Shure cartridges discontinued

Hey, we're all disappointed but Shure also hung in there and made cartridges for 20-30 years longer than most of their competitors. They deserve a big huzzah just for that.
Here's a toast to Shure and all the people they have made happy with their phono cartridges.

 

Just grabbed a Shure M97xE and a spare stylus from Amazon. It's so sad to think these will be the last new, current production phono products I'll ever be able to buy from Shure. Truly the end of an era.

 

stanton is no more as well, correct ? i haven't seen or bought a track master in a long time, yet see any new for sale.

stanton, sure, wow, ortofon will be smiling all the way to the bank.

 

If Shure stops making microphones, we're in big trouble.

 

My M97xe barely used, has been thrown in the drawer for the past 9 months or so, probably one of the worst cartridges I have possessed.
Sorry, no offence.

 

Sad day. Gibson guitars filed for bankruptcy as well.

 

It’s not clear that Shure could have made the best cartridge on the market. The company hasn’t done a nickel’s worth of cartridge R&D in well over 25 years. The designs are old, materials are old and the sonics have budged one iota.

That’s not to say that Shure’s budget offerings aren’t worthwhile. They are. Thousands and thousands of Shure cartridge owners aren’t wrong. Shure ignored the mid-end and high-end market more than 30 years ago though, and has been producing its budget line up the entire time.

My personal comment, earlier, about hoping Shure would some day come out with a V15 Type VI (or something like that) was sarcastic. I don’t think “everyone loses in the end” because I haven’t purchased a new Shure cartridge in over 40 years and neither have any of my friends. There are too many other, better choices as far as we’re concerned. For decades now, to us, Shure has not been a company that comes up during home audio/music listening discussions.

 

Off Topic, But just in,
Thorens Turntable Company moved to Germany under new ownership.

 

I think that maybe Shure decided to exit the cartridge business in order to avoid shooting itself in the foot. It’s cartridges have been an audiophile afterthought in the marketplace for many, many years. To retool and reinvest in both R&D and manufacturing is a seriously expensive decision. I personally don’t think there’s enough money in the cartridge business to justify it, especially not when the company would have to face the prospect of trying to carve off significant market share from the Audio Technica, Ortofon and several other major cartridge makers. I don’t think that the size of the vinyl revival market justifies any such investment.

 

Just in from what source? Thorens has bounced some of its operations back and forth between Switzerland and Germany a couple of times during the past twenty years or so.

 

Thorens latest press statement,

"New owner from 1th of May 2018 - Thorens returns to Germany
29 APRIL 2018

Famous record player brand Thorens returns to Germany and Bergisch Gladbach becomes Analog Valley. The oldest Company in entertainment electronics switches Owner and location.

Gunter Kuerten takes Thorens. The former CEO of ELAC and Denon (with additional leadership experience at LG, Loewe, Sharp and Sony), founded the new Thorens GmbH in Bergisch Gladbach. By this beginning with May 1st, another worldwide leading brand in analog HiFi is located there and makes the region to Germany’s Analog Valley.

Thorens is the oldest name in entertainment electronics, founded in 1883 by Hermann Thorens in Sainte-Croix, Switzerland. The brand is still worldwide known for its high-quality record players. During the sixties of the 20th century the company moved to Lahr in Germany. Later when Heinz Rohrer became CEO, Thorens returned temporarily to Switzerland.
„Gunter Kuerten is a very experienced and successful industry insider. Because of this Thorens will be in good hands and ready for future challenges.“, so Heinz Rohrer.
„I am committed to the tradition of Thorens and I see my job in keeping the brands legacy but also in further developing this ‘analog jewel’ “, confirms Gunter Kuerten. “I see a lot of future chances in the opening of markets. And the worldwide vinyl revival is going to assist us in that “.

Thorens GmbH
Lustheide 85
51427 Bergisch Gladbach
Germany "

 

The old designs are fine imo. There’s a reason you’ll still find a V15 (type V) in pretty much any mastering room on the planet. That’s arguably the finest moving magnet cartridge ever made, and I have a hard time believing that a company of their stature doesn’t have the capital or manufacturing capability to rival that of some of these boutique high end brands who are doing just fine producing 4-figure MC carts in relatively crummy workspaces.

 

This is heartbreaking. I can't imagine the world of turntables and vinyl records without Shure and their wonderful cartridges and their enchanting "musical" sound. I always hoped that they would bring back the V15 series for the upscale market. They have some great budget cartridges such as the M97XE, which is wonderfully laid back and relaxed, perfect for schlepping on an old couch while playing Pink Floyd. Then you add in a Jico stylus and you're really soaring.

They really should have offered products in the higher end range, but they probably didn't have the resources to invest and competition is incredibly fierce. Very sad.

 

Question: how well do you feel the Ortofon 2M Black compares to the V15? I remember the reviews comparing the two years ago, suggesting that the Black was the true successor to Shure's beloved cartridge series. I personally think they're both amazing, but with a few slight differences in warmth and tone.

 

I can’t say I’ve personally done extensive testing between the two or anything like that but I have severe doubts it can touch the v15 in terms of tracking ability and tonal accuracy/neutrality. The v15 remains a professional reference cart even though it’s been decades out of production. If the 2M Black were an improvement or even “simply” comparable, from a business standpoint, you’d find them in professional settings. It’s gotta be cheaper than sourcing NOS or specially manufactured aftermarket styli to keep the old carts running.

 

Looks good to me. Thorens has been on the verge of bankruptcy since 2002. Kuerten is a mover & shaker and is definitely someone who has a good chance of making the company a financial success again.

 

When a manufacture discontinues a product line, it is about financial income. I guess Audio Technica, Nagaoka, Ortofon and others have a much larger share if the market.

 

The passing of Shure from the cartridge market is a sad day for many. It won't affect me personally as I have a large number of new in box v15 variants and OEM stylus choices to keep a dozen turntables going for the rest of my life. The v15 will remain the "sound of music" to me........

 

I had a shure in my first table, a Pioneer PL12. And a P-mount V-15 in a Technics 'close-n-play' table when I took a break from being an audiophile for a few years.

I must confess I don't know why they were so popular, I thought they were nothing special. Always preferred Grace, Signet, AT, Ortofon, Micro-Acoustics, etc.

 

Not really... there's tons of them out there, and unlike styli, mics don't wear out.

 

Interesting use of the Yiddish word, "schlepping."

 

Bummer. I was first in line for a V15 IVMR back in the 80's and thought it was miles ahead of the competition. But honestly, the way they've been conducting cartridge business over the last few decades, I'm surprised they stayed in the game as long as they did.

 

You're correct, DJing is largely going the way of digital today. Rane, the leader in mixer design for about 15 years now and creator of the industry standard DJ software Serato, just released an armless digital turntable intended to replace the 1200 as the industry standard, and I believe at this early point that it has a good chance of doing just that.

TWELVE | Rane DJ

 

The statement is relating specifically to Phono cartridges. I think they're still firmly entrenched in microphones!