Whats the best needle for sampling vinyl?

[dmarz45]

Ive been looking at the ortofon arkiv and the shure whitelable. What is the best needle for sampling? Im looking for something thats not too expensive. I see that there is an Arkiv and a Arkiv Concord. What is the difference between the two?

[assembly_line]

stay away from the arkiv. after A/B'ing the two i found that the white label was far superior in all aspects.

[dmarz45]

Originally Posted by assembly_line

stay away from the arkiv. after A/B'ing the two i found that the white label was far superior in all aspects.

So you think I should go with the white label for sampling over ANY ortofon needle?

[Paul_G]

a great mastering engineer told me that to get real depth from vinyl you need an expensive audiophile type stylus. dj stylus' are too square to sit in the groove, as they are designed not to skip the sound is compromised.

[flip-o-mat]

Skratchworx - Number 1 for DJ Equipment News and Reviews

lot's of reviews there, including die archiv!

[RealSon]

For sampling from vinyl, I always use the Ortofon Nighclub system.

It has a very nice high end, very detailed, pretty good output level and an overall very nice image.
That needle is not very bass heavy, however when sampling I always prefer a detailed signal rather than a bass heavy signal.

Another good needle is the Ortofon Qbert. Very nice signals from those as well. Much more bass heavy and higher output than the Nighclub.

[DirtyMan]

this question all depends on your goals .. i bet half of all vinyl sampled is done with a 447 just because its already on the turntable and its a loud cart with a solid bottom it does kicks better than say a banana but it also chews records ... things to consider output volume is the eq curve desirable to you sonics and record burn ...personnaly if there was a funnel with a needle attached id sample with it ..

[alleyeseeing]

I use the Ortofon Qbert which has the highest output of all the Concord needles. I have all of them from blue to pink to flourescent green and have also used the majority of the Shure needles, I used to get all of them from the Executioners when they were sponsored by Shure. If Shure is what you choose the MM47 white tip are the best and have a finer more focused sound compared to the Qbert Needles. The Qbert are a bit wider sounding better bass and a little louder.

[dmarz45]

So I'm thinking about getting the white label or the m44 what do u suggest for the best under $130

[asylumdigital]

Interesting that you mentioned those two... I bought a new cartridge for my home tt about 4 months ago. Originally went w/ the arkiv. It came defective. output was distorted. After much wrangling w/ AMS (they didn't want to replace it at all) - I ended up switching for the white label. I love it - it sounds great...

[PureHeat]

I've played around with a few different cartridges and to my ears the Shure M447 may not sound the best going in, but it gave me the most to work with almost every time. Very punchy, and decent imaging.

I also tended to get better results when I lightened the downforce weight.

E.

[dmarz45]

I'm thinking about getting the white label. Would there be anything better than that in the same price range $125

[JaeOne3345]

44-7 hype up the bottom too much. I prefer the 44-g for all around use.

If I was gonna get a decent stylus/cart for sampling try a Grade Prestide Blue or Red or maybe even a Shure M97xE

Try Needle Doctor

[lord toranaga]

Shure M97xE High-Performance Magnetic Phono Cartridge - eBay (item 360153054964 end time Jun-04-09 23:11:34 PDT)

[viewingstuff]

what about stanton's?

[dmarz45]

I actually ended up getting the numark cc1 I wasn't trying to spend too much on a needle just for sampling. It sounds pretty good to me. I'm still debating if I should return it and get the white label tho.

[KevWest]

I have the white label needle and while I like it because its loud its not that much cleaner or better sounding than the lower end needles Ive used.