Comparing Ceramic & Magnetic Phono Cartridge Sound
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- Опубликовано: 16 июн 2018
- This video features a sound test of ceramic and magnetic turntable pickup cartridges. I also feature a sound test of the Tronsmart Bluetooth speaker.
Products featured in this video:
Tronsmart Bluetooth Speaker: amzn.to/2t2WN82
Deck Turntable: amzn.to/2MyK05D
BEHRINGER U-Control UCA202: amzn.to/2K0JWd1
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"...just place it on the couch, on a normal listening environment.."... Normal for who, Ashens?
How many times am I going to say that I love these videos? Thanks for posting them ^^
That's quite a compliment Narayan! It's all in great fun, thanks for being a friend!
You're welcome, I'm your friend and I'll always be here watching your wonderful content, because that's what I like to watch ^^
Common mistake made here I think. Ceramic cartridges also need a special kind of input on an amplifier. They have no ordinary line output to connect to an ordinary aux input, but need equalization too (or impedance match). If not the sound is tinny, lacking bass just like you've demonstrated. You'll find this kind of ceramic phono input only on vintage amps i.e. the small but excellent Realistic SA-150. If connected to normal line inputs my vintage Philips 78 rpm recordplayer with ceramic cartridge sounds thin, but via phono input with the switch on the back on ceramic instead of magnetic the sound is full and rich, and there are moments I prefer the result over playing 78 rpm records on my professional new recordplayer with magnetic cartridge. Hope this will be of any help to anyone. Greetings from Holland.
I have the set up with the Realistic SA-150, ceramic decca cartridge and new old stock stylus. Getting the proper pre-amp is essential. I'm playing into a modern Yamaha amp and KEF speakers and the range and bass is fantastic. I'm getting a second player with a magnetic cartridge in a couple of weeks and will be interested to see how they compare.
Eu sou um apreciador dos eletrofones PHILIPS Eindhover 👏👏👏👏 São excelentes em cartridges cerâmicos e magnéticos .
Well said! Ceramic cartridges can sound very good indeed. I've been working on a Crosley cruiser. I know what people say about them (Crosley bruiser) but I've literally GUTTED IT. The only thing I've not replaced is the turntable mechanism. It's got a new Vakind P-192D ceramic cartridge with proper diamond flip over stylus, new speakers, a high-impedence preamp which I built from a schematic on the web, a mp3 player and 10w main amp all powered by some laptop batteries. Oh and the tracking force has been reduced to 4.2g. Sounds good :) Obviously it won't stand up to a magnetic but I like it cos it's portable so I can take a bunch of 45's with me into the garden on a sunny day and give them a whirl.
In other words, the ceramic needs a high impedance input 1 meg. The magnetic takes a low impedance. Huge difference in the frequency response if you mess that up.
@@2tallB To be exact; ceramic needs a high impedance 1 meg line level input, not the usual 47k aux or tape line level input. Magnetic needs a pre-amp with RIAA correction first to get the right frequency response.
I've been enjoying your videos for a while now, don't ever stop doing what your doing. I'm very intrigued with these various nastolgic topics :)
Thank you Chris! I'm glad you enjoy watching as much I enjoy making!
Some people may think the shreading joke was real.
I almost take that for granted. The internet has shown us just how real the inexistence of bounds to human stupidity can be.
You can say audiophile snobs, its ok ;)
yeah see, i was dubious because of how consistently sized the pieces were, and how jokes can be made deadpan like that on this channel... but then the "so, i warned you" stuff, and bringing it up again later made me doubt my instincts.
I hesitated to do that joke, but I was hoping SOME people would get a chuckle out of it. The record I shredded was a flexible soundsheet.
Me for one did like it indeed.
Stereo test records, I remember them. Great fun when you first heard a home stereo record player. Played them endlessly.
God I'm getting old.
Do you remember the Allied Stereo Setup records (Catalog number CSDT) that came out in the early 60's? I actually still have mine and although they are showing wear after all these years they still do the job quite well.
@Richard Cline - my memory of the actual make of the test records is nonexistent. I just remember playing the things over and over.
LOL the shredding.. thanks for the video, very helpful
Very interesting and informative video.
Thanks a lot.
9:43 wow! I wasn't expecting that much of a difference.
