---
product_id: 51755022
title: "Audio-Technica VM540ML Dual Moving Magnet Stereo Cartridge with Microlinear stylus Red"
brand: "audio-technica"
price: "NT$21695"
currency: TWD
in_stock: false
reviews_count: 8
url: https://www.desertcart.tw/products/51755022-audio-technica-vm540ml-dual-moving-magnet-stereo-cartridge-with-microlinear
store_origin: TW
region: Taiwan
---

# Microlinear stylus for ultra-precise tracking Para-toroidal coils boost signal efficiency Centre shield plate cuts channel crosstalk Audio-Technica VM540ML Dual Moving Magnet Stereo Cartridge with Microlinear stylus Red

**Brand:** audio-technica
**Price:** NT$21695
**Availability:** ❌ Out of Stock

## Summary

> 🎵 Elevate your vinyl game with precision and punch — hear what others miss!

## Quick Answers

- **What is this?** Audio-Technica VM540ML Dual Moving Magnet Stereo Cartridge with Microlinear stylus Red by audio-technica
- **How much does it cost?** NT$21695 with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Currently out of stock
- **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.tw](https://www.desertcart.tw/products/51755022-audio-technica-vm540ml-dual-moving-magnet-stereo-cartridge-with-microlinear)

## Best For

- audio-technica enthusiasts

## Why This Product

- Trusted audio-technica brand quality
- Free international shipping included
- Worldwide delivery with tracking
- 15-day hassle-free returns

## Key Features

- • **Crosstalk Reduction:** Innovative centre shield plate ensures pure stereo separation and clarity.
- • **Enhanced Signal Generation:** Para-toroidal coils maximize output efficiency for richer sound detail.
- • **Precision Microlinear Stylus:** Experience crystal-clear highs with less wear and distortion than traditional styli.
- • **Durable Low-Resonance Housing:** Polymer casing minimizes unwanted vibrations for pristine audio fidelity.
- • **Optimized for Serious Vinyl Enthusiasts:** Perfectly pairs with high-end turntables and phono preamps to unlock your collection’s full potential.

## Overview

The Audio-Technica VM540ML is a premium dual moving magnet stereo cartridge featuring a microlinear diamond stylus that delivers exceptional high-frequency response with minimal wear. Its para-toroidal coils enhance signal generation efficiency, while a centre shield plate reduces crosstalk for superior stereo separation. Housed in a durable low-resonance polymer body, this cartridge is engineered for audiophiles seeking detailed, distortion-free playback on quality turntables.

## Description

Buy Audio-Technica VM540ML Dual Moving Magnet Stereo Cartridge with Microlinear stylus Red. Free delivery and returns on eligible orders.

