SH Spotlight Newbies getting started playing vinyl, please avoid mistracking & resulting groove damage!!!

I upgraded the stylus on the 95E installed on my backup table, and have no problems whatsoever with it. I was able to locate an aftermarket Jico stylus with an .0003x.0007 elliptical tip which sounds better than the stock stylus. It also stands up to the Ortofon test record, tracking at 1.7g.

 

I just bought a used Technics SL-Q2. The cartridge on it is a vintage Shure M91E. I purchased a replacement stylus EVG-761-DED. The seller says its a Japan made. Or is this a Switzerland made stylus I been told to avoid?

BRAND NEW EVG TURNTABLE STYLUS SHURE HI TRACK N91ED N91E M91ED N91G M91G | eBay

 

Most of not all Japanese JICO styli have a dark dot on the underside of the cantilever near the tip. The EVG styli I've bought for my Shure M93 cart have had the JICO dot on them. Those EVGs had the part number PM3136DE on them and were described as N91E and/or N91ED equivalents. What kind of packaging did yours arrive in...a plastic clamshell box with the white and yellow EVG label?

 

It came in a plastic clamshell with white and yellow label. Mine has the blue dot on the cantilever.

 

Here's a picture

 

I see the dot. That is a Japanese JICO stylus.

 

Thanks for your help. It seems better built than the one that was on it.

 

This is how my stylus was labelled...looks to be same as yours.

 

And this is the stylus on the cart:

 

Mine is similar but the # is 761-DED on top and a different bar code #. Russell Industries on side. Mine has a black front.

 

Can't help but wonder if these are the same styli despite the numbering difference...

 

Probably. The only difference is the color of the housing. Yours is green and mine is black.

 

I also have several Tonar replacement styli labeled as N91ED equivalents that have the dot as well...

 

Here's my case with the old stylus.

 

I have JICO N91ED equivalents that have green, black and ivory plastic grips on them. All have dots on the cantilevers. All claim to have elliptical dimensions of .0003x.0007.

It seems possible that JICO may have been supplying numerous resellers with N91ED equivalents in varying colors.

 

The standard headshell that comes with the Audio Technica works just fine...don't you have that? It is a cool & easy install, as you don't need those hard to handle nuts--the screws just screw directly into the cartridge.

 

I hear ya. My next upgrade -- but for now, the Red is just fine!

 

EVG magnetic styli WERE coming from JICO. No longer. They will come from the same Swiss manufacturer that Pfanstiehl buys from. Tonar continues to source from JICO and Nagaoka.

 

Hi Steve,
very useful and interesting post!
Could you upload a sound clip - a needle drop of a distortion tracking?
Thank you in advance.

 

How often should I be changing my needle?
Like, after how many records played; 500? 2,000?

 

1000 hs. At 40' per Lp; do the maths. Just keep track of the number of Lps you play.

 

It's a stylus, not a needle. The generic term "needle" comes from the old grammphone which was changed for every record. The buzz-word "needledrop" sources from the same, but describes the transfer of vinyl to a digital file.

The stylus should be inspected and possibly replaced after approx 1000 hours. This translates to about 3000 album sides (apprx 20 minutes each) Stylus wear varies according to tracking force and cleanliness of the record. Clean records extend stylus life, dirty records shorten it. Worn records, when cleaned on an RCM, mostly do not affect stylus life.

Some audiophiles have reported stylus service life well beyond 1000 hours, up to twice that, and confirmed by inspection and sound quality. The records must be clean, and a cartridge optimally aligned to achieve that.

The conical (diamond) stylus should be inspected sooner, after about 400 hours (1200 album sides) as their smaller contact area increases their wear rate.
A sapphire stylus should be replaced often, perhaps about every 200 hours, but these are found only with ceramic and crystal cartridges, equipped on mass produced record changers, portable record players and consoles.

 

And for another definition of a “needledrop”, ask a millennial what it means. It’s too painful for me to describe.

 

the Ortofon works fits fine with the standard Audio Technica headshell and with Ortofon Red; it screws in directly so no fiddling with the tiny nuts that most require when installing.

 

Thanks, I was just re-reading this thread today and was wondering if the 2m just fits. I may be picking one up this year.

Scooped up a couple AT100/E replacement styli from LP Gear middle of last year and have already gone through one.