Thanks for sharing
I didn't even know you could buy new record players with a ceramic cartridge anymore. I'm also surprised you don't get a lot of distortion on the ceramic one when you hook it up the the phono input of that JVC stereo, because the ceramic cartridge have a lot higher output level. Or at least that's how it was back in the 1970s, and amplifiers built for both ceramic and magnetic cartridges back then, had a switch on the back where you could select between ceramic and magnetic signal level for the phono input. If you used a ceranic pickup, and had the switch set to magnetic, you got terrible distortion, due to way to high signal level. But maybe modern ceramic cartridges have the same output level as the magnetic ones? Would appreciate if someone who knows could elaborate on this.
Those Maxell UDS-90 tapes were their lowest priced High Bias tape in the 80's and 90's. Sometimes I could find them on sale for $2 at record stores back then. They didn't have the bass response of the more expensive XLII, but they were fine for recording vinyl and analog (AAD) CD's.
My record player is a 1968 sears Silverton console stereo.
From what I have read (I haven't used a turntable since I was a kid in the 80s) ceramic and magnetic cartridges don't use the same preamp. I believe the ceramic requires a higher impedance. If you are running those through the same preamp you will probably hear a very pronounced difference.
Bingo. What we are hearing is the lack of bass due to the high pass filter created by the impedance mismatch.
@Johny Jocker i tested both with proper cartridge load. Magnetic is better but the difference is not as pronounced like in this video. It was more like a lack in definition rather than a lack in low frecuencies.
I recently made a few videos regarding the infamous "Crosley Cartridge". Also featured the new Banpa BP2ATC cartridge.
I have a pioneer stereo the rx 760 from 1993. It didnt have the original turntable but found one. And it has a magnetic cartridge and I've heard one before and it had a very nice rich sound
Can i use the ceramic shredder setup to deal with pruned trees before feeding it into my basement stove?
U need a preamp tuned for a ceramic cartridge for it to sound better.
I think it would be interesting to compare different types of ceramic cartridges. I don't recognize the one used on the turntable in this video, but most current turntables use the Chuo Denshi cartridge. I would like to see the sound of this compare to, say, a Tetrad or Varco type of cartridge. Just to see if they all sound the same or if there are differences. Thanks for these videos!
Well most I think use the Chinese knock off of the chuo denshi.
@@ikonix360 100% correct, almost all of them now use cheap and extremely inferior generic cartridges that lack quality control. It's highly recommended to swap for an authentic cartridge to avoid ruining your lps or to replace it all together with the Banpa Bp2atc.
And so now I went and listened to The Eight Seasons of Chromalox. Loved it! The Autumn one is really great.
...shredded.
Nice!
I could be wrong, I’m just assuming this from what I can see, but I really really thing your MM cart on your older turntable is out of alignment
Ceramic cartridges were used in phonographs of the 30s, 40s and 50s. They had a relatively high output thus not requiring a preamplifier stage, further reducing costs and had a frequency response roughly corresponding to what would later be the RIAA compensation curve. They had low compliance and required high tracking forces, usually several grams which was tough on the early vinyl LPs. In the 1950s General Electric introduced the magnetic cartridge, the GE VR2 which had lower distortion but low output requiring a preamp stage that would also provide the RIAA compensation but still required a tracking force of 4 to 6 grams. Many improvements were made in the magnetic cartridges of the 50s and 60s providing much lower distortion and allowed much lower tracking forces with a decently designed tonearm (often less than 2 grams). Magnetic cartridges became the standard for component hi-fi rigs of the time which included a preamp. Ceramic cartridges continued to be used in console and table model phonographs in an effort to keep costs down. I'm surprised to see ceramic cartridges reappearing in recent low-cost turntables and I assume that these cartridges are somewhat improved over those of earlier times.
Higher tracking forces will not ruin a record so long as the cartridge is properly mounted to a tonearm on a quality turntable and the tracking force is no higher than what the manufacturer recommends.
Not ruin....
