AT-VM95E Dual Moving Magnet Turntable Cartridge Green

The VM95 line of cartridges are your best value price/performance on the market today. The 95E has excellent clarity, bass and full range. You can buy better in this price range. Easy setup, top quality product that I always recommend. The records sound great with this stylus and cart. There are other stylus in the line that work on this cartridge without having to change the cartridge which is a great design feature. The design also makes it fit easily during installation. Product functions as expected.

The sound quality of this cartridge rivals the $200 (in the 80's!!) Audio-Technica AT29SX. For the cost of a replacement stylus for that 29 today, I can buy approximately 3 of these! This is a great, amazing value in a quality phono cartridge. The AT-VM95E features an elliptical diamond stylus which tracks the record groove smoothly and accurately. The sound quality is phenomenal. Deep lows that had the sub under my desk making happy vibes, crystal clear highs with treble extension and clarity that a CD can't touch, and the midrange is present, forward and clear. Female vocals are textured, full and weighty. I auditioned Carole King's Tapestry and was blown away. The piano in "Smackwater Jack" was in the room with me. Stereo imaging and soundstage are broad and have good instrument placement and separation. With a claimed 20db of stereo separation, I'd call it conservatively rated. The soundstage moves outside the speakers and there's plenty of channel separation for my ears. While on the subject of specs, I have no doubt on the validity of the claimed 20Hz-22kHz frequency response! The depths of lows I was able to hear and the reach and clarity of the highs left no detectable rolloff in my listening. All said, this is beyond a great value, it's a must buy. If you're in the market for a replacement, an upgrade or are resurrecting and old turntable, look no further. I've been an Audio-Technica fan since I knew what a cartridge did. I've owned Shures, Pickerings, Ortofons, Empires and Nagaokas. I keep recommending AT. The design of this cartridge is well thought out. The threaded screw inserts are a dream for those of us with older eyes and fingers. No more fumbling with those tiny nuts. In my case, the short body on this cartridge (see the pic of my old AT-29SX above - it's long) allows it to mount fully forward in my angled Sony headshell. Alignment was confirmed on a cartridge protractor to be spot on. Not sure if this will be the case with all headshells on all tonearms. Likely not, but it's nice to get lucky sometimes! Gripes... OK, all rave reviews need a gripe or two. None rise to the level of deducting a star, mind you, but nevertheless there are some niggles. First, the old white-body AT cartridges of yesteryear had tiny colored rings around the connection pins. This made it a no-brainer to see where each wire went. Of course, this was decades before one could solve the question with a 15 second Google search. Second, every AT cartridge I bought back in the stone age included a screwdriver. What gives? Of course for $65 bucks, I suppose I can live with it. And third, wait...there is no third. Another great feature of this cartridge is the broad range of upgrade styli available. AT has carried this tradition forwards from years ago and it continues to be a reason I would choose them again. My setup here is a Sony PS-T22 (circa 1980) with upgraded audio cables feeding an iFi Zen Air Phono preamp into a FiiO K7 DAC (just using the line-in and headphone amp). From there I am running a SMSL A300 integrated amplifier feeding Neumi BS5 bookshelf speakers. For critical listening, I usually rely on my in-ear monitors. My go-to IEMs are the iBasso IT01s. These are what I used for much of the review above.

First, allow me to tell you a little about my audios setup. It is a Scott PS 48A turntable given to me by a good friend as she had no use for it. Denon AVR-X1300W with Marantz Imperial 9 speakers and Pioneer surround sound speakers that came with a Pioneer system I had purchased previously. The Auidio-Technica VM95e cartridge was digitally set/weighed at1.96 grams, antiskate at 2 and aligned with a turntable protracter. I HIGHLY SUGGEST DOING THIS FOR USAGE. Get a magnifying glass with LED lights, eyeglass screwdriver, and tweezer or a small needle-nose plier. I was going to purchase a Ortofon cartridge system, but my tow arm did not fit the specs suggested. RESULTS- the clearest reproduction of sound with the stereophonic emusion I hoped to acheive on a small budget with old equipment. The VM95e brought new life with high fidelity! You will hear things from your records that you never knew existed as the mid-range and highs are expressed with clearity. I would recommend this needle for a low-power system as well. However, nothing is perfect. To that, you make adjustments if possible. DOWNSIDE - the Marantzs speakers forementioned has 4-mid range and 2-piezo tweeters each and boy did they come alive! Cymbals perching that shocked my constitution. However, IT WAS NOT DISTORTED. i WANT TO MAKE THAT CLEAR. I had to bring down the TREDLE to 2 and increase the BASS to 3 out of 5 levels gradience of both. I regained the natural sound while retaining the clarity/fidelity of the system. Last all caps, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS SYSTEM, THE AUDIO-TECHICA VM95e! Yes, I will buy another one when the time comes for that.

Sounds pretty good.

After thrifting a second turntable for my classroom setup, I took the opportunity to upgrade the cartridge and stylus on my Dual 1209 to this elliptical model. I transferred my previous cartridge and AT3600L stylus to the classroom turntable. Audio Technica has long held a strong reputation for quality cartridge/stylus combos, and this model did not disappoint. The elliptical stylus sits deeper in the grooves, providing greater depth and clarity of sound. It was easy to set up and install with basic knowledge of how the system functions. Make sure you are gentle while removing and replacing the wire leads, as these can be quite delicate. Also make sure to properly align the cartridge/stylus/head with the grooves and adjust your tonearm balance to maintain the proper tracking force, avoid damaging your records. Finally, be aware that an elliptical stylus will behave differently than a conical stylus in terms of "skating," so you will also probably need to readjust your anti-skate setting. So far, I am very pleased with the performance of this combo. It delivers a richer sound across a wider frequency range, and may even allow me to explore the quadraphonic capabilities of my vintage receiver if and when I add two more speakers to the setup.

I’m switching from a conical stylus to an elliptical stylus. What a difference. It really is worth the price. I’m sure my vinyl will last longer as well.

Inherited an old turntable…and it has been brought back to life? Satisfies the latest turntable trend of 2026.

I am beyond impressed. I had an ortofon om5e and I truthfully didn’t like the sound from that cartridge at all and I’ve heard other cartridges from them and this one just seems to blow it away for the money that it costs. I think this is the way better option by a longshot. I have this on a pioneer PL – L 1000 linear tracking turntable.