Change a Grado Stylus?

Hi,

I'm thinking of replacing my Grado stylus, it's got about two years on it (including some "left on" time) and it's a Grado Green cartridge. I have two questions:

(1) How easy is it to change out?

(2) Would you (Grado owners) consider upgrading (stylus only) to a higher level? Or just replacing the current grade (and why).

Thanks,

 

Trust me on this... upgrade to an 8MZ stylus. Your Green with an 8MZ stylus will outperform a Gold with its stock stylus.

Changing it out is not "hard," but you need to be careful not to bust the cantilever. If you don't have the supplied tool, use your thumb and forefingers and carefully tug it from the two side "wings."

AudioKarma.org is down this weekend for maintenance, but there is a looooong thread on the 8MZ stylus upgrade in the archives.

 

1) it's easy to change the stylus, if done with care

2) yes, if you upgrade to an 8MZ stylus, you'll experience a tremendous improvement in sound quality

Edit: I was slow responding due to trying to type on an iPad, thus the repeating of action pact's reply

 

I'd need more information to answer your questions. My first response is replace the stylus but don't upgrade it. I'd say an upgrade would entail a new cartridge and not necessarily a Grado. If you like the sound of what you've got right now, don't change it. As the stylus replacement is comparatively cheap I'd swap it out sooner than later. I don't know what turntable it's on, so I have no idea if a different cartridge would be suitable.

 

I can't agree with this. Grado Prestige bodies (and most older bodies dating back to the '70s) can accept a wide range of stylus grades, and they are interchangeable.

The 8MZ offers the most bang for the buck and is a big leap forward from the Gold. Upgrading to an MCZ is an even greater leap forward, but using it with a Prestige body will require adjusting the resistive loading lower than 47k or else it will be bright.

All Grados share a similar house sound. Upgrading the stylus will retain the same character, but with better tracking, better detail, and more extension at top and bottom.

 

Good to know. truth is, I never was all that crazy about the Grado "house sound".

 

Interesting, knowing that you're a fan of the M97xE (as am I).

I find Grados and Shures to be more similar than different.

 

I find Grados tend to be smooth and dark. The Shures degree of brightness is affected by loading. The pre-amp I'm using now allows the 97 to sound more open on top. I have also noticed problems with Grados on low mass arms, those being the tone arms I usually wind up with. Shure cartridges were intended to be used with low-mass arms.

 

I agree!

 

Hello,

I'm running a rebuilt Thorens TD150 MK II A/B with a TP16 MKIII (100th anniversary arm). The amplifier is a DENON AVR-900 and the speakers are PSB300's. Using RadioShack 18 gauge stranded speaker wire. I really like the sound of the Grado's - I've tried other cartridges and they really don't match well with my current system.

 

The thing with Grados is they can be very telling on the components upstream, particularly the arm they are mated with. When you get a Grado mated with an arm that it likes, the results are pretty compelling!

 

The 8MZ stylus would be this one: http://www.needledoctor.com/Grado-8MZ-V-Stylus ?

 

I'd have to agree - several of my friends do NOT believe me that I'm running a Grado Green Prestige cartridge, even after hearing it for themselves. For whatever reason, it sounds much more impressive than it has any right to!

 

I'm at similar crossroads, contemplating a Jico SAS stylus for my Shure 97.

 

Grado recently raised the price of the 8MZ stylus by $50 to $150 to match the Gold stylus so they sort of closed the loophole that oddly existed, but its still great to have the option of a different flavor.

 

I suspect that it's no coincidence that that happened within a week of Joe Grado's passing... The price of the 8MZ remained unchanged for many many years. Even at the new price, it's still a bargain however.

I was lucky that I bought a backup MCZ stylus at the old price of $150 literally the week before it was hiked up without warning. The current price of the MCZ is $200.

 

My opinion seems to be in the minority, but I am lukewarm on the SAS, having used tried them on an M91ED, V-15 III, and V-15 IV.

The SAS has remarkable resolution and tracking ability, but my experience suggests that it will fundamentally alter the character of the M97xE, making it much brighter and leaner than with the stock stylus. Whether that is good or bad is a matter of taste, but it won't sound like the same cartridge.

 

Just don't lose the old one. I have a couple Grado mono carts, and 78 styli for the cartridges. Somewhere I pulled out the stylus that came with it, and have lost it among the clutter. At least it wasn't expensive!

 

Trust Action Pact - thanks to him I'm enjoying my Grado.

 

Thanks, man.

 

Yes, that's the one.

 

+1 on the 8MZ. I upgraded a Grado Black cart with one not to long ago. I purchased it from needledoctor.com for $100 but I think they've increased the price to $150. Might want to look around to see it you can find cheaper. It's pretty easy to change out - doesn't require any tools really. Just steady hands and caution.

 

Grado is pretty firm with their dealers on the pricing.

 

Ok, wasn't sure about it. I would say at $150 it's well worth the investment too.