Well define that I've got dozens of plays before there was any degradation on my battery portable table
Yeah
But you can get approaching a thousand plays before degradation , many hundreds for sure- with an advanced profile stylus (fine line Shibata etc) on a perfectly set 2g or even less tracking high end table
Geometry matters most I used a dj cart nice and pricey I later found it was (in a bespoke head shell Ortofon concorde ) designed for a bent arm technics 1200 and I put in in a straight a arm Stanton table that's caused records to be worthlessly damaged in under a dozen plays , ruined about 10 records before I figured it out
But 5-6 grams and poor geometry and crap bearings (tonearm resistance accelerate wear too) in the arm do your records no favors as one of you said earlier though, occasional use , perhaps spread over a wide collection - you can get away with it With good tables available as low as 30 used and the magnetic cart he shows being around 20 - and perfectly good, light tracking eliptical stylus , why would you WANT to use and defend cheapo stuff? It's great for portables but it sounds so much worse, with the price of vinyls these days you cost yourself more in the long run going the cheap route
That said I like to use my cheapos for my 80s 45s thru an old boom box specifically FOR that retro tinny sound I remember from my relatively poor youth.
Minor quibble - Most phonographs up until the 1960s used CRYSTAL cartridges. Ceramics replaced them. Although the two work on the same basic principles, the crystal cards generally had a much higher output, but were prone to permanent degradation in humid environments. It's why so few of the crystal cartridges survive today; those old phonos were taken out of service and stored in basements and garages, and the Rochelle salts that made up the cartridges rotted and fell apart. Ceramics are much more resistant to humidity and generally require less tracking force, but the tradeoff is a lower output, usually 0.3 to 0.6 volts.
Interesting video ... Onkyo decks are very low end, even back in the day. A mid range Marantz, Technics, Pioneer or Yamaha would give great listening on a budget today.
Tables like this one yes. Same can be said for Technics: turntables you got with department store hifi rack sets were reliable but rather low end. But just like Technics, Onkyo offered also some great mid and high end tables! Take a look at the Onkyo DP47F, that table is in a whole diffrent league!
A ceramic cartridge must be connected to an amplifier with high input impedance about 1 MOhm or higher. Otherwise, it will sound like crap. Try plugging an electric guitar to a line input of your amp instead of proper high impedance input. It WILL sound like crap too
Yes, that was my first thought, too. Magnetic cartridges are superior, of that there is no doubt, but ceramics CAN sound pretty darned good if you have a proper input impedance for them in your amp.
Of course, we all know why they still use ceramics. They're cheap. And we know why they don't make modern amps to handle them correctly. It's more expensive to do so. And in the most general sense, ceramics will 'work' with a standard line input.... it's just not 'optimal', and the people who actually would notice the differencer are already using magnetic cartridges anyway.
I've shred it before and I've shred it again, "Don't buy cheap record shredders!"
About the shredding, I have a record that was damaged by a ceramic cartridge. It's only the first seconds of the first track, but it's there. Haven't replaced the record, don't know if I ever will.
I could only notice it because I was looking at it, I couldn't hear anything on the speakers, if I've had left it playing, the record would be totally ruined.
It really works like a stiletto, and the remaining of the vinyl piles up around, as if someone was digging the grooves.
If course not every cartridge will do this damage, but there are some that will due to poor quality or poor set up.
Thanks for the video.
It’s about the stylus not the cartridge, the ceramic is not in the stylus but in the cartridge. Ceramic vs Magnetic is not about causing damage to the record. A stylus is usually made out of ruby/sapphire or diamond for example.
A defective or damaged/worn out stylus will damage the grooves. Also excessive tracking force can wear down the grooves which increase surface noise. But that isn’t anything over 3.5 grams (like some audiophiles say), stereo LPs are designed to handle tracking forces of up to 6 grams and older mono ones were even played at 10-12 grams. As long as your tracking force matches the cartridge specifications and the stylus is good your records will be fine.
Pink ceramic turntable styli are a form of synthetic ruby (Nd-YAG) these are also used in LASERS and I've got quite a collection of them. I've always wondered if you could just convert a laser crystal directly into a stylus. Laser Records are cool.
Probably more expensive than just buying styli ;)
Do you ever try to replace ceramic cartridge to AT92 cartridge?
Yeah, we finally got the metaphore of a shredded disk, but... do you have another copy of a Chromalox record now?
The speaker just sitting on the couch on a normal listening environment. Me, I was lying on the cupboard, just getting comfortable and chilling.
