Love your reviews, Mojaxx. One of the few reviewers I feel that I can genuinely rely on to give us a well balanced, well thought out review. Keep up the great work!
Ive had a pair of the VNLs for about two weeks. Previously a M447 user. Mojaxx's comments are exactly what I have to say! Love them so far. Having fun breaking them in. Its crazy how much you can feel the difference between styli.
These needles are amazing got mine back in December and to be honest I feel like I got a new pair of shure m44-7s . These needles are fucking dope . Highly recommend!!!!
I've been an M447 user for decades so when they were discontinued I was worried about getting replacement stylus. I eventually wound up going with Jico and I really like them. One tip though, the Jico stylus perform much better if you use the headshell weight with them. I think they are a little more rigid than the Shure's which is good because they don't ride as close to the record and they aren't as fragile, but they do need that headshell weight to hold just right. I never had to use the headshell weight with the original 447 stylus, but with the Jico's, that combo seems to work really well.
@@DV91 sorry did not see this reply until now. Skip resistance seems good. I may however try to get some M44s if i can some people say Jico are decent alternatives to the classics.
I got them last week. Seem to work great with DVS. Played around with some 45s today using the firm stylus and the VNL ate up my grooves where I back cued. Now I have heavy cue burn on the records I used today, which sucks because I used some of one of my favorite records. I’ve tracked my silver concords heavier than the VNL at 4grams and they don’t do that. My 447s never did that either. Hopefully the other less rod fit styli don’t do the same, because before this, I really liked their sound and performance. Lesson learned for me, when I buying new cartridges. Use test records first 🤦🏻♂️. This was a first for me.
@@sgtcreasegrease I remember, tracking wise, they didn’t hold on that much differently. Firm one did skip less with heavy scratching for me, but maybe after some breaking in, the others would have performed better. Using styrene 45s the less rigid ones gave me less cue burn. On regular vinyl and DVS, they worked great and sound really good. Most DJs will love these.
DJcityTV team: ok so i bought myself the Ortofon Concorde Digital DJ cartridges a few months ago (a little bit before discovering the Ortofon VNL). Real quick i’d just like to know overall which would you prefer--the concorde digitals or the vnl’s? And in comparison, how does each match up with the M44-7’s?
I am definitely getting the VNL's because of it's stylus options and I had seen them in a vigorous scratch test no skipping. Thanks for the great review as always Mojaxx.
I’ve asked for these off the family for Christmas so they are clubbing together to hook me up, I’ll probably be picking some up on Friday from the DJ Superstore in Southend hopefully!
Hey Mojaxx how would these compare to the Concorde Club MK2 for playing real vinyl (blending/ mixing, no scratching). Really like the look of these but not sure if I'd be better of with the elliptic stylus just for vinyl. Any advise would be greatly appreciated, thanks for these excellent reviews!
I am in same boat, need to upgrade to avoid Jico stylus costs on Shure M447 carts. So thinking after Mojaxx's soundcloud comparisons that Concorde DJ mk2 was what I wanted.. but now I need a comparison between DJ and VNL carts to decide. One benefit of VNL is they are a bit cheaper (since need to provide own headshells and headshell leads) and come with three stylus in the box. If you can actually 'use' all three stylus properly, not sure.
I used these on vinyl and they are amazing . Just like my shure m44-7. Sound quality in my vinyl is amazing and I haven’t notice any wear on my vinyl at all
Wish I had started scratching while the Shure M44-7 was still in production. I feel I missed out big time, but I have ordered a Vnl today so hopefully il be impressed 😎
Cartridge is dope I bought one pair to check it out it got 3 needle the number one is just for mixing n listen to record the two is ok but not for hard cord turntablelis scratch it slide when scratch is good for mixing n do little scratch the 3 is better for turntablelis they take that hard scratch n back cue the 3 feel like the m 447 Shure to me I been DJ since 89 I had tried so many cartridge neddle well this cartridge is dope but people use the needle number 3 if you are into battle turntablelis they feel like the m 447 Shure once it break down anyway they are dope fresh cartridge but remember the number 3 neddle is better to me. Y'all need to be the judge of it every DJ got he oh she own style they look fresh on my technic head shelf n remind me of my Shure m447 cartridge.
hi, i just bought Ortofon VNL cartridge, installed in on Ortofon SH-4 and mounted on my Technics 1210 MK5. However, even if I set the height of the tonearm to 0mm the tonearm is still not aligned horizontaly with the vinyl. Any suggestions on how to fix this? I was thinking of using one more screw between the headshell and the cartridge but not sure if this is good solution. Any ideas? has anyone managed to adjust the Ortofon VNL on technics 1210 MK5? Thanks!
@TheKizilg1 mine does not touch the record. it seems you headsheel or tonearm is bended. I contacted Ortofon support and they said that mine setup is ok and it is normal that the tonearm is not 100% parallel with the record. I have very thin slipmat (dr suzuki).
