Many people love to listen to audio vinyl records in their free time, and they know how magnetic cartridges are crucial for them. Sometimes it isn't easy to choose the correct phono cartridge, which fulfils your requirements, so our expert team has listed some excellent phono cartridges for under $200, and these cartridges have superior quality. These high-quality cartridges will satisfy your audio quality needs, and you can easily buy these cartridges for a $200 budget.
The Best Phono Cartridge Under $200
By using these phono cartridges, you can enjoy your record collection sound through your Hi-Fi. These budget phono cartridges can produce accurate sound for you, are familiar with most turntables, and efficiently work in many types of turntables. It is crucial to choose a good-sounding phono cartridge for your audio vinyl records and smooth bass response, so, below, check the list of best phono cartridges under $200.
Table of Contents
Our Recommendations | The Best Phono Cartridges Under $200 in 2021
First is Ortofon 2M Red, and the thing which is full of surprises is that it comes within the budget range of a maximum of $100. Inside the box, you get a stylus brush and a little screwdriver tool in a small plastic packet, an instruction manual, and a 2M Red phono cartridge. It is a moving magnet and all-purpose cartridge which can easily fit with most turntables. By using Ortofon 2M Red, you will get a fantastic dynamic sound, and the cartridge comes in Elliptical diamond style. The output voltage of the 2M Red cartridge is 5.5 mV. The 2M Red has colour-coded pin terminals and has a maximum frequency is 20 Hz to 20000Hz. It cares about your stylus, gives you the best performance without any lag up to 1,000 hours, and sounds pretty great. The 2M red has a 1.8 g load resistance and can easily replace with a 2M blue Ortofon cartridge. The 2m red cartridge sounded warmer, and is very long-lasting and seems a hi-fi cartridge which performance is excellent. Without screws, the Ortofon 2M Red weight is 7.2 g, and load capacitance is 150-300pF. The Ortofon 2M Red is a budget-friendly cartridge and can be bought easily. The cartridge can easily use with ATLP 1240 tracking at recommended 1.8 grams. Overall the Ortofon 2M Red provides outstanding music and is the best phono cartridge under $200.
The next cartridge is Ortofon 2M Blue, which comes in nude elliptical style and has a stylus replaceable feature. The cartridge is easy to use, and its weight is similar to a 2M red cartridge, which is 7.2g. You will get the brush in a small packet in the box, which will use for proper cleaning of the stylus. The stylus features split pole pins, and the manufacture of Ortofon 2M Blue cartridge's body is Hopelex. The 2M Blue tracking force is similar to the 2m Red cartridge that is 18 mN and can easily replace with a 2m Red phono cartridge. The 2m red and blue cartridges share the same cartridge body, and it takes only a few seconds to swap 2M Red cartridge with 2M Blue. Both 2m red and blue cartridges have the same structure, and the only difference between them is the stylus, which is highly polished of Ortofon 2M Blue and gives you excellent tracking and significantly quieter reproduction. So, overall, the 2M Blue is the best phono cartridge under $200.
Next is 2M Brozen, a moving magnet cartridge featuring nude fine line diamond and can be easily replaced with a 2M Black stylus. Let's compare the 2M Brozen cartridge with 2M red and blue cartridges. The 2M Brozen cartridges will give you more details and resolutions than Ortofon's previous reviewed cartridges. The 2m red will provide you more warm sound, and on the other hand, the 2m blue cartridges will offer you a neutral sound. But, you can upgrade your phono cartridge to 2m Brozen, which is so much different in structure, performance, and sound in comparison with both 2m blue and 2m red cartridges. The proper installation of a 2m Brozen cartridge is a little tricky, and unlike 2m red and blue cartridges, you have to install the entire cartridge, and for this purpose, you need a needle nose plier.
How To Install Ortofon 2M Bronze Cartridge
Things you need are nose pliers, and remember that your hand will remain very steady while installation.
Carefully Remove four-colour leads from the back of your currently installed cartridge with a nose plier.
Remove two screws that are keeping your cartridge connected to the tonearm.
In the 2m Brozen packages, you will find no screws, so you have to attach your screws while connecting the 2m Brozen cartridge to your tonearm.
Next is a 2M black cartridge, which is an expensive cartridge in our list, and we have just listed it to provide you only information. The cartridge is very slim and comes in the nude Shibata diamond style, which gives you breathtaking sound quality and exceptional bass. The 2m black phono cartridge frequency is up to 20-31,000 Hz, and the output voltage is 5mV. The entire frequency spectrum of the 2M black cartridge is much precise in relation and is a high output moving coil cartridge. You will get fantastic quality sound if you have a Technics SL-1200G turntable with an installed 2m black cartridge. The 2M black cartridge provides excellent quality but expensive in the budget, so you can buy 2M black from amazon if you have a high budget.
Next is the Sumiko Pearl MM Cartridge, and this elliptical phono cartridge comes with a separation channel of 30 DB and 12Hz – 30KHz frequency response. The cartridge can easily fit and works well on any standard tonearm and digital stylus. Throughout the entire spectrum, you will get a very balanced and detailed sound. The cartridge is beautifully designed by an audiophile company and gives you a high level of performance. The cartridge can perfectly fit with most of the turntables, and installation is relatively easy overall. The Sumiko Pearl Cartridge will give you outstanding performance at rendering and good details from the distorted electric guitar. The Sumiko Pearl MM is an easily replaceable stylus that has a robust Elliptical shape and is the best phono cartridge under 200.
