swapped the original Numark Magnetic Cart and Stylus to a Stanton 500 Cart/D5107AL Stylus I had left over from my radio days.
I think most Turntables these days are magnetic carts; except for the low-end Crosley/Wal-Mart record players. If I remember correctly, a ceramic cartridge puts out a MIC-LEVEL signal (so - requires extra amplification); whereas a mag cart will put out a LINE LEVEL. Don't take me to the bank on that; just my experience.
I can say that I wish there were a way to bypass the internal pre-amp of the TT-250USB so that I have clean, direct output of the cart into my own preamp. I can tell there is a significant "delay" within the output (likely due to the devices primary purpose to be "USB" (so, Analog to Digital (delayed)) - and then the line level (I'm assuming) comes back off the digital output (as if it were converted back from Digital to Analog).
Classic Technics SL1200s are the way to go, in my opinion!
Re: Turntable Question
Posted: Sun Sep 05, 2021 3:04 pm
by Kennelly Heaviside
Thanks. A bigger concern is the tracking weight of a ceramic, if you are going to play valuable vinyl and many times, not just to make MP3 like files. I wouldn't want to play it even once with a ceramic cartridge if it's a valuable near mint LP.
Re: Turntable Question
Posted: Mon Sep 06, 2021 1:37 am
by TC Talks
Kennelly Heaviside wrote: ↑Sun Sep 05, 2021 3:04 pm
Thanks. A bigger concern is the tracking weight of a ceramic, if you are going to play valuable vinyl and many times, not just to make MP3 like files. I wouldn't want to play it even once with a ceramic cartridge if it's a valuable near mint LP.
Not a problem with an arm that can be balanced.
Re: Turntable Question
Posted: Mon Sep 06, 2021 10:54 am
by SolarMax
My old DUAL and Phillips TT tonearms have finely-adjustable counterweights and anti-skate adjustment. Not sure if a cheesy arm with a ceramic cartridge and "stylus" are weight-balanced or just use a spring of some sort to provide downward force. Still a number of audiophile TTs available, plus choices of preamps and precision A/D converters.
BTW, I am pretty sure that a ceramic cartridge provides high-level output, magnetic cartridge=low level.