Review: Superb quality for the (largish) investment - I spent a week refurbishing an Acoustic Research XB 1 turntable I bought as a poor student in 1978. This is a very high quality deck built to a broadcast standard. During the refurb I could see that the mechanical engineering of the bits that matter - bearing, arm bearings, platter etc. was excellent. Cleaning, oiling with professional bearing oil from vinylclear (desertcart), setting the sub assembly suspension system, and then finally installing the 540ML, using an excellent mirrored protractor from Analogue Studio (desertcart), was a total faff. I sourced a hard to get new belt from Malvern Audio which was critical, as this broadcast standard deck has a wow and flutter of less than 0.03% (yes that’s correct). So the acid test? I first played Genesis’s Dance on a Volcano - astonishing clarity and perfect tracking at 1.8g. Then I tried ELP’s Fanfare for the Common Man from their Works album. Simply incredible weight to the relentless and complex bass and synths in the full extend version. Perfect tracking again. My Cambridge amp boots out 100w a channel and the REL sub another 100w so that was a house shaker. During initial testing the deck was temporarily no more than O.5m from the right speaker (Monitor Audio Radius 90s on their lovely bespoke stands - see the photo), and the REL sub, on a glass table. Try that with anything but a Linn, top vintage Thorens, or a £1400 Project and it wouldn’t work. So a superb combo for my purposes. The second stage of my vinyl project was to buy a new phono preamp to maximise the quality chain. I looked at two obvious options, the Cambridge Audio and the Rega Fono MM, but I had a few reservations on the flexibility of the former and the alleged poorer build quality of the latter. Eventually, I opted for the specialist British company Ifi and its excellent Zen phono preamp after a lot of research and viewing some expert reviews on YouTube. I have just about bedded this preamp in now alongside the AT. This is a superb combo that can extract all the quality I need from my vinyl collection. The Zen also has a specialist rumble filter for handling warps and other disc pressing issues as well as future upgrade pathways to moving coil options. It it beautifully made and desertcart had a very good price for this. My first few week’s impressions of the AT VM 540 ML? It is a great tracker, even at its lowest recommended weight (1.8g) in a good quality arm. It brings out a precision and special ‘presence’. This is possibly to a higher ‘musical plane’ than my new (award winning) Marantz 6007 CD deck - high praise indeed. It is not artificially smoothed out like some cheaper cartridges. It extracts all the content you’d expect from such a stylus. On classical it is very accurate yet musical. Keith Emerson’s piano concerto (Works again) is beautiful (try it - like Shostakovich). Percussion is crystal clear, brass incredible realistic and the character of a Steinway grand unlike any CD or mid level streamed affair. Real music, if your ear knows what to listen for. And it’s pretty much in 3D. My main speakers are about 3.5m apart so allows for a large sound stage. My wife though that I believe in Father Christmas (Work 2) was superb too. So that says it all. That track nearly made us cry.... Then I dug out my copy of Mozart 41st Symphony by Kripps and the Concertgebouw on Phillips from the early 1970s - part of a boxed set. The uplifting last movement was as beautiful as ever. It took me back to playing violin in the University of Manchester’s orchestra (78 to 80)....isn’t that what it’s all about? My final test phase was placing the turntable in its new location on an audio bench (see photo). I played a pristine first edition of Simply Red’s Picture Book album. This was so good it reaffirmed why serious vinyl set ups are very good. Silky smooth singing, amazing recording quality, every nuance audible - pure class. Is it all worth it? Yes, if you love music and have a deck and system that can extract the full quality of this cartridge. Would I try it in a deck under £500? Probably not, even the excellent Project Debut Carbon Evo, as the cartridge and preamp cost nearly as much as that deck. Yes, in a Rega Planar 3 or above. I think it could work well in the new Technics SL1500C with a separate preamp such as my ifi Zen or possibly work well using a Project Classic Evo. However, none of these have such a low wow and flutter and rumble, apart from the Technics, as my vintage AR. Belt drive is still the simplest and most elegant solution to true hifi vinyl. I believe my AR will last another few decades yet. My son is eyeing it up........
Review: Simply stunning - Okay, so I am extremely pleased and amazed with this cartridge. I haven’t been into vinyl for long, but have been through a few setups. Started with a Ortofon 2m Red and Project Debut Carbon. The 2m red was errrh, okay. But it was very sibilant and lack dynamics. Secondly I upped my game and got both a Pioneer PLX 100 and Technics SL-1200 turntables. Firstly I paired these with a Ortofon 2m blue, hoping for an improvement from the Red. And yes, there was a noticeable improvement but it was still a little shrill, and brittle. And on both the Red and Blue, I had quite severe inner groove distortion. This is a no no for me, once you hear it, it’s unbearable. The last two tracks are very muffled and get progressively worse towards the label. So then I went to a Nagaoka MP-110, and I will say that the MP-110 is a very decent cart. It was much more dynamic, not so shrill, and more detailed. However...again I had inner groove distortion. So on I went. I finally decided that a Microline stylus was the way forward. And I saw a few reviews on vinyl forums citing this cart as a gem. And boy, indeed it is. Absolutely no inner groove distortion. It’s virtually completely vanished. The last song is just as clear as the first. And just to note, it was only aligned in a jiffy with the technics overhang gauge. If I spent more time with a protractor I could probably eliminate that last 1% of distortion. Secondly the sound...just wow. Very very detailed without being shrill and sharp like some AT carts. Very punchy and dynamic with very plentiful bass. It feels like a blanket has been lifted from my headphones compared to the Nagaoka. I will say however that I am using it with the DJ Art Preamp. A very modest preamp indeed, but has the useful feature of being able to load it as 100pf. Once you add the ohms of your phono leads, it’s getting near 200pf. AT recommends under 200pf for this cart to avoid it being too bright. So just a little warning to those people with preamps with non adjustable preamps that might be running at 150-200pf before the leads. In this case, it could very well be a little bright for you. So try to run it through a 100pf preamp (or preferably lower), or at the very least, use the shortest rca cables you can Apart from that little warning, this is a supreme cartridge. I cannot speak of every cartridge obviously but I think you would have a VERY hard job trying to beat it at this price point. I have heard £500 carts that are inferior to this So don’t hesitate, just buy it, and enjoy music without inner distortion and smooth punchy sound.

