good headshell and cartridge Mitsuishi DP-EC20?

[StarquestMan]

some of you may have seen my previous posts on trying to source parts for my turntable i had picked up. since then i have picked up the counterweight and what was originally described by the seller as a screw (Northwinds pointed out to me that it was an extra weight). so now that i have the two counterweights out of the way i need to figure out what to look for in terms of a headshell and a cartridge for it. i have been looking for a while online for a while with no luck for the original style Mitsubishi headshell used on several other models like the LT-30 and LT-20 (its the black style with a clear piece on top where the screws for the cartridge thread in). so i have been wondering what aftermarket options may be good, so far i have been thinking of this cartridge:

http://www.needledoctor.com/Audio-Technica-120E-Cartridge

And this headshell (which im wondering if its a bit overkill?)

http://www.needledoctor.com/Sumiko-HS12-Headshell

i guess the reason i like the headshell over others is the styling (i googled it and found some pictures of a DP-EC10 that had one and it looked good) and the fact that it includes hardware and has great reviews. im not sure though about how its weight (11.396g) would compare to the stock shell snce im assuming i should stay reasonably close to avoid ballancing issues?

after all this i still need to replace the two bulbs in the record size detection light next to he platter (i already have them i just need to put em in) and then figure out what size the belts are that have turned into a sticky tar-like mess so if anybody knows of a good source for high quality long lasting rubber belts (and their sizes if you know them) that would be awesome.

 

[sKiZo]

Any decent standard headshell should do the trick, as long as it's adjustable. I've got the original Mitsu fiber shell on mine, but also use an Empire and Pioneer from old tables for other cartridges. Only thing I'd steer away from is the LP Gear shells ... those are real crap. If you do go with a used shell, I'd take a real close look at the wiring and replace those if there's any doubt.

My very favorite cartridge is a Pickering XV15/25E, but I also use an AT12S on occasion as a change of pace.

Belts for the table (assUming my notes didn't get scrambled):

REPLACEMENT BELTS FOR AUTO RETURN
$2 each
2-SBM 6.0
1-SBM 4.6
Studio Sound Electronics
http://www.studiosoundelectronics.com/belts.htm#SBM

Took some trial and error, but I'm pretty sure these are the ones that worked on my DP-EC10. Same internals, so they should work for you.

Had a devil of a time getting the return to cycle properly - I could only get it right on one or the other end of the platter. Eventually went with some plastic shims, and it's been working well for a couple years now.

Here's a video I posted up on the results.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_R2ylrQzJtw

Great little tables though ... well worth the effort to get them working right. One caution ... don't overtighten the base screws as the material can be a bit brittle - some sort of pressure formed carbon material for weight. I had one hole crack out - fortunately, it was a clean break and easy enough to fix with a bit of crazy glue.

Also worth mentioning. You can try replacing the belts first with the light shield in place - that's the black plate with the grooves in it - but I found it a lot easier to do the job with it off. If you do remove it, make sure you mark the spindle for both orientation AND height so you can put it on the same way it came off. Also mark the bottom so you get it in right side up. That may be where I ran into trouble on mine - not marking it well enough. For getting rid of the goo ... I scraped most of it off with a small screwdriver and cleaned the grooves with a pipe cleaner sprayed with WD40. Once it's clean, follow up with a clean pipe cleaner w/alcohol ...