Question about Audio Technica AT-71E Cartridge

[Wally Swift]

Is the AT71E basically the same as the discontinued AT70 except for the fact that the AT70 came with a conical stylus stock and the AT71E comes with an elliptical? They look exactly the same in pictures. If I use identical headshells with each cart I should be able to switch them back and forth without resetting the tonearm, right?

 

[kirk57]

Yes, I believe that is the case.

I replaced the red conical on my AT70 with the green stylus of the AT71E. I can't say there was a huge sonic benefit is doing so, though.

Elliptical stylus will track lighter than the conical, and alignment is a bit more critical, so a bit of adjustment may be required.

 

[SA-708]

The AT70B/AT71B/AT71E/AT72E are all the same cartridge, with different stylii. I have just an AT71E cartridge, and swapped between the red conical (ATN70B), green elliptical (ATN71E), and blue elliptical (AT72E) back when I was using it. Tracking force is different, though. The 70 tracks at 2-3 grams, both 71s at 1.5-2.5 grams, and the 72 at 1-2 grams. I used to vary the tracking force, depending on which stylus I was using.

 

[Wally Swift]

Changing the VTF is no biggie. It's going through the whole process of floating the arm, resetting the VTA, etc. that I want to avoid from record to record.

 

[lini]

WS: In addition to what SA-708 already wrote, the AT70 family actually consisted of six models, which could be sorted into 4 groups of tracking force/compliance (from highest/lowest to lowest/highest): First the AT70L (old version with grey needle), then the AT70 (red; later on unfortunately also called AT70L), then the AT71 (yellow) and AT71E (green) and finally the AT72 (brown) and AT72E (blue). So, if you want to be able to swap between spherical and elliptical with minimum work, you'd best use either the ATN71 and ATN71E or the ATN72 and ATN72E. If you want to use original needles, the latter would already be pretty difficult, though - 'cause especially the ATN72 has become extremely rare nowadays.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini

 

[Wally Swift]

I've pretty much narrowed it down to these two options;

AT72E w/JICO aftermarket .3X.7 elliptical;

http://www.turntableneedles.com/Audio-Technica-AT-70-Cartridge_p_652.html

or this AT71E with [presumably] an authentic AT elliptical stylus .4X.7;

http://www.lpgear.com/product/ATC11.html

Same price. I e-mailed LP Gear today but it's my understanding that they rarely respond to inqueries. Does anybody know if LP Gear sells authentic Audio Technica stylii? I had problems in the past with another website that showed real AT stylii in the picture but shipped aftermarket.

 

[lini]

WS: Yes, they do - otherwise the needles will be described as "(LP Gear) replacement for" . However, mind you that LPGear in quite a few cases offers sometimes lower ranking current replacement for some needles - like for example an ATN120E for the ATN130E and ATN135E. But that will usually become clear from the desciption. This is similar to for example Musonic in Britain, where "original stylus" doesn't always necessarily mean that it's the exact type, but may just as well refer to a lower ranking, compatible original replacement needle. There, in case the description wouldn't quite make it clear what one would get, the price is a good indicator.

And yup, quite a few dealers show pictures of the originals for reference - and sometimes the descriptions are rather vague, too. In those case "replacement for" typically means it'll be just a generic 3rd party replacement. However, if in doubt, it never harms to contact the dealer/vendor and ask.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini

 

[Wally Swift]

LP Gear responded and informed me that they are out of stock on the AT71E but suggested an AT70 with the ATN71E elliptical stylus which works for me. Working out the ordering details. Thanks everyone for your help!

 

[Wally Swift]

I replaced the red conical on my AT70 with the green stylus of the AT71E. I can't say there was a huge sonic benefit is doing so, though.

Just rigged up my new AT70/AT71E stylus and we're off and spinning. Sounds very nice, more of a difference then I expected. This of course could be because the red conical on the other AT70 is aftermarket and this AT71E is authentic AT product. But this setup is exactly what I wanted. A quick switch and a minor counterweight adjustment. This AT70 is less bright then my AT311EP which is also a plus.

 

[Apoplectic]

Glad you like it! Currently using an AT72E to rock a copy of Jimi Hendrix: Blues and I'm loving it.

 

[Apoplectic]

Also, does anyone know the compliance of these cartridges? Sounds good on my table so far, but I wonder if I can get a better match for my tonearm.

 

[Wally Swift]

Cracked open a sealed copy of Alex Taylor - With Friends and Neighbors from 1971 on Capricorn earlier. This nice, virgin disc sounded fantastic with the new cart/stylus combo. The acoustic guitars especially sounded great.

 

[lini]

Apo: I've never seen official compliance specs for the AT70 family, but my guesstimation would be roundabout 20 cu (dynamic, 10 Hz) - which should already be ok for the TP22, although even higher compliance would seem more ideal.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini

 

[Apoplectic]

Yeah, thats what I was thinking as well, because it seemed to play just as well on my SL-1900 w/ stock arm as it does on my TP22. That and it seems like every cart I've looked at had a compliance of 20, save for the Sumiko Pearl which I believe is 14.

Thanks.

 

[Apoplectic]

Yeah, thats what I was thinking as well, because it seemed to play just as well on my SL-1900 w/ stock arm as it does on my TP22. That and it seems like every cart I've looked at had a compliance of 20, save for the Sumiko Pearl which I believe is 14.

Thanks.

 

[Mr.White]

Does anyone know if a micro-line stylus is available that would fit this AT70 cartridge? Something similar to what is on the AT440MLa/Mlb or AT150MLX? Thanks.

 

[lini]

Mr.W: The AT70 family so far unfortunately appears somewhat overlooked in terms of 3rd party upgade needles - and I don't think there were any more sophisticated original needle variants than the ATN72E. However, unlike on quite a few of the newer budget ATs, the cantilever assemblies on the AT70 family needles still were screw-fixed to the plastic holders, so cantilever assembly transplantation might be an option.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini