The Shure M97xE’s measured frequency response shows that the upper end starts to gradually roll off from 4kHz on up. Left and right traces track fairly closely until about 10kHz....
...In 1998, when Shure moved phono cartridge production to a new smaller factory, the typical laminated cores used in good phono cartridges were replaced by a solid core....
...Note the imbalance above in the graph above 3000 Hz which may be a quality control issue...
...it is not just amplitude but also phase that changes with frequency in the crosstalk measurement.
...the large amount of pleasing 2nd harmonic distortion
...Spurs at 120Hz and 360Hz are from power line hum getting into the cartridge.
...A few claim that this pink noise floor may contribute to the LP – CD debate. The added noise is conjectured somehow to be perceived as subjectively pleasing
...his graph shows measured channel separation at 5kHz to be 19 dB. Note the noise floor on the right (silent side) is lower than the modulated left channel.
...With the stabilizer brush up, the resonance is at 7.5Hz. The Q is calculated from the amplitude at resonance and the two frequencies -3dB down on the sides of the resonance. The higher the Q the more energy storage in the system. With the brush up, the resonance is at 7.5Hz and the Q was calculated to have a value of 4. The Q is likely higher than this and the FFT is limiting the resolution. More on Q calculation in an upcoming article, “How We Test Cartridges”, coming soon to the website.
With the brush down the amplitude of the resonance drops by 18dB. The Q has reduced to 1.4 indicating much less energy storage in the arm / stylus mechanical system.
High compliance is important for distortion performance when stylus displacements are high, especially at low tracking forces, but the trade is a low resonance frequency and high energy storage Q. The Shure brush solves this tradeoff.
...In general, it appears mis-tracking is defined to be audible distortion. On single tones that is around 5%. As will be seen below these numbers appear to be optimistic especially the 10kHz number.
...This graph shows the Shure M97xE having a THD of 1.5% at 1kHz.
...Stylus shape and tip mass play an important role in distortion tests. The Shure 0.2 x 0.7 mil stylus is thinner than others at this price range. The Shure has bonded stylus, common at this price point, which adds mass relative to nude mounting found in cartridges a little under twice this price.
...Those types of cartridges have a Micro Ridge stylus and low mass cantilevers made with materials such as beryllium or boron. The Shure V15 5MR and a long line of Audio Technica cartridges from the 80s to today had these ingredients along with high compliance. Audio Technica had no brush and the cartridges they produced had low frequency resonances with huge energy storage. You needed an external damping device added to the arm. Audio Technica has lowered the compliance in the latest cartridges which giveth and taketh away.
etc. etc. etc.