Monday, October 3, 2016

The Different Kinds Of A Turntable Cartridge

By Stephen Reynolds


One of the very important components of record players is the magnetic cartridge. This serves as a playback of analog sounds which are referred to as records. And now, it is commonly known as a turntable. Some terms referred to this before are gramophone and phonograph. Cartridge is also known a pick up, an electro mechanical device type that converts vibrational energy into an electrical energy. Electrical signals which are created are amplified and converted to sounds by the loud speakers.

Some other components include styluses, cantilever, coils, body, and magnets. A stylus which is being mounted will serve as contact to record grooves. Most styluses are made of industrial gemstones or may be small polished diamonds. A cantilever will serve as support to stylus and will transmit vibrations to the coil or magnet assembly. Cantilevers before were made of boron or aluminum. There are also other turntable cartridge types containing detachable styluses and cantilever, which is an advantage since there will be no need of replacing or removing cartridges when styluses worn out.

Cartridges have different kinds of variations in dissimilar in size and shape. The two most known technology principles which serve as power of the types are the moving magnet and the moving coil. Moving coils have advanced designs and are expensive unlike moving magnets. Other types of MC have designs which are cheaper but may have low quality sounds.

In magnet cartridges, stylus cantilevers always carry magnets permanently positioned in between the 2 fixed coils forming an electromagnetic generator. When the magnet vibrates responses the stylus, it will induce some current. Since the magnets have a little mass and its size is small, and it is also not mechanically connected to the generator, adjusted styluses will follow the groove and requires lesser tracking force.

The induced magnetic types and also iron types have ferrous alloy or pieces of iron that moves. Instead of coupling magnets, these two materials are connected to its cantilevers. The permanent and the bigger magnet is positioned above the coils that provide a needed magnetic flux.

The design of MC cartridges is an electromagnetic type of generator. Unlike MM designs, magnet and coils are reversed. Coil is attached to stylus moving in a constant magnet. The coil is made of very tiny fine wire. However, some MC cartridges may also have an output indistinguishable to MM cartridges.

Another one is a moving micro cross type of cartridge. The MMC design is said to be one variant of MI design. Both coils and magnets stay in one area while the micro cross goes with stylus.

Another type is the London Decca cartridge. This has a unique design and it has fixed coils and magnets. Its styluses have diamond tips, have short iron, and have an L shaped cantilever made of non magnetic steel.

The short iron is positioned so close to stylus tip, resulting to a very accurate tracking of motions. Positive scanning is what the London Decca engineers call the tracking. This is a type which may be very musical but earlier versions need more forces of tracking.




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