cfp@hou3c.UUCP (Craig F. Preston) (05/29/84)
I'm shopping for a turntable & cartridge, and I'm somewhat bewildered about where to begin. I'd like to take this opportunity to ask (read beg) for some enlightened commentary about such issues as: belt vs. direct drive moving magnet vs. moving coil stylus shapes *useful* or *meaningful* specs all else deemed relevant I listen to a fairly wide variety of music, but I'm most interested in acoustic jazz. Rest of system (so far): Magneplanar MG1 speakers Hafler DH110 preamp Hafler DH220 power amp Also, many stores are reluctant to set up cartridges for listening comparisons, so what do you do? Misc. other questions: 1) Has anybody had experience with the David Hafler stuff? What's your opinion/review? 2) Is there any measureable/audible difference between "audiophile" cable and standard wire (say 16-gauge)? 3) I'm also in the market for a cassette deck. Anyone know anything about the Harmon-Kardon CD X91 (X=0,1,2,3,4) series? 4) Any reviews on STAX headphones? I realize that these issues may have been expounded on ad nasuem in the past, but I'm new to the net so please bear with me. Replies to me via mail, or to net.audio if your comments are of general interest. Any assistance rendered is much appreciated. Craig Preston AT&T Bell Laboratories Holmdel, NJ {ihnp4,allegra,harpo,ulysses}!hou3c!cfp