Thank you my friend!!! I had previously mistaken the carbon as a modified AT cart which did not have the Carbon cantilever. Thanks for pointing my mistake out👋😄. Hahaha...now Rega P1 users can all replace their styli with the AT3600L replacement styli!!! Job very well done Brother! May you continue to have a joyous vinyl analogue journey with lots of friends🎶🎵🎶🎶!!! Warmest Regards, ~ ian from Singapore🇸🇬😄🌞

Rega Carbon cost breakdown (cartridge $10, jewelry box $55).

The magnifying box would be great for an engagement ring .....if you were on a small budget

wow! I can't thank you enough for the time and energy you put into this extensive testing of both cartridges. Science WINS over marketing. You WIN the Internet today! You would think high end turntable companies like Thorens and Rega would be selling their expensive turntables with $500 carts, but I guess if a $12 cart has their name on it, people will trust what they say. The fact they are using these conical sylus cartridges and everyone thinks they sound better than the Ortofons than, there is something here to consider. Thank you, I'm taking delivery this week of my new Fluance RT81 turntable with the AT95E installed, and will pick one of these carts up to try. My present Pioneer PL200 direct drive is starting to misbehave with speed issues, and I have the Shure 97xe installed, but it's discontinued and to replace the stylus on it goes into getting a 60 month loan. Since I'm retired, fixed income, I'm trying to find a nice cart for the Fluance which will allow me to have the funds to replace the stylus economically. Thank you again for this wonderful YT video.

During the sibilance test, you can clearly see the L >> R imbalance is greater in the Rega. This is a great video.

For those of you that need a word to describe the attitude of people that swear the Carbon is better, that word is costification.

It's amazing how good those 11 dollar cartridges are. I have that cartridge in my Sony turntable. Man with a pair of good speakers that cheap cartridge sings. I don't care what anyone says.

The AT3600L came free with my vintage Technics. I don't know how they were able to get this much performance into a $11 cart - this thing is a perfect fit for scratched/worn records that I'm scared to play on my $300 line contact VM cartridge. I'd say it gets 40% of the sound quality with only 5% of the price.

Thanks for this great comparison. I'm thinking of delving into vinyl and you made me realise I don't need a stupidly expensive cartridge with the expensive stylus replacements to go with it. In fact, I'll more than likely go for a very nicely engineered turntable and a reasonably cheap cartridge as I can always upgrade later if I want.

Michael Fremer is cringing somewhere right now. 😂 Thank you for doing this to him. A great no BS comparison 👍

This is one of the best and easy to to understand comparisons reviews I’ve seen in a while. Well done VWestlife!

Come for the stylus reviews, stay for the DEVO-esque 45 records. No joke, imma try to find some Slugbug vinyl.

Thanks for taking the time to shed on light on this! I bought the 3600L for playing old records and letting the family use. It's a fun, pleasant sounding cheap cart. I added an LP Gear Vivid Line stylus, and it's transformed it into a real contender.

Thank you for the level of detail and effort in this video. I love learning these little nuances that make up the vinyl collection experience.

Its amazing how the AT3600L can perform for $11. I use the AT3600 on a Dual and Pioneer and it does sing so well!

I got AT3600L with my turntable about a year ago and I still can't believe how good it can be for 11 dollars!

Well done. Excellent job testing, removes all doubt as to all differences or the lack there of.

Great job comparing these cartridges with actual measurements. I like data!

I also bought one 3600l to replace my broken Grado G1+ and was so surprised in the sound difference. I bought 2 more. I use this on my technics 1200 mk2 and sl 3200. Thanks for this test.

VW you are amazing 🙌 I'm glad I found your channel. I'm new to LPs, ever since I was a child, I used to love when my father played LPs. Now I am buying my own gear and your reviews are very very helpful to save some money and give some clarity to someone who is new to LPs. Huge KUDOS to you! 👍

Just bought the AT3600 for the Turntable that I made with S Shape tone arm and after it's been playing for a few hours it's sounding better and better

VWestlife - debunking enthusiasts, audiophiles, and "hifi forurms posters" since 2007!

Only a matter of time until this appears on r/vinyl...

I have bought a few months ago the same $11 AT3600L by coincidence. I bought it as a spare pickup. When tried it out, I was shocked how good it is. I can confirm the same experience as in the video - that it's a SLEEPER pickup!

Well, as a guy who understands Chinese, the "Iron Triangle" is actually a direct translation of "AudioTec" this brand from Chinese. That is a nickname of AudioTec as the logo is like a triangular Iron~ lmao

Nothing more exciting than a new video from VWestlife :)

Thanks for the review and all the hard work you put into it! Good information!

