| Review of Shure M44-7 Cartridge | | | | force is exceptionally low and that translates into less |
| I first bought this stylus a few years ago when I | | | | damage over time to your vinyl. |
| started scratching. My poor technique meant that the | | | | In addition to handling great, these carts also sound |
| needle kept jumping out of the groove. Plus all the | | | | awesome! They seem to sound best with hip hop - |
| scratching meant that I was burning through my | | | | the bass is boosted a little bit. Overall they are very |
| records pretty fast. So I went down to my local DJ | | | | clear and capable of getting really loud. |
| store and was recommended the Shure M44-& | | | | Shure also makes another model - the Shure M44G - |
| Cartridge. | | | | that looks identical to the Shure M44-7. I had been |
| After taking it home and getting it out of its package, | | | | confused by this when I first bought my Shures |
| my first impressions was that it was very oddly | | | | because the guy at the DJ store wasn't able to tell me |
| shaped. I had never seen a cart like this - it looked like | | | | the difference. But the difference between these is |
| a little plastic brick. The cart's shape somewhat | | | | that the M44G has a more balanced output. This |
| effected the installation process - I had to use different | | | | means that the lows are accentuated like with the |
| screws to attach it to the tone arm. But this wasn't a | | | | M44-7s and therefore this is the needle you are going |
| big deal as these longer screws were included. | | | | to want if you are playing electronic music like trance |
| After I had them hooked up I dropped a record on the | | | | or house. The M44G does give up a little of the |
| turntable and gave the Shure a try. I noticed the | | | | M44-&s tracking force, but it still handles great. |
| difference immediately noticed the difference. The | | | | All in all, you can't go wrong with this product. In fact, |
| needle stayed in the groove despite my heavy handed | | | | the instructions for Serato's Scratch Live program |
| scratching. It seemed glued in there. It performs so well | | | | state that it will perform optimally with either of these |
| that DJs are bound to get worried about record wear. | | | | Shure cartridges. |
| But that is not a concern with these carts! The tracking | | | | |