## Features

- Microlinear profile diamond stylus offers high frequency response with less wear and distortion than elliptical or conventional linear contact styli.
- Para-toroidal coils improve generating efficiency
- Aluminium tapered cantilever
- Centre shield plate between the left and right channels reduces crosstalk
- Durable low resonance polymer housing

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| ASIN | B01MEI1RPC |
| Best Sellers Rank | 28,509 in Musical Instruments & DJ ( See Top 100 in Musical Instruments & DJ ) 144 in Turntable Cartridges |
| Box Contents | Cartridge |
| Brand | Audio-Technica |
| Brand Name | Audio-Technica |
| Colour | Red |
| Compatible Devices | Amplifier, Receiver, Powered Speaker |
| Connectivity Technology | Wired |
| Customer Reviews | 4.5 out of 5 stars 567 Reviews |
| Cycles | Belt-Powered Motor |
| Enclosure Material | Plastic |
| Global Trade Identification Number | 04961310137564 |
| Included components | Cartridge |
| Item Type Name | Cartridge |
| Item Weight | 0.23 Ounces |
| Item height | 3 inches |
| Item weight | 0.23 Ounces |
| Manufacturer | Audio-Technica |
| Material | Plastic |
| Model Name | VM540ML |
| Power Source | Corded Electric |
| Product Features | Geringes Gewicht |
| Product Warranty | 2 year manufacturer. |
| Signal Format | phono |
| Signal-to-Noise Ratio | 75 dB |
| Special feature | Geringes Gewicht |
| Style | Moving Magnet Cartridge - Microline |
| Style Name | Moving Magnet Cartridge - Microline |
| UPC | 042005193769 |
| Unit Count | 1.0 count |

## Product Details

- **Brand:** Audio-Technica
- **Included components:** Cartridge
- **Special feature:** Geringes Gewicht
- **Material:** Plastic
- **Item weight:** 0.23 Ounces
- **Style:** Moving Magnet Cartridge - Microline
- **Colour:** Red
- **Model name:** VM540ML
- **Compatible devices:** Amplifier, Receiver, Powered Speaker
- **Signal format:** phono

## Images

![Audio-Technica VM540ML Dual Moving Magnet Stereo Cartridge with Microlinear stylus Red - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51uJgJWtyjL.jpg)
![Audio-Technica VM540ML Dual Moving Magnet Stereo Cartridge with Microlinear stylus Red - Image 2](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61iitFypWSL.jpg)

## Questions & Answers

**Q: Will the vm540ml cartridge fit on a audio technica lp120x turntable?**
A: Hi,

Yes, all the cartridges from the VM series, including the VM540ML, can be fitted on to AT-LP120x turntables.

Hope this helps.

Kind regards,
Matt from Audio-Technica UK

**Q: Will the vm540ml fit the marantz tt 15s?**
A: Yes it will , the headshell on the player accepts standard 1/2 inch centre mounted cartridges , so most cartridges will fit ( unless marked T4P, which won’t without an adaptor  ) The VM540ML is an excellent cartridge and  is well received and reviewed so would be a good choice..

