New to Cartridges?
Not sure where to start?
Before you buy, understand what you’re buying. These three guides will save you from the most common mistakes.
MM vs MC Cartridges Explained
The most important decision in cartridge buying — what each type sounds like, costs, and requires from your phono stage.
What Is Cartridge Alignment?
Why alignment matters, what Baerwald and Stevenson mean, and how 20 minutes with a protractor changes everything.
Turntable 101 Curriculum
30 structured guides from turntable foundations to cartridge mechanics and phono stage matching.
Turntable 101 — Structured Curriculum
Understand your cartridge inside out
Setup & Alignment →
Alignment, tracking force, anti-skate — every adjustment that affects cartridge performance.
Cartridge Mechanics →
MM, MC, MI, stylus shape, compliance, loading, resonance — the full picture.
Phono Stage →
Gain and loading requirements vary by cartridge type — here's what to match.
Best-Of Lists
Watch Out For
Common Beginner Mistakes
Most cartridge problems come down to a handful of the same errors. Read the explainer before you buy or adjust.
Buying a cartridge without checking tonearm compatibility
Compliance mismatch causes poor tracking, inner groove distortion, or skipping — no matter how good the cart is.
Ignoring stylus shape
Conical styli track fine; line-contact and Shibata reveal more detail — and more dirt. Know what you're buying.
Not aligning the cartridge after installation
Even a factory-fit cart needs alignment. Skip it and you lose detail in the inner grooves of every record you own.
Buying an MC cartridge before understanding the gain requirement
MC outputs ~0.3 mV where MM outputs 5 mV. The wrong phono stage will sound thin, noisy, and lifeless.
Skipping azimuth adjustment on a new cart
A tilted stylus kills channel balance and introduces crosstalk. It takes five minutes and a driver to fix.
HiFi 101
View full curriculum →