Pros
Exquisite tracking.
Strong Elliptical shape.
Good performance at rendering.
Very good sound.
Pretty crystalline sharp.
Characteristic and real sound.
Fits with most turntables.
For MM phono input.
Cons
The cartridge only works perfect when used on a high-end system.
Next is NAGAOKA MM cartridge, and this cartridge is only used with MM phono inputs of your amplifier. Nagaoka cartridge output voltage is 5-megavolts and comes with the pre-installed headshell, which is made of high-quality material and has an ergonomic finger-lift, which seems beautiful for this head shall. For superior quality audio music, the NAGAOKA MM cartridge is a beast for you, and if we compare NAGAOKA MM with Ortofon 2M Red cartridge, then this one provides excellent quality audio and is better than that cartridge and overall the NAGAOKA MM cartridge is the best phono cartridge for under $200.
Next is the Shure M97xE cartridge, and it has an elliptical diamond-designed cartridge with a finely polished tip. The cartridge will give you accurate musical passages in the high-frequency range. The Shure M97xE phono cartridge will give attachment on the tonearm, which is full of free with any vibration and will provide you superb smooth sounding. The cantilever of the M97xE cartridge is made of aluminium alloy, and the cartridge tip style is in Elliptical shape. It gives low record wear and sounds very high accuracy and comes in a very low weighted cartridge overall. It is an expensive cartridge, and you cannot buy an M97xE cartridge within the range of $200.
The next is the Ortofon CC MK2 cartridge, and it demands modern turntable-like DJs and can easily fit in top DJ turntables. The cartridge is an all-rounder groove and gives you excellent performance in price. For a better needle and incredible angle view, the wide stylus is cut out. The Ortofon CC MK2 has the most outstanding quality spherical stylus and has a substantial and stable cantilever. The Ortofon also provides some other Elliptical and Spherical DJ cartridges like Ortofon CC MK2 DJ, CC MK2 Digital, CC MK2 Club Elliptical, and CC MK2 Scratch comes in different prices and performance.
Next is Shure M44-7 phono cartridge, which comes with a type-s cantilever and has low record wear, which is excellent and gives you resonant sound. The installation process of the Shure M44-7 cartridge is straightforward, and its needle can work with most turntables and is purely designed for DJ scratching. The tracking force of M44-7 is 1.5 to 3 grams, and the resource frequency range is 20 to 20,000 Hz, which is less than a 2m black stylus. The M44-7 cartridge is much expensive, and we have just listed it p for providing you best information; and if your budget is reasonable, then the cartridge is best for you, and you can easily buy the Shure M44-7 phono cartridge for any DJ Music nights for good quality audio so, overall the M44-7 is the best phono cartridge under $500.
It is the electro-mechanical small component which set up on the tonearm of any turntable. The performance of the record is wholly dependent upon the capabilities of the Phono cartridge.
Cartridge Mount: The use of a cartridge mount is for correctly mounting cartridges on the turntable's tonearm.
Types of Stylus: In the market, you will find two stylus types.
Spherical
Elliptical
We have listed some Pros and Cons of spherical and Elliptical style phono cartridges.
Spherical
Pros
Less expensive.
A popular choice of a needle.
Have less drag.
Better for scratching.
Cons
Some Higher record wear.
Less responsive high frequency.
Elliptical
Pros
High-frequency response.
Less record wear.
Cons
More expensive.
Less popular.
Harder to find replacements.
Not suitable for scratching.
Final Remarks Of Best Phono Cartridge Under $200
You will find some budget phono cartridges and expensive phono cartridges in these listed cartridges, like 2m black cartridges. All phono cartridges provide you outstanding performance on their price tag, and if you have 200 dollars budget, you can easily buy the listed any best phono cartridge under $200.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Ortofon 2M Black easily fit on the audio Technica at-lp1240 Turntable?
Yes, Ortofon 2M Black can easily fit on the audio Technica at-lp1240 turntable. The supported cartridge weight for at-lp1240 is 3.5-8.5g without headshell, and with headshell is 13-18g. If we talk about Ortofon 2M Black, then its weight is 7.2g so, the cartridge will work fine with Technica at-lp1240 turntable.
What is the best phono cartridge under $200?
If you have not much budget to purchase phone cartridges like Ortofon 2M Black, which is much expensive, then no problem because in the market, there are many phono cartridges under the $200 budget like Ortofon 2M Red. The Ortofon 2M Red cartridge has an Elliptical diamond shape, and with most turntables, you can fit this cartridge.
Which cartridge is suitable for modern DJ turntables?
The Ortofon Concorde MK2 is the perfect DJ turntable cartridge under the $200 budget. The cartridge performance00 is excellent and fits easily with modern DJ turntables.
Hi, I'm Charles Lyell. As a gamer, I have lots of knowledge about gaming, computer hardware, software, and the latest devices. Also, my favorite hobby is learning programming and new languages. I am founder of Techikaya website. Here I love to review the latest products and write blogs about the newest tech information. I am from California, Los Angeles, US, and study BSCS at California Institute of Technology.
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