Audio-Technica AT-VM95ML Dual Moving Magnet Turntable Phono Cartridge (Red)

MY SHORT REVIEW:I love the AT-VM540ML and its predecessor the AT-440MLB. This AT-VM95ML cartridge is the affordable AT-VM95E upgraded from an elliptical stylus to a micro-linear stylus. Is it worth the extra $100? As a long-time user of the VM95E and its predecessor AT95E, I can tell you that it sounds MUCH better. And to my ears, 99% as good as the $270 AT-VM540ML.Why I can't stop listening to my LPs with this cartridge:• My old “worn out” vintage records now sound better than many new reissue LPs—all the way to the INNER TRACKS.• Dynamic punch and “inner detail”: exciting and lively, but with superb low-level resolution for all genres tested, for example: Miles Davis "Kind of Blue" (50th anniversary Mark Wilder analog lacquers), Talking Heads "Speaking in Tongues" 1980s US LP pressing, The Cure "Love Cats" 45 RPM very bass-heavy club single, "Manitas de Plata" flamenco guitar 1965 Connoisseur SocietyLP, Deutsche Grammophon "Mozart Piano Concertos 17 & 21" w/Geza Anda, Linda Ronstadt/Nelson Riddle Orchestra "What's New," etc.• The most affordable Micro-Linear (aka FineLine, Shibata, Van Den Hul) stylus-cartridge combo I could find ($100 less than the superb VM540ML with nearly-equal sound quality)• Easy to install with built-in screw holes: no fumbling with tiny nuts, lol (for alignment tips, see below)Below is my detailed review, which is nearly identical to my review of the VM540ML and AT-440MLB, except where the sound or performance differs a bit.--MY RIDICULOUSLY LONG REVIEW (FOR TURNTABLE FANATICS ONLY, OR INSOMNIACS):I’ve tried many cartridges on my old Dual turntables and never found a truly musically satisfying combo—until switching to Audio-Technica micro-linear stylus cartridges. Of the three I own, this is the best one in terms of sound-quality to price ratio.My box of abandoned cartridges includes Grado (ZF3E+, Prestige Green, Black, Silver1), Ortofon (ultra-light OM10 & 20), and an AT95E (nearly identical to the newer VM95E).This AT-VM95L is the most affordable micro-linear (aka Fine Line) stylus cartridge available as far as I know. It's Audio Technica's answer to the third-party-manufactured micro-linear stylus upgrades that have been sold for years. This cartridge's core design began in the 1970’s and so its superb sound quality I believe reflects many iterative improvements over decades.But the main reason it sounds so good, I think, is the micro-linear stylus.WHAT’’S A MICRO-LINEAR (ML) STYLUS? One that’s shaped like a pointed butter knife rather than an elliptical or spherical cone. Its flat sides aim up and down the path of the record groove while it's thin-edged sides contact a long "line" that runs from top to bottom of the groove walls (rather than two tiny groove contact point as with elliptical or conical styli). The Shibata—granddaddy of this stylus design philosophy—was invented by JVC to handle quadrophonic LP’s 30,000-50,000 kHz ultra-high frequency modulation signal, so time-domain resolution is superb with this needle.My experience with this cart (anecdotal of course, your subjective mileage may vary):• INNER GROOVE DISTORTION (IGD) ELIMINATED! I thought that many of my old LPs were worn out, especially on the inner tracks. But the ML stylus of this cartridge plays them crisply with no hint of "fuzziness"...all the way to the last seconds of each album. Yes!• MY VINTAGE VINYL SOUNDS SO MUCH BETTER IN GENERAL. I’ve been digging into my sizable “unplayable old crap" LP pile (albums that I thought were trashed by the cheapo turntables of previous owners). The VM95L extracts nearly ALL of the virgin groove info (surface area untouched by the old heavy turntable arms and elliptical/round needles of yore).• CLARITY AND INNER DETAIL? WAY MORE. For example, I can now easily "pick out" acoustic bass, horn, and cymbal brush work when Miles and his crew are colliding in a polyphonic frenzy on original 1960’s Van Gelder pressings.• WHAT ABOUT SURFACE NOISE? Often LOWER than with my elliptical styli—the VM95L stylus contact area often increases the signal-to-noise ratio (more music signal ÷ same groove wear noise) and thus sounds less noisy. This does vary depending from LP to LP—however, it's never WORSE than the other cartridges mentioned above.