Home > Consumer Reviews > Audio-technica AT 92ECD - Phono cartridge

This particular Audio Technica cartridge will suprisingly enough yield very crisp and clear audio quality. Bass response is tight but not overwhelming nor weak. The wonderful thing about this type of cartridge is that it's basically a plug and play set up (just have to tighten a screw to hold it in place with most P-mount systems). The elliptical stylus or tip is designed for better contact with the stereo groove walls in a record resulting in better frequency response and clarity. The user does not have to worry about how much stylus pressure,weight, or anti-skating to provide to get the most from this cartridge;that's the beauty of using this cartridge on a P-mount tonearm instead of as a standard one...This cartrdige will perform admirably when used for regular record listening conditions. This is not a DJ stylus to scratch with as you may damage the needle and the record ("burn"). Also, it is more suitable for playing any kind of music except classical or jazz where a high end audiophile cartridge/needle would be needed. Such a high end cartridge and needle would bring out extreme musical detail as well as the ambiance or "air" of the instruments. Also, that would allow for better stereo separation as well... This is only a better than average cartridge meaning that you will only get about maybe a little over a year's worth of use from it (if you played one or 2 records a day or every 2 days respectively). That is also the difference between a basic low priced cartridge/stylus versus an audiophile grade one (those can usually go for about 5 years---but you would be talking anywhere from hundreds to maybe thousands of dollars).

This Audio Technica cartridge, like one I've bought before from them, sounds decent on my old Sony turntable. I'm not looking for hi-fi sound, just something to play my old records on my old turntable, so this cartridge suits my purposes.

However, I do have one major gripe: the bottom white part of the cartridge sometimes rests on my records, dragging across them at the same level as the cartridge needle. I've adjusted the tracking of my turntable and the tonearm weight to fix this, but I have to adjust the settings fairly often for different records to make sure the finicky cartridge isn't dragging on my records. The tonearm weight and tracking settings must be very finely adjusted, or else the cartridge rests atop the records, or skips off the edge of the record. I haven't had this problem with cartridges before (except for a similar Audio Technica cartridge bought a few years ago), and am not sure why they designed this one so the cartridge base is almost as low as the needle.

If you don't want your records scratched, I would recommend buying a different cartridge (perhaps one of the longer, ink-pen-shaped cartridges, but these are more expensive). However, if you're simply looking for a decent-sounding cartridge to play old records that are already warped or scratched, and if you have the patience to adjust your tonearm and tracking once in awhile, this cartridge should suit you fine. \

It would be nice, though, if Audio Technica would throw out this design and create a new base cartridge model, because they've had this one for at least several years, and it doesn't work well.

This is an excellent all around solid performer. When compared to a Shure 92E, this Audio Technica 92ECD stands head and shoulders above the Shure in terms of high frequency response-cymbals etc. I'm sure the narrower elliptical stylus helps. No, it's not as "neutral" sounding as the Shure, but, to my ear anyway, is much "brighter" but also balanced. This is a good basic upgrade cartridge. It's not an "audiophile" contender but reproduces music nicely, well beyond most basic cartridges. Good "universal" value especially in that it can be used as either a P mount or standard. Have a listen, you can't go wrong for the price.

It has been my (long) experience that Audio Technica products are generally competently designed and remarkably durable in actual consumer use. This little workhorse (AT-pl120)is no exception. It took the place of the standard cartridge included with an Icon USB turntable (a bad choice on my part, BTW), the stylus of which bent to an unusable angle for no particular reason. Rather than spend $22 on a replacement stylus, I popped for a pair of these A-T and am very satisfied. No audiophiliac pretensions, to be sure, but a well-made product at a decent price.

Ok, I'm a bottom feeder, I admit it. But I want the best I can get for my money. I bought one of these (after reading great reviews) for my old tt with a p-mount for archiving and was very pleased. So pleased in fact that I though I'd try it with my new Denon tt (300p?).
My Denon isn't a p-mount but this cartridge came with an adaptor. The results were very good. Only one problem, the scraping of the cart on the record (mentioned earlier) showed up - bummer. I was about to take it off the Denon when it occurred to me, if I could change the angle of the adaptor, I could keep it from scraping.
A few minutes angling the top on my little belt sander an voila!, we're good to go. So, I'm waiting on the next one I ordered for my p-mount tt so I can get back to archiving.
The only downside on this unit is that there is a little more "groove noise". Maybe because it's a smaller size needle and it gets further into the grooves (producing more sound) - I dunno but it's way worth it if your not an audiophile but you still appreciate good sound. Maybe some day I'd upgrade but you know, there's a reason I haven't listened to some of my albums in years - they're not all great!