Can someone please explain to me why this seems a good idea when loading vintage MM's? I've seen several threads recommending this with claims that the cartridge "comes alive"? I'm sceptical but I would like other forum members explanations, comments on the subject. Many thanks guys.
Loading MM's at 100000 Ohm resistance
- Thread starter REXTON
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What you’re really doing here is loading the phono preamp. It might offer some improvement depending on the phono preamp. Different cables also offer different responses.
Try it and see what you think.
Usually adding capacitance is the more common recommendation for MM cartridges, to tame a bump that many think is inaudible. But it depends on your system.
My experience has been that the better the phono preamp, the less dramatic are the loading changes. The more synergistic the whole system is, the clearer differences become.
Try it and see what you think.
Usually adding capacitance is the more common recommendation for MM cartridges, to tame a bump that many think is inaudible. But it depends on your system.
My experience has been that the better the phono preamp, the less dramatic are the loading changes. The more synergistic the whole system is, the clearer differences become.
Been my experience with a Darlington labs MP8. Settled on 150K actually. Use a SUT and a bit higher loading suits my ears.
It will cause the frequency response to deviate from design goals, which can result in peaking that may or may not be pleasing to you. How much change and at what frequencies depends upon the cartridge and load (capacitance as well as resistance; inductance of the cable and preamp load is usually irrelevant). Chances are some frequencies will be emphasized and that might sound better to some folk, and/or compensate something else (primarily speaker response) in the system.
As an aside, often when told something "comes alive" it means an upper midrange and treble boost, which IME (and perhaps no other) sounds better initially but fatiguing over time (too "bright").
FWIWFM - Don
100kΩ was the design spec for CD4 (quadrophonic) cartridges. I have read that it works best among stereo MM carts with higher inductance, say >500mH.
I had forgotten about those, despite having (briefly) owned one. They were intentionally extending/peaking the response to capture the high-frequency carrier for the surround channels.
Was going to edit but apparently past time I could...
One thing to watch if you ever try one (quad cart and decoder) is that short, low-capacitance cables are helpful since the quadraphonic sound carrier goes up to 60 kHz or beyond for certain schemes (do not recall after all these time; there were several competing schemes, none survived). I ended up with DIY cables that were fairly short and about half the capacitance of typical RCA cables at that time.
The benefit of 100K ohms beyond the higher impedance straight-in moing magnet cartridge loading might be found in unison with a separate SUT.
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