Cartridge upgrade on a Califone 1410 classroom record player

Most classroom record players that were made between the late-1950 and the early-2000's use an Astatic 89T plug-in needle/cartridge assembly. When the needle or cartridge fails, one simply unplugs the old cartridge and plugs in a new one. This was a good idea and the cost of the cartridge was about the same as a needle for a traditional style cartridge. Fast forward to today and traditional style 89T's with an LP/78 flip needle are no longer made and NOS ones are getting scarce and expensive. There are 89T's being made; but, you have to choose between either a red LP-only version or a green 78-only version. To play both record types, you must buy both cartridges (over $30) and physically swap the cartridges around. I don't like having to pay $25+ every time the sapphire tipped needle wears down; so, I installed a traditional style cartridge with a replaceable needle that cost under $10. The catch is that the 89T puts out 1.3 volts, while the modern P226 cartridge puts out .5 volts. Normally, it is necessary to modify the amp in order to squeeze a little more gain out of it. Even after the modifications, the 89T still has a little more punch; but, given the state of things today, I think it's better to sacrifice a little tonal quality and have a cartridge that's cheaper to maintain. The record player here is a tube unit and it's been my experience that the tube models are easier to modify than the solid state models.