**Q: Has any one used on a liin lp12 turntable**
A: Yes I have, it works well for me with a yammy amp and spendor speakers.

**Q: Can you confirm that this product will be dispatched in its original packaging?**
A: Yes this item comes in unopened original packaging.

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Superb quality for the (largish) investment
*by A***C on 23 December 2020*

I spent a week refurbishing an Acoustic Research XB 1 turntable I bought as a poor student in 1978. This is a very high quality deck built to a broadcast standard. During the refurb I could see that the mechanical engineering of the bits that matter - bearing, arm bearings, platter etc. was excellent. Cleaning, oiling with professional bearing oil from vinylclear (Amazon), setting the sub assembly suspension system, and then finally installing the 540ML, using an excellent mirrored protractor from Analogue Studio (Amazon), was a total faff. I sourced a hard to get new belt from Malvern Audio which was critical, as this broadcast standard deck has a wow and flutter of less than 0.03% (yes that’s correct). So the acid test? I first played Genesis’s Dance on a Volcano - astonishing clarity and perfect tracking at 1.8g. Then I tried ELP’s Fanfare for the Common Man from their Works album. Simply incredible weight to the relentless and complex bass and synths in the full extend version. Perfect tracking again. My Cambridge amp boots out 100w a channel and the REL sub another 100w so that was a house shaker. During initial testing the deck was temporarily no more than O.5m from the right speaker (Monitor Audio Radius 90s on their lovely bespoke stands - see the photo), and the REL sub, on a glass table. Try that with anything but a Linn, top vintage Thorens, or a £1400 Project and it wouldn’t work. So a superb combo for my purposes. The second stage of my vinyl project was to buy a new phono preamp to maximise the quality chain. I looked at two obvious options, the Cambridge Audio and the Rega Fono MM, but I had a few reservations on the flexibility of the former and the alleged poorer build quality of the latter. Eventually, I opted for the specialist British company Ifi and its excellent Zen phono preamp after a lot of research and viewing some expert reviews on YouTube. I have just about bedded this preamp in now alongside the AT. This is a superb combo that can extract all the quality I need from my vinyl collection. The Zen also has a specialist rumble filter for handling warps and other disc pressing issues as well as future upgrade pathways to moving coil options. It it beautifully made and Amazon had a very good price for this. My first few week’s impressions of the AT VM 540 ML? It is a great tracker, even at its lowest recommended weight (1.8g) in a good quality arm. It brings out a precision and special ‘presence’. This is possibly to a higher ‘musical plane’ than my new (award winning) Marantz 6007 CD deck - high praise indeed. It is not artificially smoothed out like some cheaper cartridges. It extracts all the content you’d expect from such a stylus. On classical it is very accurate yet musical. Keith Emerson’s piano concerto (Works again) is beautiful (try it - like Shostakovich). Percussion is crystal clear, brass incredible realistic and the character of a Steinway grand unlike any CD or mid level streamed affair. Real music, if your ear knows what to listen for. And it’s pretty much in 3D. My main speakers are about 3.5m apart so allows for a large sound stage. My wife though that I believe in Father Christmas (Work 2) was superb too. So that says it all. That track nearly made us cry.... Then I dug out my copy of Mozart 41st Symphony by Kripps and the Concertgebouw on Phillips from the early 1970s - part of a boxed set. The uplifting last movement was as beautiful as ever. It took me back to playing violin in the University of Manchester’s orchestra (78 to 80)....isn’t that what it’s all about? My final test phase was placing the turntable in its new location on an audio bench (see photo). I played a pristine first edition of Simply Red’s Picture Book album. This was so good it reaffirmed why serious vinyl set ups are very good. Silky smooth singing, amazing recording quality, every nuance audible - pure class. Is it all worth it? Yes, if you love music and have a deck and system that can extract the full quality of this cartridge. Would I try it in a deck under £500? Probably not, even the excellent Project Debut Carbon Evo, as the cartridge and preamp cost nearly as much as that deck. Yes, in a Rega Planar 3 or above. I think it could work well in the new Technics SL1500C with a separate preamp such as my ifi Zen or possibly work well using a Project Classic Evo. However, none of these have such a low wow and flutter and rumble, apart from the Technics, as my vintage AR. Belt drive is still the simplest and most elegant solution to true hifi vinyl. I believe my AR will last another few decades yet. My son is eyeing it up........