Please review the ATXP range from Audio Technica,they claim to be much more audiophile than any other standard dj cart.. Which is interesting for a particular style of djing
I really been trying to get a pair of M44-7, but I feel a little rest assured that these cartridges are comparable (by a reputable company) . Great review
I come from using M447, visually it takes some time getting use to with the VNL they look a lot taller for my liking. I just purchased the concorde MK2 "scratch" last year for my M5G'S, but im looking to add the VNL to my Vestax PDX2000 because i use M447 on that turntable to do scratch sessions.
@@mxp6466 i would say being a first time owner of ortofons they are sick (in a good way)!!! Given their bad rep from back then where the stylus would wear out the vinyl, not so much now! specially now that they've added "spherical needle line" which is what shure needles had, the ortofon concorde 'scratch' mk2 are definitely designed for dj's that backspin and scratch vigorously. If you choose stay with the headshell style you might want to check out the "OM" line.
@@itimmy101 I think the older scratch models sounded better and stuck better. The new mk2 have shittier specs. And cant get replacement stylus for mk1 anymore.
Jelco is coming out with their own 44-7 AND 44-G replacement cartridge and needle. Not sure how VNL will stack up against those, but I think I'd go with those before settling for the Ortofons.
Jelco don't make cartridges. You mean Jico. www.jelco-ichikawa.co.jp/ And fuck those inferior Jico Shure ripoffs.. Ortofon will be better than that. They are way expensive too. Fuck Jico. You see how much replacement stylus are for Jico.. ??
Nice cartridge but it offers a minimum weight range, you have to go at maximum tonearm weight to have the recommended of 4/5g.. but you can’t go over 6.5 grams with extra weight??? sounds like a 44 and a 680 in my ears, worth for the price, stylus cover is cheap and loose already
@@trevor_mounts_music I have compared the 44-7s to the Jico’s for the last year consistently. It’s really hard to tell the difference even with wax or digital. I noticed that the Jico’s will jump a little when scratching before there fully broken in. But other than that very hard to tell sometimes I think the bass is better slightly with the Jico’s when using real vinyl or wax as some call it. But then I’m back to the 44-7s testing them again on serato and wax. Hard to tell and I have a superior ear and equipment. Luckily I still have plenty of 44-7s in stock still. Longevity between the Jico’s and the 44-7s is hard to say. I have been recording the hours of play on both. But haven’t come to my conclusion yet on that part of the subject. You won’t be disappointed with Jico.
@@djbrs8549 Nice. I gig like every week on Rekordbox DVS or wax, so it's good to know they do what they say they are gonna on the box. I'm not quite ready to jump ship to the ortofons yet! 😂
@@TURK_182 Hey what’s up I bought them about a two years ago in bulk. Yeah I do hear that there’s some replicas out there definitely not these. I bought them from a shure authorized dealer.
So more expensive then M44-7's with a major drop in overall output. Sounds about right from a company that loves having 20 different models, one off discontinues, and re-designs that all have the magical coincidence of making DJ's replace their entire set of needles as often as humanly possible which makes Ortofon as much money as humanly possible. Pretty bummed they are pretty much the last option for working poor scratch dj's because Ortofon has some scummy business practices.
Love your reviews, Mojaxx. One of the few reviewers I feel that I can genuinely rely on to give us a well balanced, well thought out review. Keep up the great work!
I'm glad needles are still being made I miss my old 500s and 680s.
My favorite was the 680AL
@@TheAnunnaki-NYC 680HP for me. Loved the sound of that thing.
Mojaxx, always love your frank and honest reviews. 👌
Ive had a pair of the VNLs for about two weeks. Previously a M447 user. Mojaxx's comments are exactly what I have to say! Love them so far. Having fun breaking them in. Its crazy how much you can feel the difference between styli.
What is the best quality bro VNLs? or M447?
@@Anonymous74GR jico 44/7
Ordered some replacements for the m447s shipping from Albania even has the plastic covers.
@@boogiedownbronx73 fuck Jico, they aren't that good
what is the difference between styli like to you? What purposes would you assign them?
These needles are amazing got mine back in December and to be honest I feel like I got a new pair of shure m44-7s . These needles are fucking dope . Highly recommend!!!!
I've been an M447 user for decades so when they were discontinued I was worried about getting replacement stylus. I eventually wound up going with Jico and I really like them. One tip though, the Jico stylus perform much better if you use the headshell weight with them. I think they are a little more rigid than the Shure's which is good because they don't ride as close to the record and they aren't as fragile, but they do need that headshell weight to hold just right. I never had to use the headshell weight with the original 447 stylus, but with the Jico's, that combo seems to work really well.
Did you ever do a longterm review of these VNL's?
