AT-VM95E Dual Moving Magnet Turntable Cartridge Green

The sound quality of this cartridge rivals the $200 (in the 80's!!) Audio-Technica AT29SX. For the cost of a replacement stylus for that 29 today, I can buy approximately 3 of these! This is a great, amazing value in a quality phono cartridge. The AT-VM95E features an elliptical diamond stylus which tracks the record groove smoothly and accurately. The sound quality is phenomenal. Deep lows that had the sub under my desk making happy vibes, crystal clear highs with treble extension and clarity that a CD can't touch, and the midrange is present, forward and clear. Female vocals are textured, full and weighty. I auditioned Carole King's Tapestry and was blown away. The piano in "Smackwater Jack" was in the room with me. Stereo imaging and soundstage are broad and have good instrument placement and separation. With a claimed 20db of stereo separation, I'd call it conservatively rated. The soundstage moves outside the speakers and there's plenty of channel separation for my ears. While on the subject of specs, I have no doubt on the validity of the claimed 20Hz-22kHz frequency response! The depths of lows I was able to hear and the reach and clarity of the highs left no detectable rolloff in my listening. All said, this is beyond a great value, it's a must buy. If you're in the market for a replacement, an upgrade or are resurrecting and old turntable, look no further. I've been an Audio-Technica fan since I knew what a cartridge did. I've owned Shures, Pickerings, Ortofons, Empires and Nagaokas. I keep recommending AT. The design of this cartridge is well thought out. The threaded screw inserts are a dream for those of us with older eyes and fingers. No more fumbling with those tiny nuts. In my case, the short body on this cartridge (see the pic of my old AT-29SX above - it's long) allows it to mount fully forward in my angled Sony headshell. Alignment was confirmed on a cartridge protractor to be spot on. Not sure if this will be the case with all headshells on all tonearms. Likely not, but it's nice to get lucky sometimes! Gripes... OK, all rave reviews need a gripe or two. None rise to the level of deducting a star, mind you, but nevertheless there are some niggles. First, the old white-body AT cartridges of yesteryear had tiny colored rings around the connection pins. This made it a no-brainer to see where each wire went. Of course, this was decades before one could solve the question with a 15 second Google search. Second, every AT cartridge I bought back in the stone age included a screwdriver. What gives? Of course for $65 bucks, I suppose I can live with it. And third, wait...there is no third. Another great feature of this cartridge is the broad range of upgrade styli available. AT has carried this tradition forwards from years ago and it continues to be a reason I would choose them again. My setup here is a Sony PS-T22 (circa 1980) with upgraded audio cables feeding an iFi Zen Air Phono preamp into a FiiO K7 DAC (just using the line-in and headphone amp). From there I am running a SMSL A300 integrated amplifier feeding Neumi BS5 bookshelf speakers. For critical listening, I usually rely on my in-ear monitors. My go-to IEMs are the iBasso IT01s. These are what I used for much of the review above.

The VM95 line of cartridges are your best value price/performance on the market today. The 95E has excellent clarity, bass and full range. You can buy better in this price range. Easy setup, top quality product that I always recommend. The records sound great with this stylus and cart. There are other stylus in the line that work on this cartridge without having to change the cartridge which is a great design feature. The design also makes it fit easily during installation. Product functions as expected.

Fast shipping, looks nice, easy to install, noise level is good, fits perfectly, and great quality. I’ve tested it with the Bluetooth option on my record player through my headphones. Now, I just need the speakers to arrive.

Same brand as the old one that was 80s high end I damaged but not quite as clear of sound. It is a solid cartridge don't get me wrong. Good soundstage, tracks well. Requires a bit more tracking force than my old one at 1.75 - 2.5 grams. It would have been good if it came with a installation protractor paper, I had to find & download one.