Casio pocket TV's from that time period are known for having bad surface mount electrolytic capacitors that make the tv not work.
Hi, the magnetic cartridge was fed into the phono input on the amplifier. What input was the ceramic cartridge fed into?. The ceramic cartridge will have a much higher output than the magnetic cartridge. Typical magnetic cartridges have an output of 4/5 mV. A ceramic cartridge output will be from 100 mV to around 500 mV depending on cartridge. A ceramic cartridge can't be fed into a standard "line" input. It needs a dedicated input with a resistor/capacitor network to load the ceramic cartridge correctly. Standard line inputs will not load a ceramic cartridge properly. This results in a poor frequency response, not having good bass and poor sound quality. A good quality properly loaded ceramic cartridge will sound good and will have a frequency often better than a magnetic cartridge. After all back in the 50/60's radio stations used ceramic cartridges in their turntables. If the sound was tinny the listeners would certainly complain to the radio stations about it, wouldn't they.
@Hey McFly 😅😅😅
You're right, I know someone who use to post videos from Phillips turntables with ceramic cartridges that have a great result. But he has the right equipment. Which people in my country didn't have from the late eighties till now. And most certainly the technology used by the new manufacturers using ceramic cartridges probably lack good components too.
@@MrAndreferrari Thanks Andre. I wonder what a properly designed and made ceramic cartridge, with a good stylus , would sound like today.
I wonder did RCA make an HD Audio only version of the Select-a-Vision I.E. without the video circuits just wondering would have made for a system where the discs never get finger prints.
Michele Marie Dalene they would be supplied in a caddy
I have a micro Seiki turntable and it's really nice..it sounds good
That Onkyo turntable must have adjustments for speed. Typically there are two pots accessible either through the plinth under the platter or from underneath the machine itself. Onkyo was considered a quality brand at the time.
Even my old 80s basic plastic turntables have marked holes to access the speed adjustment.
I would imagine the electronically controlled one would probably never require speed adjustment, as presumably it's using an optical detector to calculate the exact speed which it would match to an oscillator or something like that.
Came to say the same thing. Also, the "electronic" speed control on the other is likely only selecting speed, not actually controlling. It probably only selects which of the 2 inputs to the motor is selected, just the same as a mechanical switch. And likely features a similar little can motor to the Onkyo with the 2 small holes in it where the speed is actually adjusted. No active electronic control.
Yup. Ceramic sounds like an AM transistor radio to me. The magnetic is like HD FM Radio
Did you have the Deck turntable connected to the phono inputs, or was it connected to a line level input?
Line level, but for some reason it created a hum. In the 2nd test, at the last minute, I ran the Deck directly through the Behringer and bypassed the JVC. The hum was then gone.
If the Deck TT didn't have a ground wire, then the device was attempting to ground itself thru the inputs on the JVC, hence the hum.
The Chromalox record, I could tell a definite left channel bias with the ceramic cartridge. With the magnetic, it sounded very spatial and full.
Agreed.
The other main thing about a magnetic cartridge vs ceramic cartridge is Channel Separation. A good magnetic cartridge has superior channel separation over a ceramic cartridge.
Better sound altogether.
So your saying ceramic gives more record wear than Magnetic?
I jumped up and started dancing at 8:00
I also have a magnetic stylus on my record player and bose speakers and sounds like I’m in the studio
I know that such kind of comment sounds so typical and commonplace but, well, the moment I've seen my very exact Onkyo turntable model appear here... so nice and rewarding!!! Nothing high end, but hey, still pretty decent, and came with an Ortofon cartridge as I bought it second hand on ebay. One of those purchases one can be proud of.
Yay! Go Onkyo! Part of the take-away is that even a basic Onkyo can sound so much better than a basic Crosley or Deck brand.
Jup, a lack of bass on the ceramic, just what I expected.
How many audiophiles have been triggered by the shredding joke already? 😜
9:49 nice amount of wow pitch effect you've got there, makes vinyl sound more nostalgic 👌
It kinda sounds like it's actually going down to 432Hz instead of 440. Sounded pretty mellow and pleasing.
But what equipment you have to test the difference will make a big difference anyway, so to get an accurate compare you need both the same deck, cables, etc
Onkyo also made AV receiver
Can I but a test 45rpm record with those speed test marks? Thanks.
