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P-Mounts: Do you like them?

sled108 said:
Wow...All this P-Mount talk, and it seems that you all have missed the Big Point..I do not have a P-Mount Table, but I have over a Dozen P-Mount Carts...And I use them with the 1/2" Adapters...They Sound Great with the Adapter, and you can Set them Just Right...
I like the Stanton L737S, which is a 681EEES...Just see what They go for Now $$$...
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I often do the same on my JVC QL-Y5F - I use the Technics SH90s integrated headshell p-mount adapter.... which is a bit of a rarity.

The end result is actually the same mass (+/- 0.5g) as an ultralight 6g headshell with the standard adapter mounted.... and a lot easier to use.

It also allows me to move cartridge very quickly from one TT to the other with no fuss....
 
sled108 said:
I do not have a P-Mount Table, but I have over a Dozen P-Mount Carts...And I use them with the 1/2" Adapters.....
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WHAT? This is disgraceful! As the owner of both a Technics SL-MA1 and a Technics SL-M3, I propose that P-Mount cartridges should be used on P-Mount turntables ONLY!

(and while I'm at it - B&O cartridges on B&O turntables only as well!)

:D
 
Never much cared for them. Part of the joy of turntables is futzing with your cartridge. I understand why they were developed and why they exist, but not a big fan. That being said, I also have a SL-QD33. A lot of P mount tables were pure awful, at least the Technics weren't too bad.
 
wualta said:
Know? no. But we can get a hint. Slide the stylus off your PSX/SER and slid the stylus off an ADC "Brick" cartridge. I think the best we can say at the moment is the PSX/SER was Pritchard-inspired.
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Prichard's next company Sonus also sold two different designs of induced-magnet p-mount cartridges, both of which were also sold by other companies. The Sonus PME series were also sold as Empire models, and the Sonus SPM series were also sold under the Nagatron name.
 
I support the idea that P-mount cart should be only used on P-mount table.

Beobloke said:
WHAT? This is disgraceful! As the owner of both a Technics SL-MA1 and a Technics SL-M3, I propose that P-Mount cartridges should be used on P-Mount turntables ONLY!

(and while I'm at it - B&O cartridges on B&O turntables only as well!)

:D
Click to expand...
 
I love P-mount. My main turntable, the Technics SL-10 uses one from Audiotechnica.

Technics%2520SL%252010.jpg
 
Cartridge apartheid....

And no mc should be allowed near a direct drive TT, nor should an mm ever be seen on a belt drive. Idlers may use only mi's...

and HOMC!? They are an abomination to be avoided at all costs...
 
p-mount?

How do you align the thing?
I see no way of assuring alignment.
I can't imagine having a tone arm and TT so precisely made that alignment is not needed.
It's a crap shoot on a non p-mount system.

Paul
 
Most of the p-mount tables have alignment adjustments designed for access by service techs only...

So once serviced and aligned it is intended to maintain alignment for years (and they seldom get out of alignment)

In fact given the engineering involved, if the arm pivot location is correct, and the arm length is correctly calculated - there is no more alignment required - everything is in alignment. (Usually Stevenson)

You are of course dependent on the cartridge and stylus manufacturer correctly designing to specification. The T4P spec. covers the precise stylus location in relation to the mounting, the angles (ie: SRA/VTA) etc...

So your need for alignment only occurs with out of spec cartridges or styli...

Just make sure you purchase reputable cartridges and styli from manufacturers that stick to the standards! (Ortofon, Audio Technica, Shure)
 
pdm4606 said:
How do you align the thing?
I see no way of assuring alignment.
I can't imagine having a tone arm and TT so precisely made that alignment is not needed.
It's a crap shoot on a non p-mount system.

Paul
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All that is amusing, slightly.
But what's the point of it?
 
I was one who used P-mount cart with an adapter on an half-inch MCS turntable (made by Technics) with a fixed headshell. The added height of the universal adapter changed the VTA. Second, the tonearm on that turntable has a preset tracking force of 2-3.5 grams while the P-mount styli are typically tracking at 1.25 - 1.5 gram. So I have been always tracking too heavy with this setup. I didn't know better until I read a thread on AK and went to measure the levelness of the tonearm and tracking force, and put the same cart on a P-mount table. Then I understood why I heard the low-pitch scratching noise when I use headphones with the old setup. Then I knew what I was doing with the P-mount card was wrong.