Informative and money saving. Lovin' the content. You put in much time and effort to make this channel happen and it shows.

Thanks for your professionalism. I enjoyed the rigor of your tests. I still have my ERA III cartridge test record that I purchased in 1979. Your objective test clearly shows these two cartridges sound the same and are manufactured by Audio Technica.

Thanks for revealing the truth of marketing over substance in the audiophile world. I'd guess that this isn't an isolated case.

Thank you, I have an AT3600L in my "spares" box, and now, thanks to you, I have another on the way.

Thank you for mentioning the anti skating spring. I actually have this same turntable and was for a long time annoyed by the skating. I didnt know there was a fix for it but now I know what to do. Many thanks friend.

They`re exactly the same. I think any audible difference is in the tolerance of the cartridge or in the mounting process. They both work and that`s about it.

The AT3600 is a shockingly good cartridge. I put an LP Gear elliptical stylus on mine and it competes with all of the other fancier cartridges I have. If I didn’t love messing around with new cartridges, I would have stuck with it.

Very informative video, I have this exact same turntable so I popped on ebay and snagged the 3600N for $13 with free ship, ordered the exact same headshell as well. Can't wait to try it out

I am a year late to this video but all I can say is wow. I ordered one of these off of Amazon now up to $19 and put it on my ATLP60 and what an amazing difference especially in the bass. Now I have to decide if I still want to spend $500 to “upgrade” to a new turntable which was my original intent.

Now THIS is the vinyl nerd content that I needed!

For the price of the Rega you can get a nice Audio Technica elliptical stylus equipped cartridge. How the heck are these companies passing off a conical stylus equipped cartridge as "premium"?

Hopefully videos like this will deter some who are planning such future scams.

Gotta love it when a new VWestlife video comes out! Thanks. BTW I would bet that the number of views of this video = the number of Audio-Technica AT3600L cartridges sold on ebay.

Yes, thank you so much for this video VWestlife! See, this is exactly what I've been saying all along, even way back on AK ... but some folks never listen even when it's totally obvious!

Finally someone address this on a video, i once test the Rega Carbon and the people at my local record shop recommend this over the AT-95E, somehow I prefer the Audio Technica and they doesn't agree, anyway I go with the Audio Technica and they look at me as if I don't hear well or understand audio but I think by myself and hear as well.

Both cartridges have the same price in Spain. It’s quite to get an offer with a lower price for the Rega Carbon. Thanks for sharing!

What a nice and accurate review! Thanks for the Blue Wicked, too!

I don't even have a turntable, but very interesting nonetheless!

Thanks for the tests. I've always likes & have used Audio-Technica cartridges in my Technics turntables years ago, they always gave you more bang for your buck.

Excellent and comprehensive review/comparison! The 'odd' thing about these cartridges, is that although AT and Rega both specify tacking at around 2 - 2.5gms, when Rega fit the Carbon to their turntables (in my collection I have an RP1 with the Carbon), it is rated at only 1.75gms - and the arm has a 'stopper ring' that prevents the cartridge from tracking at higher weights, and it sounds terrific! And then you have the P-Mount (T4P) versions of the same cartridge with the same plastic/carbon fibre cantilever assembly that are preset to track at around 1.25 - 1.5gms.... and sound great too! It seems to be a pretty versatile stylus assembly, and one that can happily track at a wide range! The Carbon sounds great in my RP1 as it's mounted to a very good quality tonearm, but then, when I tried it in my AT-LP120 USB, it sounded great too, tracking at around 2gms! It's back in my Rega now, and will stay there, but I have a separate AT-3600 that I can use in my LP120 if I want to.. :-)

Thank you for making this video!! I´ve been wondering about that Rega Carbon because it looked to me very similar to the Audo Technica.

WOW! Youre' my hero man...it is so incredible, people moaning about "quality" cartridges and it turns out that really nice sounding TTs like the P1 have this low cost cartridge. LIkewise, kudso to Ian for also showing us the real deal, carts like the Nagoaka MP110 , the Mani ....proving again and again that we need to do our homework, not waste money..... Thanks again, Mario

Thank you for reminding me to buy that Slugbug single

Lol I love, in your intro, how you deceptively avoided saying that the Rega carbon was made in China, but with great flourish announced that the. Audio Technica was.... Lol good one

You are one of the most informative on cartridges and impedance matching (although this video doesn't talk about impedance matching). You don't have to spend a zillion dollars for something to sound good and not prematurely wear your records out. The hardest thing on a record is to have a worn out stylus playing on it, otherwise, you're good. I have a friend that had the Shure cartridge that's really popular now for audiophiles. He ended up losing a channel on it. He had trouble with some of his pristine vinyl skipping with it, too. Turntable was properly set up and set with the damping brush into consideration. Anyway, thanks again for posting.

