Abbey Road Vinyl / User Guide
22
Cartridge and Stylus
The pickup cartridge converts the vibrations of the stylus into an electrical signal, which is then amplified and sent to
loudspeakers. The stylus, usually made of diamond, is at the end of a metal cantilever, which mechanically amplifies the
stylus’ motions. This metal bar connects to either a magnet within a coil or a coil within a magnetic field. It’s this motion that
generates a small electrical signal for amplification. There are two types of pickup cartridges: moving magnet and moving coil.
Moving magnet cartridges are often found in inexpensive record players, while moving coil cartridges usually used in more
critical applications. However, a good moving magnet cartridge can often outperform a comparable moving coil. Moving coil
cartridges typically have lower inductance and impedance than moving magnet types, which means less capacitance in the
cables within the turntable electronics. Moving coil cartridges often have less mass, which can reduce groove wear.
Abbey Road Vinyl offers three modelled cartridges:
•
Moving Magnet
(MM)-This is modelled from the cartridge stylus that’s used at Abbey Road Studios. It is one of the
best moving magnet cartridges ever produced, and is defined by very good transient response and very flat frequency
response.
•
Moving Coil
(MC)- a model of a very high-end moving magnet cartridge that is characterized by good super-
frequencies response, lower noise level, and great sub frequencies response.
•
DJ
(DJ)- A “cheap” DJ cartridge, widely used in DJ setups. This provides a “dirty, gritty” sound.
Together, these provide a wide variety of vinyl playback options.