• HUGE DYNAMIC RANGE “PUNCH”—This cart has less total signal level than Grado's “moving iron” carts (4mv vs. 5 mv) but the perceived dynamic range "bite" of horns and snare drums is much more present and “real” to me with this cartridge, often MORE so than many XRCD and SACD files I play with a top-end studio DAC converter.• FREQUENCY RESPONSE IS NEAR-NEUTRAL AFTER BREAK-IN (~30 LP plays), with some gentle bass and treble boost in the 20-100 Hz and 5K-15K range (around +1.5 dB per Audacity needle-drop using Analogue Productions "20-20Khz" LP sine-wave sweep track). Interestingly, my more expensive VM540ML & 440MLb carts actually sound more boosted in the bass and treble than this one. This cart sounds great with both my humble NAD PP2 phono preamp (~$100 used) and Yamaha entry-level 1990’s receiver (built-in phono pre-amp)• ZERO CARTRIDGE HUM—a problem with all of the Grado cartridges I've used on vintage Dual 1218 and 1219 tables. With this cartridge? Silent!• LOWER RECORD AND STYLUS WEAR - For this stylus, the A-T pamphlet recommends inspection after 1,000 hours (about 3 times longer than for their elliptical needles). The reason, A-T says, is that the much larger stylus-to-groove contact area spreads out the wear on both needle and record groove, and the thinner profile tracks rather than "pounds" the vinyl's highest-frequency squiggles. Will the 1.8- to 2.2-gram recommended tracking weight generate more wear than the 1.0-gram weight of the other AT carts mentioned above matter for wear? Probably not. See this eye-opening record-wear test by VWestlife: https://youtu.be/kZOj-eO8Mvw?si=eCz49ZfaylRSYaVI.RANDOM TIPS:• AUDITION PROSPECTIVE CARTRIDGES WITH FAMILIAR HEADPHONES - It’s amazing how much turntable/cartridge coloration and definition (or lack thereof) you can hear with headphones. Ironically, on my Grado SR80 headphones, the Grado cartridges above are horribly muddy and fuzzy in comparison to this AT cart. The Ortofons and AT95E are somewhere in between.• Any micro-linear stylus will dredge up old crud out of dirty record grooves. Reason It's making contact with the FULL depth of the grooves. You’ll see it caking your needle, blech! So for the first few plays, I’d clean it often, and with stylus cleaning fluid every 10-15 LP plays. I also clean all my records (even new ones) with Mobile Fidelity's "One Record Cleaning Solution" https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003DX0JPW/ and it makes a HUGE improvement in used vinyl sound quality. If you have a fancy record cleaning machine, even better!• To perfectly align this cartridge or any other, download and print out the free “Stupid Protractor” PDF (search and ye shall find). It really is “stupid easy” to use this one (and I’ve struggled with many of ‘em).• A “quick and dirty” way to tune cartridge "brightness" or “dullness”: If this or any cartridge sounds too bright, raise up your LP by putting a cork pad or spare LP under the one you’re playing (most records are pressed with an outer rim lip to keep them from damaging each other). This effectively reduces the VTA (vertical tracking angle), which often differs from one master lacquer to the next (there was no industry standard cutting stylus angle). If your cartridge sounds too dull, try to RAISE your VTA at the tonearm pivot—if you can’t (this was a fancy “audiophile” turntable feature), try removing your rubber mat and replacing with a sheet of paper to get a bit more VTA height (this worked for me on an old Dual CS 606 turntable).• More hacks to tune cartridge "brightness" or “dullness”: Cable length and thickness affects the high-frequency curve. I’ve found that longer cables (6 feet +) "dull" the HF and shorter cables (1.5 feet) brighten the sound. Why? Phono preamps have different capacitance (picoFarad or "pF") and resistance (ohm load) personalities and cable length and gauge effects the former. You can also tweak here with a $9 pair of RCA "Y" adapters and some 20-cent resistors and capacitors. Search online, lots of tutorials! This VM95L cartridge sounds best with phono preamps “tuned” to carts in the 100-200 pF range (typical) and sounds perfect with the entry-to-mid-level phono preamps mentioned above.Caveat: These are my subjective