Iron triangle is the direct translation of audio technica ‘s Chinese name.铁三角

Just wanted to say thank you for your informative videos. Goes to show how smoke and mirrors marketing crap can trick people into overpaying for products that in reality are much cheaper and can be easily ordered direct from China. Btw your cheap turntable video inspired me to settle for a Marantz TT5005. I have terrible OCD and all the manual adjustments of more expensive turntables were detracting from the fun of listening to music. I needed a nice entry level turntable and your information helped me to make a decision. Thanks again!

Great video my man, very thorough and complete! Bit of an abrupt end though,lol.

New subscriber! Just ordered one of these (though it's 4 years since this video came out) and the price is still only around $20, even with oem stylus. Looking forward to more of your videos

You Tuber JayKay18 has a saying, Harbor Freight by any other name, it's still the same. What he means by this is many products manufactured in China for different companies are made side by side on the same assembly line and the only real difference aside from a different color plastic housing is the price and the name on the product. Internally they are exactly the same and anybody that actually pays more for the item from a more prestigious brand name is getting ripped off. This appears to be the case here and probably with every other AT clone cartridge.

I'm a little late to this review, but it's still valid since both cartridges are still available and the price difference between them is still a lot here in the U.S. They have always looked the same to me, and thanks to your thorough review I can now conclude they are the same without having to spend money on a Rega Carbon cartridge. I have a 3600L and I really like how it sounds, and I find it especially good with old records that have seen better days. Great job at having a stable, controlled test environment, and showing the technical results instead of only a sound test like most people do. Keep up the good work, greetings from Dallas, TX 😎

You are such a geek.... and I thank you for it! Keep up the great work! 👌🏻

Great job. Fantasticly detailed comparison 👍

Great Comparo!!! Subscribed !!

Great video! So the Rega Carbon has now been dropped in price massively in the UK on Amazon - you can currently pick up one for £27 which works out at around $35 at current exchange rate. Interestingly Audio Technica have just replaced the AT95E with a new range of AT-VM95 cartridges - where the majority of the differences are the stylus only and not the cartridge itself. I now have a brand new AT95E, the 70's Ortofon VMS (with a brand new 3E Mark II stylus in it) which my Technics SL-1900 came with, and a Pickering XV-15 with a brand new D625E stylus in it (and an old one for worn out records - I'm lucky enough that the company that bought all the remaining genuine pickering stylii when they closed is based in the same place I live and is my local hifi shop (Vickers)). Out of all three, the Pickering has by far and away the clearest sound - the AT95E is very much designed for more modern vinyl, and the VMS works best with old 70's vinyl as it drags out the detail the other two can't - but doesn't like modern vinyl at all! I should do a video comparison of all three with the same records so you can hear.

I picked up an AT3600L cartridge awhile back and upgrade to the Carbon Fidelity stylus and love the sound quality!

I have the Rega planar 1. Which I purchased 4 years ago in the UK. it came with the AT3600L as standard you didn’t get a choice. It sounds perfectly fine I wouldn’t bother with the Rega I think your tests prove you are paying for just the name. Love your videos. I bought an Ion turntable for my bedroom after your review of it best £5 I ever spent it’s great for the money👍

Have you swapped the stylus between the two carts?

The AT3600L shows a little more detailed sound I think, I'll stay with the AT for sure. Good catch.

I've fixed lots of turntables... the AT3600L is a go-to replacement cartridge due to good performance and low price. I think there was a TINY difference on the sibilance test but not much.

This is a great shootout... Thank you sir!

Great test! The music samples sounded good to me but the sibilance test showed clearly audible distortion by level 3 and (even a bit at level 2). Sibilance distortion is one of my biggest issues with vinyl as I have a few records where it is quite noticeable.

So it's the same damn thing? haha. The AT3600L is a good cartridge for the price, but it's ridiculous to put it on such high end turntables... but I guess it shows what a good cart it really is if it can fool audiophiles! It's funny to imagine someone buying one of those high end turntables and then making fun of people who own an LP60, blissfully unaware that they have the exact same cart in them. Sure a higher end turntable will have overall better quality, but when it all comes down to it, a turntable is only as good as the cart that's in it. Even a high end cassette deck would sound like junk if the head was worn down.

Thanks, man. The video is very useful as always.

