Review on Ortofon Red MM Cartridge by Brandon Hilton

Just received and made some tests and comparisons. I have a good AT PL120 turntable, but note that the table has some anti-skating built in (the head comes off the platter gently when balancing, presumably due to wire twist) so I always have the anti-skating at zero calmly. When the stylus touches the outer edge of the record there is no indication that it wants to move left or right, so I assume the adjustment will work. I installed this cartridge in an AT shell with the needle in exactly the same place as the factory installed AT needle, vertically in line with the front of the shell and the sides exactly parallel to the sides of the shell. I also had an old Shure M95E in a separate shell that I used in an old Sony belt drive table and also on this table for 20 years. So aside from the back and forth movement of the counterweight, the comparison was pretty straightforward. I think classical piano is the best source for tonal comparisons: I used Richard Hood's Beethoven Sonatas (great!). The bass and mids are very similar to the Shure, but the highs are noticeably brighter. Why 4 stars? Maybe too light. However, be aware that the cartridge is still new and may soften a bit with some use. Assembly was easy, but you need 3 things: a soft-jawed vise (a rag will do) to hold your head while you get the job done; small flat head screwdriver (not included) and small wire pliers. I changed mine in 5 minutes. and adjusted by eye parallel to the head, +/- 0.2mm or so: good enough I think. I noticed the protrusion from an old AT cartridge and just adjusted it. (And the LR's stereo balance is excellent.)