impressions only, YMMV. And, I'm in no way affiliated with Audio Technica or Amazon, nor have I received compensation or product in exchange for my reviews. Just a fellow music-lover always searching for better sound.Happy listening—whatever gear you’re enjoying! - AndrewFULL MANUFACTURER SPECIFICATIONS (THIS WAS NOT IN THE PRODUCT DESCRIPTION AT THE TIME OF THIS REVIEW)* Frequency Response 20 - 25,000 Hz* Channel Separation 23 dB (1 kHz)* Vertical Tracking Angle 23°* Vertical Tracking Force 1.8 to 2.2g (2.0g standard)* Stylus Construction Nude Square Shank* Recommended Load Impedance 47,000 Ω* Coil Impedance 3.3 kΩ (1 kHz)* DC Resistance 485 Ω* Coil Inductance 550 mH (1 kHz)* Output Voltage 3.5 mV (@ 1 kHz, 5 cm/sec)* Output Channel Balance 1.5 dB (1 kHz)* Stylus Shape Microlinear* Cantilever Aluminium Pipe* Static Compliance 20 x 10 – 6 cm / dyne* Dynamic Compliance 10 x 10 – 6 cm / dyne (100 Hz)* Mounting 1/2” centres* Cartridge Weight 6.1g* Dimensions 17.2 x 18.9 x 28.3 ( H x W x D mm)* Accessories Included:* Two 11 mm installation screws;* Two 8 mm installation screws;* Two washers* Non-magnetic screwdriver* Recommended Load Capacitance 100-200 pF* Replacement Stylus AT-VMN95ML* Stylus Size 2.2 x 0.12 mil* Type VM Stereo Dual Magnet* Wire Used for Coil T.P. Copper

I’m a big fan of all the AT cartridges, and have tried many different bases and styli up and down the line. The 95ML is now my go-to, even over more expensive options like the 740ML; your mileage may vary based on your application and needs, but let me try and explain why this is such a steal and why you should consider it even if you have the scratch for an upgrade.The generator in the 95 cartridge has only 2 magnets as opposed to the 4 in the 500 and 700 series from AT, so it is technically inferior in that respect. But this also results in a more “focused” sound with an emphasis on the middle frequencies and the middle of the soundstage. My 740ML has detail in spades, but hearing all the percussion spread out across that soundstage is actually a bit fatiguing after a while. It’s the sort of cart that makes you ooh and ahh over discovering new things on old tracks, but rarely makes you want to just get up and dance. The 95, in contrast, absolutely rocks and rolls - it gives you less resolution and air around instruments, sure, but it’s tremendously “punchy” and is still /quite/ detailed, beating my old Ortofon Blue by a country mile. I also have found that the same aggressive treble on the 5/700mls that makes the cymbals in a good recording stand out also makes bad / hot recordings sound terrible, exacerbating any sibilance problems they might have. The 95 rolls off those highs a bit, and while you lose a little sparkle, it’s much more forgiving of bad vinyl. With the pressing quality of todays recordings so widely variable it pays to have a cart that doesn’t show off flaws quite so much.In terms of the other styli in the 95 range, this is still the sweet spot for me. I tried the EN, and found that to be a fine stylus for the price, but I do think the ML is a huge upgrade in terms of clarity and soundstage. The 95SH was not my cup of tea -strings sounded recessed and voices wooly. This could have been a problem with alignment or VTA, but I’m not new to turntables and do know how to set both; if it’s that sensitive and fiddly it hardly seems worth the trouble to me.Everyone’s mileage will differ, and if you want absolute detail in a stately, refined package, sure, get the 740. But if you want some fun mixed in with the oohing and aging, I seriously recommend giving the 95 a whirl - you might find yourself surprised.

Arguably one of the best in price/performance ratio cartridge I have so far. The sound is among the best in my barn. Since audio cartridge performance is very suggestive but I will say it would not disappoint anyone and it’s also very forgiving in setup. Although you will be surprising rewarded with some care when setting it up.

Bought a fluance tt and it came with an Ortofon Blue. Used that cart for a couple years. Just put this AT ML cart with an AT headshell on my Fluance and I love it. Sounds amazing. Now to each their own. Others may get different results due to alignment etc, but IMO, this cart is amazing for the price. Period!