This video is the most professional video you've ever done.

This is an excellent test. A highly detailed review with well-executed and very thorough measured testing criteria. In the listening tests, I found both cartridges to be relatively similar overall, but there were several audible differences that I noticed. I actually preferred the sound of the much cheaper Audio-Technica AT3600L over the more expensive Rega Carbon. In particular, I found the AT3600L cartridge was less sibilant in the sibilance test and I also found it had slightly more forceful and taught bass with better immediacy, and articulation. Interestingly, I found the AT3600L to more present, yet simultaneously not quite as grating in the higher frequencies as the Carbon. I also found the AT3600L to be more open and airy than the Carbon as well. I could hear more "air" around instruments and voices, as well as a better sense of space and decay with effects like reverb. Additionally I also heard longer instrumental decay in the AT3600L, compared to the Carbon. The AT3600L seemed to have a better left to right channel balance as well. I found the Carbon to be ever so slightly more tilted in its output balance toward the left channel. All of these differences we not absolutely black and white, but they were certainly noticeable. Again, this was an excellent test and you should be proud of not only your measured testing criteria, but also the fact that you are helping to save money for people who may be looking for a decent quality and good sounding entry level cartridge at an insanely low price of $12.99 on eBay, as of today (New Year's day, 2019). Well done, sir! 👏🏻

I put a audio technica at 3600L on BSR record player and it sounds great.

Thanks for these videos. Very informative.

CRAZY ,I had bought a AR turntable with a Shure ME91 cart back in 1973.At Crazy Eddie's for $97 bucks.People still go nuts for this TT .I sold it only a couple of months later for $100. I hated having to place the needle on the plate and then removing it .Went you had a few it gets very difficult, lol.I bought a Technics SL1300 fully automatic with a Shure 100 cart.for $400 .It played Amazing .I still own it.But come on That was the top of the line cart then ,I see carts now for $10,000 OMG Really.Buy what you like .Its a hobby.But open your eyes people.You Tube is the best thing to happen to all of us.But I'm sure there are many manufacturers who hate it ,when they see stuff like this.Nice going my man,keep up the GREAT videos.

G'day, VWestlife! Wow! Thumbs up! Another fabulous video! Thank you very much for taking a closer look, at "$65 Rega Carbon vs. $11 AT3600L phono cartridge!!" Nice job! Cheers! 😊✌🏼💿❤️

I actually have a 3600L on my turntable right now. I was intending to sell, so I removed the $90 SHURE m44-7 cartridge and put on an AT3600 that cost $30. I tested it and found quite a downgrade in quality especially in the low end. Watching/listening to this comparison I found very little difference (i noticed a little difference in the sibilance tests but not enough to justify the price), and I'm surprised to find so many fans of the AT3600 cartridge. Maybe instead of passing on the savings to the new owner, I should charge more. :)

Good video VWestlife. I saw that video from Ian and I knew the Rega would beat the other two right from the start, and I can tell you why. it's the table and arm combo, plain and simple. It's clearly the better made/designed table over the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon and as you saw, the carbon came in last of the three and despite being fitted with a better cartridge. Any good table/arm will extract much more from budget cartridges than a lesser table will. The old adage is lesser tables need all the help they can get so need a better cart to sound its best, whereby a better table/arm will sound good with a budget cart, and only get better as you move up the cart line. I've experienced this with my budget Kenwood from the mid 80's and it currently sports the Grado Prestige Green1 and sound the best it ever has, and before that, it was the M97xE, the Grado is actually a better cart overall even though both sold for $95. Plus, a GOOD phono stage helps too, along with decent to good electronics and speakers to bring out all that is being dug up by the cart from the grooves to your ears.

good to see someone is helping me save $ on stereo equipment.

Always preferred an elliptical stylus over a conical. Anti skating force is set to match drag based on tracking force. Instead of modifying the turnable, use a high compliance light tracking cartridge instead as a better match for the turnable. With the return to turntables, it is interesting to see a new generation learn how to set these up properly. The High tracking force carts are generally best for DJ and scratching. For low wear, and higher compliance, I prefer light tracking of about 1.5 grams. Channel balance can be impacted by incorrect cart install with either cartridge skew in the head-shell or improper anti skate resulting in stylus offset which moves the magnets out of correct position for correct pickup by the corresponding coils in the body of the cartridge. Another source of imbalance is manufacturing tolerances in the preamp and amplifier. This is easy to spot by swapping right and left from the turnable. If the loud channel remains the same, it is preamp and amp related, not the cartridge. Conversely, if the imbalance moves with swapping channels, then yes it is pickup related. Hope this helps with your setup.