First, allow me to tell you a little about my audios setup. It is a Scott PS 48A turntable given to me by a good friend as she had no use for it. Denon AVR-X1300W with Marantz Imperial 9 speakers and Pioneer surround sound speakers that came with a Pioneer system I had purchased previously. The Auidio-Technica VM95e cartridge was digitally set/weighed at1.96 grams, antiskate at 2 and aligned with a turntable protracter. I HIGHLY SUGGEST DOING THIS FOR USAGE. Get a magnifying glass with LED lights, eyeglass screwdriver, and tweezer or a small needle-nose plier. I was going to purchase a Ortofon cartridge system, but my tow arm did not fit the specs suggested. RESULTS- the clearest reproduction of sound with the stereophonic emusion I hoped to acheive on a small budget with old equipment. The VM95e brought new life with high fidelity! You will hear things from your records that you never knew existed as the mid-range and highs are expressed with clearity. I would recommend this needle for a low-power system as well. However, nothing is perfect. To that, you make adjustments if possible. DOWNSIDE - the Marantzs speakers forementioned has 4-mid range and 2-piezo tweeters each and boy did they come alive! Cymbals perching that shocked my constitution. However, IT WAS NOT DISTORTED. i WANT TO MAKE THAT CLEAR. I had to bring down the TREDLE to 2 and increase the BASS to 3 out of 5 levels gradience of both. I regained the natural sound while retaining the clarity/fidelity of the system. Last all caps, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS SYSTEM, THE AUDIO-TECHICA VM95e! Yes, I will buy another one when the time comes for that.

After thrifting a second turntable for my classroom setup, I took the opportunity to upgrade the cartridge and stylus on my Dual 1209 to this elliptical model. I transferred my previous cartridge and AT3600L stylus to the classroom turntable. Audio Technica has long held a strong reputation for quality cartridge/stylus combos, and this model did not disappoint. The elliptical stylus sits deeper in the grooves, providing greater depth and clarity of sound. It was easy to set up and install with basic knowledge of how the system functions. Make sure you are gentle while removing and replacing the wire leads, as these can be quite delicate. Also make sure to properly align the cartridge/stylus/head with the grooves and adjust your tonearm balance to maintain the proper tracking force, avoid damaging your records. Finally, be aware that an elliptical stylus will behave differently than a conical stylus in terms of "skating," so you will also probably need to readjust your anti-skate setting. So far, I am very pleased with the performance of this combo. It delivers a richer sound across a wider frequency range, and may even allow me to explore the quadraphonic capabilities of my vintage receiver if and when I add two more speakers to the setup.

Purchased on Amazon Prime Jan 2020 for $48. Since I did not see this information in previous reviews I wanted to show what is included with the product (mounting screws, etc). Delivered in an approx. 3" square cardboard retail box including a warranty card (in Japanese only) an environmental statement (in 11 languages) a user manual that unfolds to 10.5" x 18.5" - also in 11 languages) and a small bag of hardware. No stylus brush or small screwdriver is included like with old Shure cartridges but that may just be the way of things today. Since the cartridge body has threaded brass inserts, nuts are not needed nor included in the hardware mounting kit like other cartridges but one pair of nylon washers and two pairs of aluminum machine screws of different lengths are included: M2.5 x 8mm long M2.5 x 11mm long The threaded brass inserts on the cartridge body makes mounting the cart to the headshell much easier than any other 1/2" cartridge I've installed. Somewhat disappointed that the rear of the cart is not color-coded like others so you'll need to refer to the tiny wiring diagram in the user manual to sort out which wire goes where. Also included is a removable translucent plastic stylus guard that slides onto the cartridge for when the cart is off of the turntable. With a 2g recommended tracking force (VTF range is 1.8 - 2.2g) and the 0.3 x 0.7 mil elliptical stylus this cart should be gentle on your vinyl. Sonically, the only direct comparison I've made was against a conical Audio-Technica cart that came on a new TT I recently purchased. Compared to the DJ styled AT-XP3, the AT-VM95E has a less harsh high end (female vocals, brass, etc) that somehow also seems just a bit brighter. I was not able to hear much of a difference throughout the rest of the spectrum. I have each cart mounted to a headshell which makes the job of swapping of them a 15sec task so I plan to keep & use them both - the conical AT-XP3 for old, distressed records and the lighter tracking AT-VM95E for newer, better conditioned vinyl.

