Besides Shure V15, Which are the classic MM cartridges worth owning ?
And a little unconventional thinking. If we find a controlled way to soften/harden the rubber holding the cantilever wouldn't it help in controlling the compliance and eventually tonearm resonance.
Thanks and regards.
And a little unconventional thinking. If we find a controlled way to soften/harden the rubber holding the cantilever wouldn't it help in controlling the compliance and eventually tonearm resonance.
Thanks and regards.
Nothing wrong as I have said a number of times for those with time to read. But for those of us who, when we read 'clinical' translate for 'neutral' sometimes additional input is needed.
Well given that cartridge rolling is possible so for example I can put a stylus for a shure M97 from JICO into my old P77 I am sure other things are possible. I have yet to research why MM tend to have such high compliance (which makes them often incompatible with modern arms) so cannot answer you specific question. I am sure expert stylus would make you something custom if you had the money though.
Couple of links that may be of interest.
New Lamps for Old
Load the Magnets!!! - [English]
Whilst the graphs for the M97 vary a little between the 2 sites (and one appears to be 10Log dB vs 20Log) , given one was done with pink noise and the other with a frequency sweep I think it shows that pink noise is usable if you have the processing capability.
The graphs show the response changes with incorrect loading very well (SY was right, but we knew that). Also shows that a simple model for a cartridge resonant model whilst informative, will not help you pick the right loading.
Most interesting for me is that a number of modern MMs seem to show a dip from 3-8KHz. Not worked out the cause, but on inspection it looks like a simple tilt control could get response flattened out. Would be interested in opinions on this. A presence dip is often designed in of course to give better phantom stage depth...
New Lamps for Old
Load the Magnets!!! - [English]
Whilst the graphs for the M97 vary a little between the 2 sites (and one appears to be 10Log dB vs 20Log) , given one was done with pink noise and the other with a frequency sweep I think it shows that pink noise is usable if you have the processing capability.
The graphs show the response changes with incorrect loading very well (SY was right, but we knew that). Also shows that a simple model for a cartridge resonant model whilst informative, will not help you pick the right loading.
Most interesting for me is that a number of modern MMs seem to show a dip from 3-8KHz. Not worked out the cause, but on inspection it looks like a simple tilt control could get response flattened out. Would be interested in opinions on this. A presence dip is often designed in of course to give better phantom stage depth...
Starting in about the mid 1960s a school of thought arose that low tracking force and low mass arms were the way to go in order to minimize record wear, higher compliance MM cartridges were the result of that trend. (You still have to maintain the arm/cartridge resonance in a region where tracking warps is not a problem.)
Subsequently it seemed to be proven that proper tracking and good stylus condition was more important and that the actual tracking force (within reason, say 4gms or less) had at best a secondary effect on record wear.. Anecdotally this does seem to be true as I have a lot of records that I purchased new as a teen that were played using an M3D and various ceramic cartridges at 4 - 5gms in my early days and those records are all fine even now. (I was religious about changing the stylus before it wore out, and keeping the records as clean as I possibly could.) I also have a lot of records purchased in the 1980s and 1990s that were played using cartridges that tracked well under 2gms and there is no demonstrable difference in condition.
All of my current SPU cartridges track at 3gms, my first at 4gms, and I still own a vintage Shure that tracks at 4gms.
So go with what you believe in and keep it inside the specs of the manufacturer. Add to this - keep your records clean 🙂
Regards
Regards
Which makes perfect sense, but unless I have missed something doesn't that open up a market for lower compliance replacement stylii that have more universal appeal? Maybe the market is not there.
Example. I have a Shure M75 and A&R x77 to experiment with. Both weigh around 6g, so even a really light arm will give you an effective mass of 11-12g. Looking at JICO stylus paramters, these have compliance of the 18-20 range in both planes, which gives 8-10Hz resonance.
Guess if I was to order 1000 I could get the compliance I wanted.
Example. I have a Shure M75 and A&R x77 to experiment with. Both weigh around 6g, so even a really light arm will give you an effective mass of 11-12g. Looking at JICO stylus paramters, these have compliance of the 18-20 range in both planes, which gives 8-10Hz resonance.
Guess if I was to order 1000 I could get the compliance I wanted.