There's also a Gemini CN-15 even sold with the AT logo stylus included. Cheaper to buy for a replacement stylus than an actual AT-3600L genuine replacement.

I have a "Red Ed" cartridge that I use when I consider an old record too risky to put my Shure stylus in. It's sold under several brands, most are over 5x more than ordering it cheaply. It sounds just fine. I also have an AT-92 that I used for that backup, but I find the treble a bit brittle on that one to my ears. It looks like your findings showed that two AT3600Ls that took remarkably different paths getting to you (so certainly weren't adjacent on the production line) were very closely matched. Hats off to A-T on that one.

Thanks for such a great review. I have a old Rega Planner 2 turntable. I thought of changing my AT 95 E for a Carbon cartridge. Don't think I will bother. And my other Kenwood P100, another great review by you has the AT2600 on it anyway. Makes me feel a whole lot better. What a rip off by Rega and there like. Thanks for this and your other good down to earth videos.

And that is why I call them "Audiophools", because they're fools for falling for such things... :P

Am I the only one who heard less sibilance and cleaner clearer sound from the Rega? Yes, it was close, but I heard what I heard.

Thanks to you I now have "Mas que Nada" stuck in my head...

Wow. A top end turntable manufacturer uses an AT (Iron Triangle) cartridge for it high-end turntable. Back in the early ‘90s I bought a Shure V15-RS from Radio Shack. A new stylus for it costs close to $200.00; wife will NOT approve. But the Audio Technica looks like a winner. Very good playback, with a happy wife price.

Sara from Starship ..a MASTERPIECE!!!

Got an AT3600L for £27.50 with a matching silver headshell and diamond stylus (Reason I got it with a headshell is because I'm lazy). Sounds amazing!

Rega is a rebranded audio Technica. Zero difference. Buy the Audio Technica LP120 and the AT-3600L Rock solid setup. mine has 4 years of use, on average 10 hours per week. Zero issues! As far as noise, precise speed the LP120 is at least as good as my Rega Planer 6 ! The Rega sounds better by far but is also has a Ortofon 2M Black mounted. With the AT-300L the Planar 6 sounds exactly like the AT-LP120 ! I am proud of both turntables ..the 120 has caused some serious "debates" with a certain exuberance!..especially if wine is on the menu (always is)

Hah! Thank you for the comparison! There are 2 types of audiophiles: Budget hawks, like me, who end up spending carefully, but always more than they'd like, after actually trying things out and uttering big sighs from the headaches and earaches resulting from bad gear. Then there are snake-oil worshippers, who buy labels and magic upgrades after somebody tells them they're better. I bought a 139 dollar SAS stylus for my old Shure body and got something wonderful. Somebody else bought a Rega Carbon for 70 bucks and got a 20 dollar cartridge I have floating somewhere in a shoebox after ripping it off a used turntable and saving the rest of mankind from having to listen to it ...

I have "OEM" AT-CN-5625AL (similar to 3600, I guess). I play it with "LP Gear upgrade 3600 stylus" now and it sounds very good (good tracking too). So, you can upgrade $11 AT-cart with elliptical stylus for $30 (or even nude line stylus for $80) and you'll have a very good cart for reasonable price.

thank you for calling out audiophiles once again

Starship Sara.. oh wow. Beautiful man! But yeah that carbon brand is nice but I've never seen much of a difference, but I am sure someone will point out that the AudioTechnica isn't high end enough of something. But I love the sound I get from using the brand. I wouldn't call myself an audiophile, but I am highly picky enough to tell the difference between say a sapphire and a diamond at least. Anyway fantastic job. Good musical choice too!

I bet your not very popular in Southend,lovely review and very helpful to budget audiophile well done

I'm a simple man. I see a VWestlife video I press click

Always thought the Carbon was a ripoff. This definitely confirms it. Would you please describe in more detail how you did the stereo separation measurements? Thanks.

Amazing comparison, unbelievable. Thanks

I love your vids. I got a ProJect Debut Carbon Esprit SB for my 50th birthday from my wife, I have to say this TT sounds absolutely superb right out of the box. This is $650 in the US? The Ortofon 2M red cart fitted is about $110 I guess. Don't be deceived, more expensive carts do extract more from the groove. Going to upgrade to a 2M Blue (naked stylus) when I need a new 'needle'. I do like your scientific approach and certainly accept that some 'cheap' TT's / carts can sound good. Going to restore my Garrard Zero 100 SB soon (it's in the loft). Keep up the good work. Regards from the UK.