For those who have a turntable with the very common AT-3600l cartridge this will be a perfect upgrade the AT-VM95E retains much of the pleasant character of the legendary 3600l ,but with a more defined midrange . the improved midrange enhances the low and high range by allowing those bands to better be replicated what I like most about the AT-VM95E is the sweetness of the high end ,it doesnt have too much of that crispy high frequency that can often promote sibilance or raspy effects. being that I am over 60 yrs old my high range perception is not as good as it used to be so I tend to increase the treble level when listening to vinyl more than many younger people might the VM-95E is the first cartridge that handles higher range boost with no effort , the sweetness characeristic of the cartridge sounds and handles the top end better than any "budget" cartridge I have owned and for that its a winner overall great cartridge for the price ,has great definition overall and retains some of the charm the 3600l provides that has made it a favorite among even the picky audiophile crowd the VM-95e is by far the perfect upgrade for those who enjoy the 3600l its a great budget Cartridge regardless of your circumstance .if your on the fence ,,,buy it ,absolutly worth every penney

Definitely an upgrade from conical styli. Full sound is given.

I just purchased this last Saturday. A good sounding cartridge. Crisp high, prominent mid and impressive low. At this price it's a gem. I am using it with a medium mass straight tonearm. I am totally impressed with it's sound quality as well as looks and buit quality also. But the packaging from Amazon should be improved. It came in a simple plastic wrap in a self adhesive printed envelop. That's all. At least a bubble wrap should have been used as it's a delicate item.

Très bon produit. Excellent son. Livraison rapide. Cadeau apprécié. Très satisfait. Merci.

Ça fonctionne super et le son est super clair, merci !

Dovendo sostituire la puntina della vecchia Shure M75ED type 2 (il cui stilo di ricambio è introvabile, e per la quale sono disponibili solo alcuni ricambi non originali di dubbia qualità) che equipaggiava dal 1978 il mio piatto Technics SL-3310, che da due decenni giaceva su un armadio, protetto dalla polvere, ma ahimè abbandonato, mi sono trovato a dover scegliere una testina che non costasse tanto. Dovendo stare entro i 50 euro, ero fortemente indeciso tra l'Acquisto della classica AT95E (che dalle recensioni è considerata da molti anni una delle testine con il miglior rapporto qualità prezzo) e questa VM95E con stilo ellittico di durata dichiarata pari a 300 ore, che sul sito Audio Technica è indicata come il nuovo modello che ha sostituito la AT95E da pochi mesi. La AT95 è ancora disponibile su Amazon, per circa 13 euro in meno, ma ho optato per questo nuovo modello, tenendo conto che solitamente l'evoluzione tecnologica porta a dei miglioramenti nei prodotti disponibili, anche pensando alla disponibilità dello stilo di ricambio nei prossimi anni. Ho affiancato a questa VM95E anche una più economica AT91 (con stilo conico, che costa circa la metà), per l'ascolto dei vecchi LP. Mia figlia, presa dal fascino per i vinili nuovi, mi ha chiesto un consiglio su cosa acquistare, ed ecco arrivati a casa, per ben cominciare, due classici dei Pink Floyd che hanno fatto a storia della musica pop, "The dark side of the moon" e "The Wall" . Effettuate le regolazioni di rito (montaggio sulla shell, regolazione della distanza puntina-attacco shell a 52mm secondo le indicazioni della Technics per il braccio montato sul giradischi, regolazione dello zero sul peso, impostazione sui 2 grammi come suggerito dalla Audio Technica, e regolazione dell'antiskating su 2), ho accesso l'amplificatore e posto il primo LP sul piatto ........ L'ascolto di "Shine on you crazy diamond" ha rivelato con piacevole sorpresa dei dettagli sonori che quasi non ricordavo più, con una ottima definizione sulle alte frequenze e dei bassi ben presenti e controllati, con la restituzione di una scena sonora che ha reso veramente bene, con una dinamica molto buona, le chitarre di Davide Gilmour, con i tappeti di tastiere di Wright ed il Fender Precision bass di Roger Waters, con dei distinti e precisi acuti sui piatti e le incise e definite basi ritmiche di Nick Mason. In "The Wall" la resa dinamica, anche grazie all'eccellente registrazione di questo album, si è resa ancora più apprezzabile, ed è stato un vero piacere riascoltare un disco dall'inizio alla fine, come si faceva un tempo, quando non si saltava avanti e indietro sui vari brani . Sono soddisfatto dell'acquisto, e posso senz'altro consigliare la VM95E agli altri appassionati, anche a coloro che non definendosi audiofili vogliono utilizzare una ottimo prodotto, e che magari non avendo disponibilità economiche elevate, possono godersi con questa testina il piacere dell'ascolto dei loro dischi sapendo di avere fatto una buona scelta.