Bill have a look here for some M75 styli that might work:
Shure N75-6 Needle 760-D6 - there are links to a variety of different replacement styli that all should work with most M75. (I have a metal cased variant made for Sylvania and an OEM 75EC ? stylus tracking at 4gms)
Edit: I got one here: http://www.stereoneedles.com/Shure.html - these are the real deal OEM in most cases. Many recommend the spherical stylus for this cartridge, always being the maverick I got the low end elliptical instead - not sure that was the right choice. lol
Shure N75-6 Needle 760-D6 - there are links to a variety of different replacement styli that all should work with most M75. (I have a metal cased variant made for Sylvania and an OEM 75EC ? stylus tracking at 4gms)
Edit: I got one here: http://www.stereoneedles.com/Shure.html - these are the real deal OEM in most cases. Many recommend the spherical stylus for this cartridge, always being the maverick I got the low end elliptical instead - not sure that was the right choice. lol
Problem is I have to first believe in conical Stylus profiles. I have an illogical belief that fancy profiles are better. I have a C77 with low hours on it that rumour has it can be adjusted to fit the M75 body.
I blame ortofon for those lovely paperweights shaped like their replicant stylus.
I blame ortofon for those lovely paperweights shaped like their replicant stylus.
Thanks Kevin. Yes, the first link revealed nothing about the stylus but the second one is a keeper in ones favourites!
Then we have the problematic ones... Higher end Stantons/Pickerings, Sonuses, AKGs - well, realy anything with interchangable stylii... ((Rickards word 🙂 )probably the right word) 🙂
Regards
Then we have the problematic ones... Higher end Stantons/Pickerings, Sonuses, AKGs - well, realy anything with interchangable stylii... ((Rickards word 🙂 )probably the right word) 🙂
Regards
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Unfortunately the supply is slowly drying up, I'd not wait too long if you want/need any of the available styli listed - last time I looked most of those shown were available, no longer the case..
Bill - there are a couple of elliptical styli for the M75 which are still available. The EC version tracks at a heavy 4gms and is quite low compliance - it's happy on both of my 12" arms although I can't say I am that thrilled with it tbh. I've not messed with it for a while though or with the low input capacitance phono stages I now use so it might be better than I recollect. I have heard it in other venues and thought it sounded fine.
The M3D with conical (spherical) N3D OEM stylus on a good arm and proper head shell sounds far better than it has any right to.
Bill - there are a couple of elliptical styli for the M75 which are still available. The EC version tracks at a heavy 4gms and is quite low compliance - it's happy on both of my 12" arms although I can't say I am that thrilled with it tbh. I've not messed with it for a while though or with the low input capacitance phono stages I now use so it might be better than I recollect. I have heard it in other venues and thought it sounded fine.
The M3D with conical (spherical) N3D OEM stylus on a good arm and proper head shell sounds far better than it has any right to.
I have not heard the N21D in a very long time, but the only arms I have heard an M3D on recently were comparatively high mass so not suitable for the higher compliance stylus. I recall that the M7D will take all of these styli as well.
It does affect the frequency response, but the optimum point is not obvious. The frequency response of cartridges is very generally never really flat.
I've also included a graph showing this in the Linear Audio #6 at the end of my article The High-Octane phono preamp.
fair enough. I have been mulling this midrange dip a lot of the shures seem to have. The AT that SY used seems a lot flatter. Should be adjustable within a dB across the important part of the range. Depends on what point you reach turd polishing.
I'm wondering if the midrange dip is not at least partially a symptom of excessive capacitive loading resulting in peaking in the HF? I could be all wet here, just speculation on my part.
TBH I have not met too many Shures I really liked, preferring the long forgotten cheap Goldring that originally came on an SP25 MKIV and the Empire 2000 MKIII that replaced it.. (Then a long line of Ortofons which continues to this day with only a few interruptions of a decade or two.. 😉 ) Being fair I had nothing beyond a Shure V15-II which was actually sold as an OEM for RS at one point. (Not bad, but I remember it as being somewhat bright sounding)
TBH I have not met too many Shures I really liked, preferring the long forgotten cheap Goldring that originally came on an SP25 MKIV and the Empire 2000 MKIII that replaced it.. (Then a long line of Ortofons which continues to this day with only a few interruptions of a decade or two.. 😉 ) Being fair I had nothing beyond a Shure V15-II which was actually sold as an OEM for RS at one point. (Not bad, but I remember it as being somewhat bright sounding)
The types II and iV were not so good. The III with either a spherical or microridge stylus was very good; the type V likewise.
The microridge versions of the III and V tracked superbly, if in a suitable arm with low friction bearings.
Best loading was around 250 pF.
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