Now I mostly use linear tracking tables with P-mount cart. I just wish people use the P-mount carts on P-mount tables to avoid the mistake I made.

boreas said:
Why?

John
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With the "all P mount cartridges only on P mount turntables" idea. You forgot something. Some of these cartridges can't be correctly used except in 1/2" mount applications. As they are not T4p compliant. Some adaptations of 1/2" designs were not capable of correct use on non adjustable designs of P mount turntables. I wish the mount had been an option on low end turntables and rack systems but with a lot more tracking force adjustment range to be useful for tyros with less than ideally cared for record collections and for more cartridge options to be successfully used on this system.
 
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banyanleaf said:
I was one who used P-mount cart with an adapter on an half-inch MCS turntable (made by Technics) with a fixed headshell. The added height of the universal adapter changed the VTA. Second, the tonearm on that turntable has a preset tracking force of 2-3.5 grams while the P-mount styli are typically tracking at 1.25 - 1.5 gram. So I have been always tracking too heavy with this setup. I didn't know better until I read a thread on AK and went to measure the levelness of the tonearm and tracking force, and put the same cart on a P-mount table. Then I understood why I heard the low-pitch scratching noise when I use headphones with the old setup. Then I knew what I was doing with the P-mount card was wrong.

Now I mostly use linear tracking tables with P-mount cart. I just wish people use the P-mount carts on P-mount tables to avoid the mistake I made.
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Please don't take this wrong but it sounds like you're blaming T4P cartridges for the shortcomings of that MCS turntable. It also seems that, at the time, your apparent inexperience may have led you to install a different cartridge on your MCS without checking the VTF or VTA.

A P-mount cartridge works just fine on a 1/2" table as long as it's set up properly, just as with any other cartridge.

John

John
 
John, I agree with you. A turntable that has tonearm that has VTA adjustment and can track light doesn't have the issue. My inexperience is to blame. But none of the P-mount cartridge that is sold today has that instruction supplied with the product. On AT's website, they only show you how physically the P-mount cart can be mounted with the adapter, but none of the details that an experienced user would know. A newbie like me would have been stuck with incorrect setup for years without knowing it.

boreas said:
Please don't take this wrong but it sounds like you're blaming T4P cartridges for the shortcomings of that MCS turntable. It also seems that, at the time, your apparent inexperience may have led you to install a different cartridge on your MCS without checking the VTF or VTA.

A P-mount cartridge works just fine on a 1/2" table as long as it's set up properly, just as with any other cartridge.

John

John
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Does any one here have any experience with AUDIO TECHNICA AT312EP MC P-mount cartridge? :scratch2:

Just came across this interesting T4P mc cartridge with user replaceable stylus in an advertisement.

I don't have a P-mount turn table of this level at the moment, no personal interest.
 
dlaloum said:
I often do the same on my JVC QL-Y5F - I use the Technics SH90s integrated headshell p-mount adapter.... which is a bit of a rarity.

The end result is actually the same mass (+/- 0.5g) as an ultralight 6g headshell with the standard adapter mounted.... and a lot easier to use.

It also allows me to move cartridge very quickly from one TT to the other with no fuss....
Click to expand...

LOL! Ditto - except I have a JVC QL-Y55f that I do this on!
 
dlaloum said:
...Sumiko had a legendary MC in p-mount format, which was considered better than the then available 1/2" mount exemplar... I have never seen one or heard it.

bye for now

David
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Yes, the original Sumiko Bluepoint was actually a P mount, and was supplied with an adapter for 1/2" mounting. The "audiophile tweak", if you weren't going to use it on a P mount arm, was to crazy glue the adapter on to make the assembly more ridged.

Probably one of the best cartridges offered for the mount, and a bargain too. Sadly, that cartridge was discontinued several years ago, replaced by a MkII version, which is only for 1/2" mounting.
 
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