I have the VNL’s sound quality is great, never owned a pair of M44’s so cant really compare. They track really well with the firm needle.
Is the skip resistance good?
Followed your review on the Concorde and got a pair of yellow club MK2 - so good for me as a mix dj - no scratching...
@@DV91 sorry did not see this reply until now. Skip resistance seems good. I may however try to get some M44s if i can some people say Jico are decent alternatives to the classics.
VNL or Q.Berts?
Which hold better? Which sound better?
I got them last week. Seem to work great with DVS. Played around with some 45s today using the firm stylus and the VNL ate up my grooves where I back cued. Now I have heavy cue burn on the records I used today, which sucks because I used some of one of my favorite records. I’ve tracked my silver concords heavier than the VNL at 4grams and they don’t do that. My 447s never did that either. Hopefully the other less rod fit styli don’t do the same, because before this, I really liked their sound and performance. Lesson learned for me, when I buying new cartridges. Use test records first 🤦🏻♂️. This was a first for me.
How are the other two needles?
@@sgtcreasegrease I remember, tracking wise, they didn’t hold on that much differently. Firm one did skip less with heavy scratching for me, but maybe after some breaking in, the others would have performed better. Using styrene 45s the less rigid ones gave me less cue burn. On regular vinyl and DVS, they worked great and sound really good. Most DJs will love these.
DJcityTV team: ok so i bought myself the Ortofon Concorde Digital DJ cartridges a few months ago (a little bit before discovering the Ortofon VNL). Real quick i’d just like to know overall which would you prefer--the concorde digitals or the vnl’s? And in comparison, how does each match up with the M44-7’s?
I am definitely getting the VNL's because of it's stylus options and I had seen them in a vigorous scratch test no skipping. Thanks for the great review as always Mojaxx.
Any link to that scratch test ?
@@deejaySilence th-cam.com/video/WAL-4elU6xM/w-d-xo.html
@@deejaySilence I put the link, Video is in Japanese, they do the scratching about 1 minute into the video.
@@djmalcolmXL Thnxx bro
so you think Concorde Mk2 DJ carts skip in same test?
I’ve asked for these off the family for Christmas so they are clubbing together to hook me up, I’ll probably be picking some up on Friday from the DJ Superstore in Southend hopefully!
Hmm this might be what we need for us Shure m447s users
I wonder what’s better, these or the jico’s?
@@DV91 these
Hey Mojaxx how would these compare to the Concorde Club MK2 for playing real vinyl (blending/ mixing, no scratching). Really like the look of these but not sure if I'd be better of with the elliptic stylus just for vinyl. Any advise would be greatly appreciated, thanks for these excellent reviews!
I am in same boat, need to upgrade to avoid Jico stylus costs on Shure M447 carts. So thinking after Mojaxx's soundcloud comparisons that Concorde DJ mk2 was what I wanted.. but now I need a comparison between DJ and VNL carts to decide. One benefit of VNL is they are a bit cheaper (since need to provide own headshells and headshell leads) and come with three stylus in the box. If you can actually 'use' all three stylus properly, not sure.
VNL or MKii ? . Thx
I used these on vinyl and they are amazing . Just like my shure m44-7. Sound quality in my vinyl is amazing and I haven’t notice any wear on my vinyl at all
Wish I had started scratching while the Shure M44-7 was still in production. I feel I missed out big time, but I have ordered a Vnl today so hopefully il be impressed 😎
thx as always for the great overview. cheers.
Did somebody already buy and test the Ortofon VNL?
I wonder why there is absolutely no reviews yet...
I highly recommend. They’re perfect and look amazing mounted . It’s a perfect needle. Sound is amazing no skipping awesome .
I finally got them and I have big skipping issues. But as it seems most people are happy with them
Cartridge is dope I bought one pair to check it out it got 3 needle the number one is just for mixing n listen to record the two is ok but not for hard cord turntablelis scratch it slide when scratch is good for mixing n do little scratch the 3 is better for turntablelis they take that hard scratch n back cue the 3 feel like the m 447 Shure to me I been DJ since 89 I had tried so many cartridge neddle well this cartridge is dope but people use the needle number 3 if you are into battle turntablelis they feel like the m 447 Shure once it break down anyway they are dope fresh cartridge but remember the number 3 neddle is better to me. Y'all need to be the judge of it every DJ got he oh she own style they look fresh on my technic head shelf n remind me of my Shure m447 cartridge.
@@EMBEEclassic try adjusting the weight and height on the tonearm
@@EMBEEclassic and also the Anti skate
Excellent review
What tracking force do you recommend ?
did ya ever do a follow up?
No updated review? Also these still come with 3 needles
hi, i just bought Ortofon VNL cartridge, installed in on Ortofon SH-4 and mounted on my Technics 1210 MK5. However, even if I set the height of the tonearm to 0mm the tonearm is still not aligned horizontaly with the vinyl. Any suggestions on how to fix this?
