Model of Stanton 500? And Stanton 500 vs Ortofon Omb?

[T-Andersson]

Hi guys. First I'm going nuts trying to identify which Stanton 500 model I own? I got it second hand with a aftermarket stylus on my Technics SL1210 MK2. I did check http://www.stantondj.com/pdf/products/cartridges/StantonCartridgesStyliGuide2013-V1.pdf but it still do not give me any info as the cart it self only say 500 ?
And what stylus would be good for regular hifi listening on this one ?
I found this original https://www.ebay.com/itm/264154999623 ?

Then I found a old Ortofon OMB cart with a 20 stylus on.
I do not know anything about the carts... Are there different version on the OMB's or do they have one cart and then you pick the stylus you prefer or can afford ? The 20 stylus is worn out.

Last but not least. Which of these would be the best hifi listening experience overall even if its a matter of taste? And what weight should they have?
All inputs are more than welcome =)
I want to go for one new stylus of good quality but I don't know which of the one I should go for =)
Thanks!

 

[ctjetta]

There is a huge contingent of Stanton (Pickering) fans here at AK, so you'll see much support for the 500. The Ortofon is also considered to be a quality cartridge.
All that being said, one advantage the Ortofon has over the Stanton is plentiful original stylus options. These could cost from $50ish dollars on up.- your OM20 stylus would be in the $175 to $200 range. Again, there are less expensive options. You can check Amazon (NOT my preferred source for styli, but convenient for our purposes here).
The Stanton 500 will rely on aftermarket offerings which can come from Jico, EVG, or Pfanstiehl, among others. Much less expensive than original, but then, originals are very difficult to find.
However. . . I did find-
https://www.ebay.com/itm/STANTON-D5...EHL-PKG-820-DEE-GENUINE-STANTON-/223269562560

Not unreasonable in cost. Don't know from vendor, but this stylus does appear to be original, and is a light tracker (unlike many Stanton 500 styli).

Though I'm not intimately familiar with your turntable/tonearm I believe the Stanton is better suited for your situation. I imagine that cart was used to DJ with.
So grabbing that original stylus would make perfect sense to update what you currently have.

I'm sure someone will come along to provide further input.

And if I might add-
Same request I make of many new members- please provide a location in your avatar. E.G. large city (NYC), region (NE PA), state (Colo.), country (NZ), etc . . .

 

[T-Andersson]

Thanks for your help Ctjetta. Really appreciated.
Awesome to hear about the Stanton fans =) Are there anyway to find out which model of the cartridge I have? I'm still confused. I think it is a 500AL but I'm not sure?
Nice with the one you found there. Is it safe to buy a NOS stylus? Was thinking about the aging of the rubber where the stylus is mounted.
The stylus I refer too seems to be a original one as well ? At least made by stanton if you look on picture number 2 in the auction https://www.ebay.com/itm/264154999623

Ok so the cart (Ortofon OMB) is the same for the whole serie and then you just buy the pickup you prefer. 5, 10, 20, 30 etc ? There are not a huge range of carts?
I think I will go for the Stanton.

I have the original Technics SL 1210 arm. I will try to find more specs when I get the new stylus. Will see if its a genuine Stanton I put the link to and if it is I will try that one out as it had a better price.

I'm located in Sweden (EU).
Thanks and all the best!

 

[gr33nhorn]

Having owned both, I think the Stanton is overhyped. It is by far the worst mm cart I have heard, and my collection of low to mid end carts is in the high 2 digits. And I tried the current Stanton stylus and a couple of generics, plus some nos styli and they all sounded like crap. On an sl1210 mk2 and an nad 3020 phono stage. It was so bland, the only thing that could give it competition was a Shure m70b. The only redeeming virtue was that it tracked really well and had very little distortion.

The om is much better. The genuine styli are great, even the $10 generics are much better than anything you can put on the Stanton.

 

[T-Andersson]

Thanks gr33nhorn. I know its a matter of taste but after what you wrote I maybe should go for the OM and put on a 10 or 20 stylus then =) ?

 

[gr33nhorn]

the OM body can take the stylus of any OM cart - even the 2M ones if you are willing to experiment
for now, start with a generic OM stylus - if you like the sound signature, then invest in a better one.

