Shure cartridges discontinued

That certainly didn't help them. I think their real trouble was sourcing material at a price that people would pay for the V15. The cantilever material was exotic. As others have stated, people tend to compare the cost of the old stuff to any new item, so they just could not justify it to most consumers to make it large scale.
-Bill

 

I still just don't follow your logic on how where Shure builds microphones has to do with the fact phonograph needles dont' sell well in 2018.

I'm sure every customer of Shure microphones made in Mexico are aware they can pay more for a Beyerdyanmic microphone made in the EU. They're choosing the less expensive option in spite of this.

 

Go Jico...IMO the tonal difference is better and their quality is top notch.

 

Thanks but I have a lifetime supply of Shures already and am aware of the various refitters and what they sound like - I am just alerting others who may have only heard the original.

 

No, you are jumping to that conclusion. They are too big, so their business model didn't work for low volume, high end stuff. Maybe they could have made a tiny spin-off mfg area for high end stuff, but it wasn't who they were and they don't see business heading that way in the volume that they would like. I can totally see why they just quit rather than try to re-invent their old wheel. It was a nice wheel...

So it wasn't that it could not be done. They could have done it, as others have. They did not want to as they have bigger fish to fry. That's today, and that's their reality. My comment about them being able to and a "should have" - "could have" comments was referring to what they might have done decades ago, when they had a good market. They didn't then either. It is what it is.
-Bill

 

Sounds good - when you don't mention China I completely agree with your thoughts on the matter. Which has been my point all along.

 

I have 2 V15 III's and a V15 IV....little to no difference with oem styli. The biggest difference was due to stylus profile ie the micro ridge stylus used on the V15 V models. My opinion is that if you find a V15 III, IV or V and order a Jico SAS for it you would likely be very happy with any one of them.

 

Get that Jico SAS...you won't be disappointed.

 

What was the original cost of a V15?

 

Jico SAS, HE, or standard elliptical.

 

The first V15 III that I owned came on a then new Technics SL-1600 in 1977...IIRC it was in the $140 - $150 cdn range.

 

Look, you are set in your belief. Fine. I find that their entire business is what they evaluated when they made their decision. It's a single company with many products and many costs. So funds lost in one area cause problems in another. The trend for companies to have a harder go at it than they had envisioned or hoped when moving production overseas has been a recurring theme for many mfg companies. They face tough competition and a dwindling market, and the fact that production is in China for their competitors at that price point makes it difficult for them. It doesn't make sense for them to do that and they also must have ditched the thought of going upscale with it years ago. It's also just disappointing in general, not just that Shure has stopped production of cartridges, but that another classic US product has reached its end. It is a sign of the times and it is important and relative.
-Bill

 

I concur. The 97xe with SAS is a phenomenal value if care is taken with the setup. It is quite sensitive to VTA and azimuth, but once dialed in, you're rewarded with exceptional detail and resolution for a MM cart. It retains much of the Shure warmth but improves upon everything else. I prefer it over my SS Carmen.

 

Do you know what they were charging for the xMR version in the late 90s?

 

Not sure (pardon the pun). I can tell you that in 1989 the V15 Type V-MR was $297. They had at least 29 different cartridge models. The most expensive then was the Ultra 500 at $400.
-Bill

 

$290 approx for the V15 VxMR in 99

 

It's not that I'm set in my belief, it's that I'm trying to understand what you're basing an argument around. You're still making general-purpose statements on Chinese manufacturing that don't actually tie in to the topic at hand. You've previously stated Shure's phono cartridge business going under doesn't actually have anything to do with Chinese manufacturing, so I guess we can stick to what we agree on and leave it at that.

 

This List of Vintage Shure Catalogs is gold for the die-hard fans

 

I wish Jico were a bit more affordable.

 

Maybe they could outsource manufacturing to china oh wait

 

It's easy to understand; Shure milked the cash cow until it ran dry, not investing in tooling/production/engineering. Once product delivery delays (likely QC driven) became onerous, they dropped the line to protect the brand.

I'm betting we will see economy priced Shure 'clones' before too long, somebody will buy up the worn out tooling and churn out inconsistent crap that Shure won't put their name on.

 

I seriously doubt it as that could actually tarnish their brand too. I'm sure they'll just dismantle and scrap the old tooling the same way Technics did with the orginal SL-1200 tooling.

 

I have a Type IV witha JICO SAS and I am happy with it.

 

Wow, my replacement N97XE just arrived in the mail this afternoon.

 

I was about to say that Stanton discontinued cartridges and styli a few years back when they were bought out. But a quick web search indicates that they still appear to be in the cartridge business and have even introduced a new cartridge (the 750 model): Stanton 750 - DJ Equipment, DJ Gear, Phono Cartridges & Needles, DJ Mixer, DJ Turntables, Headphones, CD Players

But that might not last long, considering that the company that bought them out was... wait for it... GIBSON.

Their force gauge was good for the time it was developed, but digital scales are so inexpensive now (and more accurate) that my force gauge is collecting dust these days.

If you already like the sound of your AT carts, then stick with those. However, if you wished your AT carts weren't so bright and had some more warmth to them, then a Shure cart might do the trick. Personally, I prefer the sound of Shure carts. I run the M97 for my LPs and the M44 for my vintage 45s.

I was already planning on getting a spare stylus for my M97 before this news came down, but will now be ordering (at least) two spares.