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AT92E w/ nude elliptical vs. AT122LP w/ bonded line contact

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ElJeffe

New Member
Hi all,

I currently have an AT92E with a nude elliptical diamond on my Technics SL-QD33. The overall SQ is good, but it does exhibit some unwanted sibilance and IGD. I am eyeing an NOS AT122LP on Reverb for $135 which has a bonded line contact/Shibata stylus. My question to you all is, will the presumably higher quality generator in the AT122LP along with its more refined stylus shape sound as good or better than the nude elliptical on my (presumably) lesser quality AT92E? I am mainly looking to resolve the sibilance/IGD, but also don't want to experience any downgrade in overall SQ. I have read extensively on the supposed advantages of nude vs. bonded diamonds. Do you think the AT122LP w/ line contact will track well enough to improve the issues I'm having with my AT92E w/ nude elliptical? Or would I be trading one flawed cartridge for one that's flawed in another way (namely, due its bonded stylus)? I ask because one of the supposed advantages of nude styli is trackability, and I'm mainly trying to improve just that. The only cart I'm looking at with a nude stylus is going for upwards of $200, so if I can spend less and still improve my set-up, that would be wonderful. On the other hand, if spending less means a net loss in SQ or no improvement, I will gladly spend more.

Thanks in advance for any help y'all can provide.

Jeff
 
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That 122LP at Reverb is NOT new you can see dust in the cartridge body. So a decent amount of use you don't get dust in there just playing a record or two.
 
cgallery said:
That 122LP at Reverb is NOT new you can see dust in the cartridge body. So a decent amount of use you don't get dust in there just playing a record or two.
Click to expand...

Okay, well regardless of whether it's new or not (he says it hasn't been used except to film the demo video, according to the person he got it from), that doesn't answer my question. Any thoughts on the question I asked?
 
IMO, sounds like a tracking/arm or alignment issue.
What I mean is, no cart is designed for sibilance or groove distortion so it's probably not the cart's fault.
Double check everything: alignment, anti-skate, VTF, TT level, clean the stylus, etc.
 
ElJeffe said:
Okay, well regardless of whether it's new or not (he says it hasn't been used except to film the demo video, according to the person he got it from), that doesn't answer my question. Any thoughts on the question I asked?
Click to expand...

Well the AT92E is bonded not nude, isn't it? Or did you swap to a different stylus?

So much depends on the hours on the existing stylus (wear), setup, even how clean your vinyl is.

A new bonded line contact (the 122LP is a bonded Shibata) will outperform a spent bonded elliptical, all other things being equal.
 
cgallery said:
Well the AT92E is bonded not nude, isn't it? Or did you swap to a different stylus?

So much depends on the hours on the existing stylus (wear), setup, even how clean your vinyl is.

A new bonded line contact (the 122LP is a bonded Shibata) will outperform a spent bonded elliptical, all other things being equal.
Click to expand...
The stylus on my AT92E was upgraded to a nude elliptical by the seller of the TT. It was new when installed, and has only seen a little use since I bought it (not sure exactly how many hours, more than 5 and probably less than 25).
 
theflattire said:
IMO, sounds like a tracking/arm or alignment issue.
What I mean is, no cart is designed for sibilance or groove distortion so it's probably not the cart's fault.
Double check everything: alignment, anti-skate, VTF, TT level, clean the stylus, etc.
Click to expand...
I can only adjust VTF within .5 grams on the TT, not alignment or anti-skate. I clean my stylus in between each side of vinyl. The TT appears to be quite level, but I could buy a level just to be sure.
 
ElJeffe said:
The stylus on my AT92E was upgraded to a nude elliptical by the seller of the TT. It was new when installed, and has only seen a little use since I bought it (not sure exactly how many hours, more than 5 and probably less than 25).
Click to expand...

What is the make/model of the upgraded stylus? Is it one of those generic nudes, the "black diamond?" Or is it authentic Audio Technica?
 
ElJeffe said:
I can only adjust VTF within .5 grams on the TT, not alignment or anti-skate. I clean my stylus in between each side of vinyl. The TT appears to be quite level, but I could buy a level just to be sure.
Click to expand...
IME, high VTF can cause distortion. Even an inexpensive gauge can help with that.
Purchase a good level, not a cheap round bubble. Mine were all off.
You'd be surprised what an un-level table can do to the arm and tracking.
Good luck!
 
ElJeffe said:
Hi all,

I currently have an AT92E with a nude elliptical diamond on my Technics SL-QD33. The overall SQ is good, but it does exhibit some unwanted sibilance and IGD. I am eyeing an NOS AT122LP on Reverb for $135 which has a bonded line contact/Shibata stylus. My question to you all is, will the presumably higher quality generator in the AT122LP along with its more refined stylus shape sound as good or better than the nude elliptical on my (presumably) lesser quality AT92E? I am mainly looking to resolve the sibilance/IGD, but also don't want to experience any downgrade in overall SQ. I have read extensively on the supposed advantages of nude vs. bonded diamonds. Do you think the AT122LP w/ line contact will track well enough to improve the issues I'm having with my AT92E w/ nude elliptical? Or would I be trading one flawed cartridge for one that's flawed in another way (namely, due its bonded stylus)? I ask because one of the supposed advantages of nude styli is trackability, and I'm mainly trying to improve just that. The only cart I'm looking at with a nude stylus is going for upwards of $200, so if I can spend less and still improve my set-up, that would be wonderful. On the other hand, if spending less means a net loss in SQ or no improvement, I will gladly spend more.

Thanks in advance for any help y'all can provide.

Jeff
Click to expand...
I have a VS245LP and a modern AT92 equivalent, which is the AT85. The VS245LP has what they call, a "modified shibata", i.e., a line-contact stylus as per the specs sheet, which is bonded. This cart is vastly superior to the AT85E in all aspects, from tracking to sound to output to absence of IGD. If the suspension is still holding its own, in my book the $135 being asked is a bargain for an OEM NOS shibata/line-contact. Hope it helps.
 
If you can find any of the older 100/120 body MicroLine styli, like the ATN440ML, the ones intended to track at 1.4g, you could get a cartridge only from an AT122/132/142/152 on ebay, and make that work. You'd need to adjust the VTF down a bit because this stylus is slightly heavier than the smaller T4P versions.

But it would track anything and everything. And the anti-skating would be close enough (normally calibrated for 1.25g cartridges but you'd be tracking at 1.4g).
 
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So if I'm leveling the TT, I should set the level on the platter with mat removed in order to get the best result? Just making sure I understand correctly.
 
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