The stanton is all mids with no lows or highs. THe OM is a bit more biased towards highs with pretty weak low end (but gets compensated somewhat by the SL1210's robust low end)
Ideally the best cart for it is the sadly now discontinued M44-7 or a nagaoka MP100/MP110 in my opinion. Of course its a matter of taste as you said!

 

[Johnny B]

Ok so the cart (Ortofon OMB) is the same for the whole serie and then you just buy the pickup you prefer. 5, 10, 20, 30 etc ? There are not a huge range of carts?
I think I will go for the Stanton.

That’s also true of the Stanton. The difference between a 500AL and a 500E is which stylus originally came with it. You can use any 500 stylus. I used the 500 AL-II when you could still get them because it was the one that would track light enough to be used on my turntable. I had terrible initial luck trying to find aftermarket 500 styli that weren’t garbage, so I switched to other cartridges.

There are a few variations on the Ortofon (OM/OMB/Super OM). The internals are different, but all of the styli are interchangeable. So, again the difference between an OM 10 and OM 20 is the stylus, the difference between a Super OM 10 and a Super OM 20 is the stylus. The difference between an OM 20 and Super OM 20 is the cartridge body, which are slightly different internally. But they both would have the same Stylus 20 installed. The Super OM is supposed to be brighter than the OM. I’m not sure what the difference between either and the OMB is. I have the OM 5e, which I use as a backup to my main cartridge, an AT VM540ML.

The aftermarket stylus issue aside, the available original stylus options for the Ortofon is far more varied. The Stanton offered an assortment of conicals and ellipticals in versions that tracked heavy (3-5g or 3-7g) or light (2-5g). The Ortofon offers light tracking (1.5-2g) conical (1s), elliptical (5e, 7, 10), nude elliptical (20), and advanced profiles (30 & 40).

 

[ctjetta]

I don't want to discount gr33nhorn's opinion regarding the Stanton 500. All experiences are valid. And I am a fan of the 500.
However, his recommendation of the Nagaoka MP-110 makes sense.
And as far as the Ortofon OM styli, I don't know if it would be advisable to try anything more expensive than the OM 10 as there may be compliance mismatches.
If I understand correctly the tonearm with an SL-1200 has an effective mass of 12 gms. That would limit you to carts with a compliance of no better than 20 x 10-6cm/Dyne (this is using info gathered from Vinyl Engine, link- https://www.vinylengine.com/cartridge_resonance_evaluator.php?eff_mass=12&submit=Submit). Vinyl Engine is your friend- learn how to use (not complicated) it and it will be very helpful.
Still plenty of options from Ortofon, among others.
No matter what you do you are starting with a very good turntable.

 

[AudioFeline]

Your Stanton 500 is the gold version, which I believe is the original version of this cart. Latter version (eg. Mk3) came in a black body, as far as I can recall.
Additional information on the stanton carts (eg.AL) refers to the stylus shape that was supplied with the cart.

The Stanton 500 is a very competent cart. Not the best in the world, but very good for what it is. The shape of styli will influence the sound, and as there isn't any NOS the quality of the aftermarket styli will also determine the sound quality. These carts also are very popular with those who use them with a 78rpm stylus to play fast-spinning disks.

In a similar vein, the Ortofon OM is also a respected cart for what it is. The quality is very dependent on the styli used - the basic styli is reasonable, but spending money on the higher-end styli brings the cart to their potential. And again, the NOS is harder to find and the 3rd-party styli vary in quality.

You can do a lot better than these carts if you want to spend a lot more money. But these carts are capable of doing excellent work and are very enjoyable if you get a good styli, and beat many entry-level carts.

 

[T-Andersson]

Everyone! Thanks so much for all your inputs. Really helps me take a decision. Something that confused me which I found out was that the Ortofon cart OM vs OMB, the B is for bulk. I thought it was another model =)

I will go for a new Stanton https://www.ebay.com/itm/264154999623
And a new Ortofon 10 stylus

Then I have 2 different to try out. And if I'm not happy with them I will go on trying out some Nagaoka and maybe Audio Technica as well.

Again! Thanks so much to everyone with your inputs!

 

[AudioFeline]

If you don't like them you can always keep them on another headshell to play damaged records so you don't risk your favoured styli.
If you want to experiment with different carts, make sure you get the AT3600L - very cheap, but out performs carts costing many, many times it's retail value.