You can print out a suitable pattern, they're freely available online.
The man speaking on the record sounds like Ed McMahon.
hoh-lee schitt, that is literally unbelivable. dont worry, I believe ya!
The main reason I wouldn't buy that Deck player (or equivalent) is what you demonstrated with your strobe--these cheap players are usually set to play too fast, for reasons that only the manufacturer knows. Once upon a time I had a Sony PSLX300 that I bought because it was automatic (isn't it interesting that these cheap players are the ones they make automatic anymore???). But it played at a noticeably faster speed than when I compared the same music to a digital source. This was the main reason I got my ATLP 120--it has a pitch slider that locks into the correct speed. I haven't looked back since.
I've just had a look at my Casio TV-400 I kept from my childhood. The case is somewhat different having only a UHF range on the tuning scale (a portion on the display on the right was given over to a black square on a white column, when the unit was switched on the black square would drift down until it found a strong enough broadcast to lock to...) Other differences include the shape of the tuning buttons and the speaker grill and power switch (OFF- UHF) being over to the right...
Martin, does yours power on?
databits Yes, I've just tried it with some old batteries and it lit up and started scanning for a signel. I'll get some fresh AA cells and see if I can link it up to a video recorder. Luckily I've still got the aerial adapter, so it should work...
Further to what I said yesterday, I've now had a go at playing back some old camcorder footage on it... It nearly worked but for some reason or other the display is only showing up in monochrome, well something close to sepia. I'm not sure if this is due to the age of the screen or down to mistuning with the VCR modulator...
I've uploaded a hastily made video response... I'm not sure if the link will work here... If it doesn't, it's the only video I've got on my profile... Cheers... ruclips.net/video/y9pNKaaR8z4/видео.html
Existe MUITA DIFERENÇA entre a qualidade sonora do cartucho magnético, que humilha o cartucho cerâmico! Aqui no Brasil utilizo um toca discos Sharp fabricado em 1992 com cartucho magnético Leson Axxis IX - (Clone brasileiro do cartucho Shure M97), mesmo depois de 26 anos o som é impecavelmente ótimo, superando a qualidade do som de vários Compact Discs. Os toca discos brasileiros fabricados a partir de 1994, quase todos eles infelizmente já usavam cartuchos cerâmicos SJN68, a qualidade sonora é horrível , era certamente uma estratégia de mercado para forçar a migração para os Compact Discs.
Brasileiro , os cartuchos magnéticos são superiores a os cerâmicos ( sem dúvida alguma ) Porém eu ainda prefiro a relutância magnético , Porém cerâmic cartridge requer um "PRÉ" adequado que não é somente restaurar a curva RIAA e sim compensar a baixa resposta da cerâmica nas frequências abaixo 200 HZ ... PORTANTO o pré para cerâmica são necessários serem específicos , pois a impedância é muito alta e distorcem nas altas frequências (agudos) . O cartucho cerâmico chega bem lá , próximo a o magnético não é ruim ...
Up next, I'm gonna see how the hell can discs hold stereo audio
Two different walls of the groove for two different channels. Look up record groove magnified or something like that. There are some really neat pics out there
It's obvious that the ceramic has slightly lower volume, but lacks the bass and it is also too brillant.
This is seriously a night and day difference.
A quality ceramic cartridge properly mounted on a quality record player set to no greater than the manufacturer's recommended tracking force won't ruin a record.
However, even the best magnetic cartridge on a cheap turntable will ruin a record quickly.
The ultimate test would be to use both the ceramic and magnetic cartridge on the good record changer.
One big issue is that these red plastic cartridges are often supplied with cheap Sapphire stylii, not diamond. These wear out in just 50 hours, then you start ruining your records before you start hearing problems with the playback. The replacement stylii are usually diamond though.
The magnetic appears better but the test would be closer if you matched volume ..I think the ceramic has less output than the magnetic but might be comparable in audio quality if at the same level.
Ceramic cartridges have a much higher output than magnetic cartridges. That is why you need a pre-amp with a magnetic cartridge.
@@01chippe I have no experience with ceramic carts so yeah thanks for the info... But I always thought they did not put out as much...
If the deck doesn't run at concert pitch and has no control over it best to avoid it.
