Time for a new cartridge and stylus?

Just got a used Dual 502 turntable but have no idea how old it is and how old the stylus is..it's Shure Hi-track M91ED or M9TED..not sure the writing is really small. It sounds ok but a bit of crackle and pop even om sealed new vinyl... should I just replace regardless because i dont know how old it is and might be damaging my records. Is there a good replacement on the market today that will work on my Dual? Appreciate all the advice!

 

The Shure M91ED is a classic cartridge from the '70s and is well worth keeping and using. Quality replacement styli (from 3rd party manufacturers) range from about $14 to $140.

See:
http://www.google.com/custom?client=pub-9996023742202798&forid=1&ie=ISO-8859-1&oe=ISO-8859-1&cof=GALT:#008000;GL:1;DIV:#336699;VLC:663399;AH:center;BGC:FFFFFF;LBGC:336699;ALC:0000FF;LC:0000FF;T:000000;GFNT:0000FF;GIMP:0000FF;LH:50;LW:250;L:http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/images/misc/ak3dheader2.jpg;S:http://;FORID:1&domains=www.audiokarma.org&hl=en&q=m91ed&sitesearch=www.audiokarma.org

The very affordable EVG stylus is shockingly good for the low price - lots of sellers on eBay offer it, but you might need to read the details of the listing to be sure it's an EVG. This stylus is actually manufactured by JICO in Japan.

 

The EVG stylus for $12 is very good. I've purchased mine from" the needle lady " on eBay.

If or when you can afford one, the Jico SAS for the M91ED is great.

 

So keep the cartridge? Is a stylus hard to replace? Especially on an older cartridge like mine?

 

Yes, keep the M91ED! Pull out the old stylus from the front and pop in the new one. Piece of cake.

The "hard" part is verifying that the alignment and is set correctly, but the EVG should be a drop-in replacement requiring no re-alignment.

You should also verify that tracking force is correctly set somewhere between 1.25 and 1.5 grams. For that, you can use a Shure SFG-2 'balance beam' scale or a cheap digital pocket scale.

I also suggest downloading the Dual 502 owners manual from www.vinylengine.com (requires signing up for an account) and reading how to do all of this.

 

BTW, depending where you are located, there may be a forum member who would be willing to come over and help you get things set up properly.

 

Sweet! I'm located in Guelph, Ontario Canada.

 

I

i'm seeing a lot of EVG styli on ebay...can you send me a link of the one you recommend? Would really appreciate it! : )

 

Is this what you are talking about?

Can you send me a link of what you are talking about? I'm seeing a lot of EVG products on ebay! Thanks!

 

Ask our host his opinion on the M91ED... Me thinks you might be looking for a new stylus rather than a new cartridge.

 

I recently ordered this stylus for my M91ED : http://www.ebay.com/itm/131360326784?_trksid=p2060778.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

 

Yup, that's the one. Good seller too.

 

Lots of forumites in the GTA. Hopefully someone will step forward to assist you!

Incidentally, if your turntable requires any servicing, there's a resource right there in Ontario: http://www.doctordual.ca/

 

Thanks so much for all the info...really appreciate it!

 

Thanks so much...saved me a lot of time looking. So I can just slide this right Into my cartridge?

 

Thanks so much!

 

You sure can! It's a direct replacement.

 

Those "cheap" stylii are actually very good, too, and especially if you're just getting back into vinyl and not an enthusiast with a 100k system. I think you will be more than happy with your new M91ED combo.

You just can't go wrong with a vintage Shure in my opinion. They didn't sell a billion of them in the 70's because they sounded terrible!

 

After you listen to the TT and cart for a while you may want to consider a Shure V15 Type IV or Vmx as an upgrade.

IMHO they sound much better than the M91 but are discontinued and pricier, especially with a Shure stylus.

 

Order a Jico SAS stylus for and it will sound the very best it can.

 

Thanks for the info.

 

Thanks for all the help and advice!

 

Thank you!

 

Thank you!