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Cartridge for Realistic LAB-420?

R

redjr

AK Subscriber
Subscriber
I recently picked up a very clean and operating vintage LAB-420 TT made by RatShack back in the heyday. :D I know it's not high-end, maybe not even mid-fi-end, but I believe it represented one of the better TT RatShack offered at the time. Of course I didn't NEED the TT, but the price was just to good to pass up ($20). Besides, I wanted to rescue a little piece of TT history - especially given its condition.

With most of my vintage TT purchases, I always replace the stylus - and sometimes even the cartridge. You just never know how much abuse the stylus has suffered by the previous owner(s). But I often decide to replace the whole cartridge as well and start with a new, fresh modern design, or even NOS if available. The cart that came on the TT is a Shure re-badged for RatShack, R25XT Shure 3X.

My question is; what is a good middle of the road cartridge that would be a good match for the level of quality of this TT? I'm thinking something in the range of about $50-$75.

Suggestions? Thx.
 
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The R25XT is a pretty good cartridge. I have a couple of them I use as backup cartridges and they sound very similar to the M75 and M91 cartridges. The 3X stylus tracks best at about 3 gms. The info on that cartridge says that an M75 stylus will fit it, but IT DOES NOT. The R25XT is a wide body cartridge. You can fit a stylus for an M95 on it(remove the stylus guard from the cartridge). There are some very good generic M95 styli available on eBay for about $16. For $16 you will have a good sounding, light tracking mid-line cartridge.
 
HTHMAN said:
The R25XT is a pretty good cartridge. I have a couple of them I use as backup cartridges and they sound very similar to the M75 and M91 cartridges. The 3X stylus tracks best at about 3 gms. The info on that cartridge says that an M75 stylus will fit it, but IT DOES NOT. The R25XT is a wide body cartridge. You can fit a stylus for an M95 on it(remove the stylus guard from the cartridge). There are some very good generic M95 styli available on eBay for about $16. For $16 you will have a good sounding, light tracking mid-line cartridge.
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Thx hthman. I tried a couple of stylus just today that I had around. One of them seemed to fit, but would not seat all the way in. It played, but it did not sound all that good. I do have a generic stylus for the 25XT on the way, but I did want to know what would be a moderate price new cart that would work well on that TT. I have seen a couple of the R25XT on eBay. I use a M97xE cart on my main TT (Pioneer PL-518) and I'm happy with that combo. I would like to try another brand and be able to switch out headshells at will to see if I can hear the subtle sonic differences.
 
I have tried several brands of cartridges and keep coming back to Shure. I just like the sound. My next favorite that I have tried is Audio Technica line. They seem a little brighter with less pronounced bass. The AT95E is a good choice. I read that the AT92E is the same in a p-mount and comes with a 1/2" adapter. You can get one of those for about $20.
 
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