Obviously, You have never heard a vintage Sonotone 9ta ceramic.
I can certainly tell the difference with my 40 year old ears!
and 60
Actually ceramic Cartridges can sound good with a pre-amp that has the proper impedance. Ceramic and Magnetic use different amounts of POWAAAAA. This is also why you often had these Cartridge Switches on Stereo Amps that say MM and MC on the Phono Cartridge selector. With the proper setting even a Ceramic Cartridge can sound as rich as a Moving Magnet Cartridge. Problem is these cheap turntables don't have any setting for that at all. If it sounds better with a Moving Magnetic Cartridge, you can tell what kind of Stylus Cartridge this Turntable was originally made for.
??? 🤔🤔🤔🤔Apenas faltou o pré com equalização adequada para CERÂMICA ... A PHILIPS EINDHOVER sempre foi uma REFERÊNCIA em eletrofones populares com CERÂMICA ... 👏👏👏👏
La testina ceramica del video è una testina di bassa qualità cinese! Se metti un testina ceramica BSR - SX6M prodotta in Inghilterra vedrai la differenza!! La testina BSR usa dei cristalli al quarzo con la qualità del suono pari alle testine magnetiche.
I don't thing that a good ceramic cartridge with a diamond needle - when a good turntable is used - would destroy records like that. For sure, by using such type of turntable as for exemple Crosley Cruiser, the records can be easily damaged by playing them on a such kind of turntable. But - if you use a good vintage turntable with a high quality ceramic cartridge fitted with a diamond needle, then your records couldn't be damaged and it sounds nice as well. For exemple - I use a turntable made approx. 35 years ago by us in the Czech Republic, using the ceramic cartridges made in the former East Germany, fitted with a diamond needle. Frequency range of this east german cartridge "RFT CS 29 D" is between 32 and 14.000 Hz (not so bad for ceramic cartridges). And a vertical tracking force on this vintage turntable is around 35 mN (3,5 gramm) what's normal on DJ turntables, with the difference I use my turntable for a home listening only. And it sounds well. I want to tell only the fact it is a very big difference between different turntables and ceramic cartridges. I really don't know about a good current ceramic cartridge with a such good frequency range and with a such low vertical tracking force. Most of current ceramic cartridges are made in China, requesting a high tracking force 50 mN and more, and have a terrible sound as well.
Your tv needs a capacitor. The green screen is the give away. BUT put it in the bin because its not worth a cup of coffee
I wouldn't be surprised if the portable TVs become collectable.
The magnetic one sounds more clearer
9:16 - that looks like an awful pressing. reminds me of how much i miss doing LSD.
I don't like when people say that cheap turntables like Crosleys will shred, or otherwise destroy records. I think it's gross exaggeration. They might not sound great, but they're not record munchers. If you use one like a normal person would use a record player (once or twice a week), your records will be fine when you eventually upgrade.
I those shredding looks fake. My GE Wildcat never shreds records, and so does BSR. Victor VV 8-4 Victrola does shred when you play later 78's from the 1950's, but that's not the case.
Bruce Gerard I know it was a joke, just saying something for the crazy audiophiles to read and be salty about.
Gabe's YT no exaggeration the Crosley is garbage I would never ever ever play one of my LPS on such a device. Sorry mate.
Gabe's YT the cheap crosleys which are three speed use a stylus that is a little larger than the one recommended for microgroove records so that it also will work ok for 78RPM records and that will damage records.
Using a proper replacement stylus designed for microgroove records will lessen the damage by quite a bit.
please never use a crosley, or sell your records to somebody that really cares about them.
not only the weight of the tonearm, the cheap cartridge and the horrible stylus will destroy your records, the thing will sound awful too!!!. you will be missing out on the sound quality and damaging the records at the same time!
Simple explanation:
A ceramic pickup is quite like a piezo tweeter used to pick sounds
A magnetic pickup is a real microphone setup: there are coils, and just acts like a mike
So, no contest. A real moving pickup is best.
Good explanation Ruby Rose. They once made ceramic microphones too! I have one that still works.
Shreds records? Really now? We have a restored gramophone using Its new original needles and it has not shred any records. I have a Marantz DD turntable that uses a Bantpa, Sony and Crosley ceramic cartridges and it hasn't scratched any of my direct to disc prized records. You really know you are talking about?
