Shure M97xE High-Performance Magnetic Phono Cartridge

This phono cartridge from Shure is sure to please many users. It is very stable even with a low tracking force of 1.2grs which helps preserving your cherished records. The sound quality coming out of it is amazingly clear and well balanced for the price. I am truly satisfied with my purchased and will probably won't change it for anything else (unless I upgrade my turntable and go for a high end cartdrige to go with). Recommended purchase for all vinyl freaks like me. Regards, Sam from France

It's everything the reviews say. Wonderfully natural sound. Tracks at little more that 1gram so your precious vinyl will last forever AND somehow it misses any dirt in the grooves. I sometimes think that I'm listening to the quietness of a CD but the glorious sound of analogue!

I just installed this gem the other day and my first impression was that is lacked "air" at the top end, compared to the AT440mla that had been in my Dual 1219. But, after listening more, I realized that while that may have been true, so much more resolution was going on, that I really like this number from Shure.
It has a very solid soundstage, and the mids are huge, just the way I like them. The lower bass is lighter than the AT440mla, but the bass is there, only, more in the mid bass area, which adds that "pop" to the music I like to listen to, without being muddy. (Steely Dan, SRV, jazz, blues, etc).
As far as the upper end goes, if I want more highs, I just turn up the "treble" on my Mac, and all is good.
This is a fantastic bargain from Shure, and will please most discerning listeners unless you are one of the few audio snobs who dont believe that a lot of good sound can be had for a little bit of cash.

I've installed (and reinstalled) this cartridge in two turntables. In my trusty Dual 1229, I drove myself crazy attaching and reattaching the headshell, using the included Shure protractor as well as other online protractors to align the cartridge, balancing and rebalancing the tonearm, trying brush up vs. brush down, etc. I still had an unacceptable level of sibilance and inner groove distortion. The best explanation I have for this phenomenom is the unconventional shape and of the mount - it just wouldn't align properly with this table. The middle tracks of LPs sounded nice and warm (though not remarkably detailed).

The second table is a less loved but nonetheless competent Pioneer PL-S40 - pretty standard design direct drive table from the early 1980s. In this table, the distortion issues were much reduced as the cartridge installed nicely (though I still had unacceptable levels of sibilance). On the other hand, I had a horrendously difficult time tracking my difficult records. I had to set tracking force to 2 (with brush down) to get it to stay on the record, and there's nothing more terrifying than watching the stylus bounce across your favorite records even after you've used Shure's stylus force gauge (which is a wonderful product, btw).

Many helpful internet vinylphiles insist my particular cartridge is defective, and with this in mind I've contacted Shure twice to no avail - this despite having the receipt and having bought from an authorized dealer. Not cool, Shure.

In short, this highly regarded budget cartridge seriously let me down. It does have a pleasant sound, but it's not the easy budget hi-fi cartridge it's made out to be. My easy recommendation is the Audio-Technica AT95E which does provide most of the hi-fi sound for around the same price as this Shure cartridge. The AT95E tracks like a champ though its recommended force of 2.0 grams is a wee bit higher than the Shure's. If the AT's particular detailed, involving flavor puts you off, Grado's black and green are also wonderful cartridges more in line with the Shure's warmth that might work better with your gear if you have these problems.

This might be the cartridge many say it is, but Shure won't support the product and I hope you all understand that I'm not going to blow my dough for another cartridge to test out the faulty product theory after this experience. Time's are tough, man. :)

For a modest price the M97xE provides 90-95% (subjectively speaking) of the benefit of its now-deceased parents, the V15 and other V-series predecessors, which cost approximately seven times as much. The sound of this cartridge is almost indistinguishable from its expensive ancestors; but, to my ears, the V15 was just slightly better at tracking the most difficult bands on the Shure Era 4 test record; and I think I hear very slightly more mistracking by the M97xE on regular (non-test) recordings.

I noticed in one or two reviews on the Internet that some audiophiles experienced higher-than-usual surface noise with the M97xE. Other reviews contradict this, as do I; I hear no elevated surface noise; those who had a problem probably did so because of improper alignment of the cartridge with respect to the turntable platter. I heartily recommend this cartridge; and if you buy it, I suggest you check the Internet for instructions on how to use the included alignment adjustment protractor so that you can get the full benefit. (Although the cartridge comes very nicely packaged with mounting screws, screwdriver, and cleaning brush, the instruction sheet leaves something to be desired; that and the failure to match 100% of the tracking ability of the V15 are the only reasons I did not give the cartridge a full five stars.)