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Simply stunning
*by M***T on 4 November 2019*

Okay, so I am extremely pleased and amazed with this cartridge. I haven’t been into vinyl for long, but have been through a few setups. Started with a Ortofon 2m Red and Project Debut Carbon. The 2m red was errrh, okay. But it was very sibilant and lack dynamics. Secondly I upped my game and got both a Pioneer PLX 100 and Technics SL-1200 turntables. Firstly I paired these with a Ortofon 2m blue, hoping for an improvement from the Red. And yes, there was a noticeable improvement but it was still a little shrill, and brittle. And on both the Red and Blue, I had quite severe inner groove distortion. This is a no no for me, once you hear it, it’s unbearable. The last two tracks are very muffled and get progressively worse towards the label. So then I went to a Nagaoka MP-110, and I will say that the MP-110 is a very decent cart. It was much more dynamic, not so shrill, and more detailed. However...again I had inner groove distortion. So on I went. I finally decided that a Microline stylus was the way forward. And I saw a few reviews on vinyl forums citing this cart as a gem. And boy, indeed it is. Absolutely no inner groove distortion. It’s virtually completely vanished. The last song is just as clear as the first. And just to note, it was only aligned in a jiffy with the technics overhang gauge. If I spent more time with a protractor I could probably eliminate that last 1% of distortion. Secondly the sound...just wow. Very very detailed without being shrill and sharp like some AT carts. Very punchy and dynamic with very plentiful bass. It feels like a blanket has been lifted from my headphones compared to the Nagaoka. I will say however that I am using it with the DJ Art Preamp. A very modest preamp indeed, but has the useful feature of being able to load it as 100pf. Once you add the ohms of your phono leads, it’s getting near 200pf. AT recommends under 200pf for this cart to avoid it being too bright. So just a little warning to those people with preamps with non adjustable preamps that might be running at 150-200pf before the leads. In this case, it could very well be a little bright for you. So try to run it through a 100pf preamp (or preferably lower), or at the very least, use the shortest rca cables you can Apart from that little warning, this is a supreme cartridge. I cannot speak of every cartridge obviously but I think you would have a VERY hard job trying to beat it at this price point. I have heard £500 carts that are inferior to this So don’t hesitate, just buy it, and enjoy music without inner distortion and smooth punchy sound.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ No inner groove distortion ever again.
*by A***R on 28 April 2022*

Over 40 years of dissatisfaction with various AT, Ortofon, A&R,Shure, Linn etc cartridges, all elliptical. None of them ever quite managed to be free of sibilance or inner groove distortion despite careful set-up. Then when being disappointed once more playing Dark side of the Moon, i read that best way to play this album was with a micro line stylus. I duly read reviews and bought this 540ml to replace a two month old Pick-pro that sounded horrible with hot cut records. The initial impression was stunning from a tracking perspective, it's like a cd from lead- in to run- out no sibilance at all, with detail level like I never had before. However, there was also little bass and a very bright sound. Now nearly two months later it's still bright, but clear and high, often surprising but never painful, also with burn in came the bass, not as full as some yet but getting better. I am mainly a headphone user and sometime tweak the bass control to get a bit more, but I just cannot get enough of listening with this cartridge. The best cartridge I have ever owned. The simple pleasure of just listening to the music, rather than anticipating a record's pressing limitations make it worth every penny. Caveats: it's bright, it needs careful capacitance matching to avoid that. Due to its compliance it is said to be best in low mass arms, don't know if that's right but it works fine in my 10 gram carbon fibre Project Pro. It takes a long time to burn in. I'm at about 100-120 and it sounds better every time.

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*Product available on Desertcart Taiwan*
*Store origin: TW*
*Last updated: 2026-01-23*