This was a joke.
This analysis of ceramic and magnetic cartridge is not matching with the real feature of a ceramic cartridge.The audio quality of ceramic cartridge is very good especially playing a music with more highlighted vocal .Here the comparison was carried out by an instrumental master record which does not have a good vocal . For example Compare the Indian music which is dominated by lengthy vocal in languages in Hindi,Malayalam,Tamil etc(more than 140 languages persist in India)..then one can realize the true power and goodness of a ceramic cartridge.
This is really interesting and I would love to say really helpful for me but I've never been much of a record guy I prefer cassettes
Deck, or Dreck?
. . . SHREK ! ! !
The comparison between ceramic and magnet pickups is nothing new. Already in the 70s there were record players with ceramic pickups that simply sounded terrible! The magnetic pickups were always better in sound!
Real turntables don't have USB ports, so *REMOVE THAT NONSENSE* The first thing I did with my Audio Technica AT120LP was remove that awful interface board and straight wired the cartridge output to the signal leads. I know for sure that I'm hearing exactly what the cartridge is picking up from the grooves and there is no coloration added by the loading of the USB circuitry. Just my opinion.... supported by evidence.
Hammy Technoid using usb won't cause bad audio.
What caused the bad audio was the preamp used to get the signal amplified enough and maybe the ADC.
Your evidence is unconvincing... *USB MUST GO*
Trust me. There's enough pro audio audio interfaces out there which use USB that proves USB in and of itself is not bad for audio.
If one has a good preamp then a good ADC the sound will be excellent.
Trust me I use a pro audio USB interface to record church services and the sound quality is very good.
I myself would never need a USB audio interface on a record player as I have a pro audio USB sound card in my stereo system which I use when I want to record records.
USB in turntables *MUST GO*
The issue with the AT-LP120 is that the preamp is wired in such a way that even with it off the signal unnecessarily travels through the circuit board. It isn't the USB causing problems, it is the inability to bypass the preamp hence why people remove it. The USB happens to be disconnected in the process. I don't care for USB on turntables either but they aren't exactly the worst thing about cheap turntables by far. Plenty of other things making them cheap apart from the USB.
I think the ceramic one sounds worse.
Obviously. That's the point. Ceramic sucks.
Given the trash that is being put out in today's market, i.e., rap crap and s--- hop, even some of the scream singing from C&W, the ceramic is a perfect cartridge for it....junk in, junk out. It's no wonder that Crosley's are such a good match for this junk, too.
second hand records BE AWARE !!!
Ceramic cartridges produce that awful harsh sound, seriously lacking in the bass department. Magnetic cartridges sound much fuller.
Ceramic cartridges DO NOT shred records. Don’t attempt to be an expert when you don’t know what you’re talking about.
Obviously you didn’t get the sarcasm. Chill.
Both turntables sound ghastly, particularly the second one. Vinyl is just rubbish 1950s technology. CDs played on a proper hifi separates system will beat anything and they're cheaper too.
Completely agree. I don't understand why anyone likes the many imperfections of vinyl (or tape for that matter). Motors have no place in high fidelity sound reproduction. 24-bit PCM digital is significantly better than any audio format that was available even to professionals in the '70s, and I have it in my laptop. If anything digital sounded as bad as the best turntable there would be something wrong with it. Distortion is orders of magnitude higher.
And there's the added bonus that CDs don't suffer from clicks, pops, jumps, sticks, static, and warped or out of centre pressings.
I prefer cassettes.
Somebloke disagree.
A good record played on a good record player with a good cartridge through a good stereo will sound very good.
Is it digital quality? No
But then again digital no matter how large the bit depth will never be 100% a true representation of the analog signal. Now it will get to the point where our ears cannot hear any difference though.
Take a sinewave for instance.
The more bit depth you have the closer the waveform looks to a sinewave, but it will never be 100% a perfect sinewave which is far past the point we couldn't hear the difference though.
The sound of a high quality turntable is much warmer and more dynamic! Of course, you may hear a slight crackling, but it is rarely disturbing. I still prefer records today!
I think you went down a semitone or two on the MM cartridge so this would make some difference to the sound as well