I was thinking of using one more screw between the headshell and the cartridge but not sure if this is good solution. Any ideas? has anyone managed to adjust the Ortofon VNL on technics 1210 MK5? Thanks!
Adjust tonearm hight? 🤣
@TheKizilg1 mine does not touch the record. it seems you headsheel or tonearm is bended. I contacted Ortofon support and they said that mine setup is ok and it is normal that the tonearm is not 100% parallel with the record. I have very thin slipmat (dr suzuki).
Please review the ATXP range from Audio Technica,they claim to be much more audiophile than any other standard dj cart.. Which is interesting for a particular style of djing
the only problem I want to know is does it skip even you press hard on vinyl
I really been trying to get a pair of M44-7, but I feel a little rest assured that these cartridges are comparable (by a reputable company) . Great review
You still can for $500each needle
@@Shmack_ It’s not the serious for me, I’d much rather a synthesizer, some analog gear or a controller. That’s insane
I come from using M447, visually it takes some time getting use to with the VNL they look a lot taller for my liking. I just purchased the concorde MK2 "scratch" last year for my M5G'S, but im looking to add the VNL to my Vestax PDX2000 because i use M447 on that turntable to do scratch sessions.
How do you like the concord scratch needles? I'm nearly out of 447 needles and am interested in switching over.
@@mxp6466 i would say being a first time owner of ortofons they are sick (in a good way)!!! Given their bad rep from back then where the stylus would wear out the vinyl, not so much now! specially now that they've added "spherical needle line" which is what shure needles had, the ortofon concorde 'scratch' mk2 are definitely designed for dj's that backspin and scratch vigorously. If you choose stay with the headshell style you might want to check out the "OM" line.
@@itimmy101 I think the older scratch models sounded better and stuck better. The new mk2 have shittier specs. And cant get replacement stylus for mk1 anymore.
2 Days to go!
how you feel bout em now?
Hey Mojaxx, it’s everyone
Jelco is coming out with their own 44-7 AND 44-G replacement cartridge and needle. Not sure how VNL will stack up against those, but I think I'd go with those before settling for the Ortofons.
Jelco don't make cartridges. You mean Jico. www.jelco-ichikawa.co.jp/ And fuck those inferior Jico Shure ripoffs.. Ortofon will be better than that. They are way expensive too. Fuck Jico. You see how much replacement stylus are for Jico.. ??
Don’t fuck with jelco get some VNLs. Highly recommend. They’re amazing and it feels like I’m on shure needles !
Must cop.
When is someone gonna compare these to the q.berts
They shure look farmiliar
Nice cartridge but it offers a minimum weight range, you have to go at maximum tonearm weight to have the recommended of 4/5g.. but you can’t go over 6.5 grams with extra weight??? sounds like a 44 and a 680 in my ears, worth for the price, stylus cover is cheap and loose already
Dopeness.
sound quality compared to the qbert ortophones
Why ? Just buy the Jico's I find them excellent.
6mv what is that about? Makes no sense
That's why I'm kind of wary...44-7s have always been super loud and good for me
@@trevor_mounts_music I have compared the 44-7s to the Jico’s for the last year consistently. It’s really hard to tell the difference even with wax or digital. I noticed that the Jico’s will jump a little when scratching before there fully broken in. But other than that very hard to tell sometimes I think the bass is better slightly with the Jico’s when using real vinyl or wax as some call it. But then I’m back to the 44-7s testing them again on serato and wax. Hard to tell and I have a superior ear and equipment. Luckily I still have plenty of 44-7s in stock still. Longevity between the Jico’s and the 44-7s is hard to say. I have been recording the hours of play on both. But haven’t come to my conclusion yet on that part of the subject. You won’t be disappointed with Jico.
@@djbrs8549 Nice. I gig like every week on Rekordbox DVS or wax, so it's good to know they do what they say they are gonna on the box. I'm not quite ready to jump ship to the ortofons yet! 😂
Where did you find them? I heard there's some bootleg ones out there
@@TURK_182 Hey what’s up I bought them about a two years ago in bulk. Yeah I do hear that there’s some replicas out there definitely not these. I bought them from a shure authorized dealer.
These damn things do not even come with wires. How in the hell do you sell a cart that mounts to a headshell and not include the wires?
So more expensive then M44-7's with a major drop in overall output. Sounds about right from a company that loves having 20 different models, one off discontinues, and re-designs that all have the magical coincidence of making DJ's replace their entire set of needles as often as humanly possible which makes Ortofon as much money as humanly possible. Pretty bummed they are pretty much the last option for working poor scratch dj's because Ortofon has some scummy business practices.
it isn't a beauty that's for shure
VNL looks UGLY AF and BIG AF !!! what were they thinking...I am very happy with JICO being my new supply for M44/7s