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JICO SAS Discontinued

Wait! It’s a run at the stylus bank. We are only at phase one. It gets worse so hang on.

Announce a SAS shortage. Speculation is fueled by nothing. No matter- there is a run at the banks- all styluses are instantly sold. We buy more than we need. We are hoarding for our security. We created our own shortage. The stores move inventory immediately- they are happy. What is left instantly doubles in price.

CRISWELL PREDICTS

Prices and panic continue and rise. Some people freak out, crash the stylus gates and general stylus panic ensues.

Opportunists have covered their bases - they bought all remaining inventory, some seller hoard and sell for double or double-double yesterday’s price at eBay. We don’t buy- we throw money at them. The speculators are happy. The panic escalates so we bid in frenzies. We pay over-the-top dollar. Then we top that.

Then our self-made drought, hits. Everything is gone- hoarded in vaults. It is a desert. Anything for sale cost more than a trip to heaven. This goes on for a year or more. The speculators are happy.

One day in the future, JICO comes back as the hero. They save the day. They have seen our pain and feel for us. They have brought us new, improved, and much higher priced Neo-SAS styluses but are in short supply. Someone will grab one and say it is the best thing since we invented the toilet. We don’t care about the high prices. There is a run at the banks. We buy them all…forever and tell plebs of their even better sound. JICO and websites are happy.

Finally, that old inflated SAS market instantly falls through. Those holding the old SAS get burned…twice! It’s obsolete and the dampers become questionable. They bought high and sales are off.

Big business now has all the money and we are much poorer. The loyal less-than-bright and the general public lost.

The winners are the ones that sit patiently and do not play the game. But the majority is not going for that! We need to move NOW!

[Said with cynicism] Anyone want to buy my used SAS for triple today’s ending price? Speculation rules!
 
Best wishes for Morita-san's health, and for his ability to pass on his skills. More than a few products have died because the knowledge of how to make them was lost.
 
In the interview, he definitely wanted to. A bit later, he confesses that there are some nuances that he doesn't feel he's fully mastered. Now that's humbling.
 
GrampaDave said:
In the interview, he definitely wanted to. A bit later, he confesses that there are some nuances that he doesn't feel he's fully mastered. Now that's humbling.
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I was once a member of the ATA (American Taekwondo Association). The founder, Master Lee (9th Dan), came to one of our local testings and was interviewed. The interviewer asked, "At your level of development, what could you possibly be working on?" His response: "Well, I have not quite mastered "Chun Gee" yet. Chun Gee is the very first form learned by a white belt student. This is the heart of a master: there is ALWAYS room for improvement.

I have since moved on to assimilate techniques and styles from several martial arts, but I never forgot Master Lee's response that day.

Enjoy,
Rich P
 
And then later that night, the black helicopters came..........Cattle mutilations, missing time.......crop circles........and a scandalous shortage (created by evil, profit minded people) to stimulate sales........Meanwhile, back at the ranch, "has anyone seen Spot"? (our beloved German Shepard).....
 
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Or for the price of these now much more expensive styli, one could move on up to the frequently more costly moving coil cartridges, better moving magnet cartridges that were made in this century or any number of other options other than that 1971 M91 or V15 III among others. Good luck finding a similarly high compliance cartridge to match that ultra low mass arm bolted to those shure cartridges, though.
 
ethangsmith said:
Does this also mean the end to the LP Gear Vivid line? And also the Shure M95HE hyperelliptical styli?
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boreas said:
These share neither diamond nor cantilever with the SAS so I'd have to say no.

John
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As an owner of both the HE and SAS, one look at about 20x, will reveal a much higher level of precision, in both the parts and the extra difficulty of assembly, for the SAS. Although both use a multi piece cantilever. The level of technology and assembly are a less difficult chore. My guess is that we will continue to see the HE's, they are still on JICO's website.
 
Well I just ordered another one from LP Gear for my Technics SL-QL1... just in case!

I had ordered my present one from JICO.
 
My stylus is also on its way. Can't wait to hear the Shure M95HE. I was sitting on the fence with this one, as I have just bought a new in the box Technics SL1210MK5, a maple block for a perch and AT120e/b for older (kind of worn) records.

'ner
 
Received email on my V15 III, 3 weeks and will honor the price. IF, they become available, limited supply.

I bought my current SAS direct from JICO.

George.
 
FWIW, just got confirm from LP Gear that
SHN095HESAS - Super Analogue Stylus replacement for Shure N95ED N95HE stylus - 1
has shipped. The price had not recently been inflated.
 
I'm sitting here listening to some Lindsey Buckingham being played with a M95HE with an original stylus and I'm very impressed with the clarity of sound. Not the warm, punchy bass of the M91ED, but absolutely a great sounding cartridge and much more accurate in sound. It seems JICO is still making the hyperelliptical stylus for the HE, so we should continue to enjoy a good supply of those. Plus, there's always the LP Gear Vivid Line, which is similar if not the same thing.
 
grottyash said:
What is the difference between the Shibata, which are still apparently available, and the SAS? I thought they were variants if the same thing, although the Shibata was a requirement for quadraphonic.
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There's some good information on differences between stylus profiles in this Vinyl Asylum forum post.

http://www.vinylengine.com/turntable_forum/viewtopic.php?t=22894

Other differences between JICO SAS and JICO Shibata styli include the cantilever and suspension system.
 
jeromach said:
It is just strange ceasing order intake instantly without any prior notice and without giving some background information. It gives me the impression of "something wrong in a wrong way", some kind of unforseen disaster.
This absolutely would not have been accepted by my customers, when I still ran a wholesale company. I know the consumer market is different, but still.
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As noted in the announcement, the discontinuation was the effect of an issue in the supply chain. Not to pass the buck, but we had planned on phasing them out but were suddenly informed the part in question would be discontinued. More on that later.
 
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