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Replacement stylus for Shure M97xE Cartridge

Lawrence-lp

Lawrence-lp

New Member
I think I now know enough to ask a meaningful question. :idea:

I have a Shure M97xE cartridge on a mid-level Technics turntable. My 4-year old son "not-so-gently" dragged the tonearm across a record and damaged the needle housing, so I started looking for a replacement, and then considered upgrading. I found all the raves about the Jico N97xE SAS needle, but found another option and wanted some feedback.

In terms of the shape of the actual needle (correct me if I am mistaken), I understand that elliptical needles are good but do not read very deeply into the groove; diamond line-contact needles have a sharper point and thus read deeper in the groove; and SAS needles are sharp but also contoured to make even more contact with the deeper groove images than a diamond line-contact needle.

I really want the deep-groove contact not only to get the most sound, but also to get past the superficial scratches/pops/clicks on most LP records. (I've heard the difference, and it is amazing.) I like a warm, rich sound.

So here are the options I found:

One is just the original stock Shure N97xE replacement for about $45, which I think has an elliptical needle.

Another is an LP Gear N97xVL ViVid Line replacement for Shure N97xE stylus for about $80. It is a diamond line-contact needle (sharper tip). One reviewer claimed it worked better than the SAS, even though he blamed himself for the difference.

The final choice is the JICO N97xE SAS needle/stylus replacement, which has the highly-touted SAS needle. It apparently once sold for $180, but now sells for $290 from turntableneedles.com, apparently because SAS needle production is being suspended. One reviewer noted it was absolutely worth the $180 price, but now that it is $290, I'm not sure that analysis stands.


The questions is, with a mid-range Shure M97xE cartridge on a mid-range Technics turntable, does it make sense to spend almost $300 on an SAS needle, or should I just go for the $80 LP Gear line-contact needle and call it a day? I can afford the $300 SAS stylus, but I'd rather not waste $210 (or would prefer using it elsewhere), if you know what I mean. Would I be better off upgrading the whole cartridge to, say, a $210 Denon DL-1 MK cartridge with elliptical needle, or the Denon plus a similarly-priced $80-$90 line-contact needle? Or would the M97xE cartridge suddenly explode into the performance of a $600-$700 cartridge once the SAS needle is on it?

Thanks.
 
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I personally like the stock M97xE stylus. Aftermarket options will change its signature.

Just get a different cartridge, like an AT440mlb or something, if you want something that digs deep.
 
I have used the stock, VividLine, and now the SAS with the M97xE. I got the SAS just before the prices went up, but only have about 4 sides played on it so far so too early for comments. I will endorse the VividLine as an upgrade to stock (to my ears). Added a bit more sparkle to the top end while retaining the qualities of the original stylus (again, to my ears).

Agree with the comment to consider the AT440 MLa or MLb as well. A lot of cartridge for what you would have paid for the SAS for the M97.
 
Lawrence-lp said:
I think I now know enough to ask a meaningful question. :idea:

I have a Shure M97xE cartridge on a mid-level Technics turntable. My 4-year old son "not-so-gently" dragged the tonearm across a record and damaged the needle housing, so I started looking for a replacement, and then considered upgrading. I found all the raves about the Jico N97xE SAS needle, but found another option and wanted some feedback.

In terms of the shape of the actual needle (correct me if I am mistaken), I understand that elliptical needles are good but do not read very deeply into the groove; diamond line-contact needles have a sharper point and thus read deeper in the groove; and SAS needles are sharp but also contoured to make even more contact with the deeper groove images than a diamond line-contact needle.

I really want the deep-groove contact not only to get the most sound, but also to get past the superficial scratches/pops/clicks on most LP records. (I've heard the difference, and it is amazing.) I like a warm, rich sound.

So here are the options I found:

One is just the original stock Shure N97xE replacement for about $45, which I think has an elliptical needle.

Another is an LP Gear N97xVL ViVid Line replacement for Shure N97xE stylus for about $80. It is a diamond line-contact needle (sharper tip). One reviewer claimed it worked better than the SAS, even though he blamed himself for the difference.

The final choice is the JICO N97xE SAS needle/stylus replacement, which has the highly-touted SAS needle. It apparently once sold for $180, but now sells for $290 from turntableneedles.com, apparently because SAS needle production is being suspended. One reviewer noted it was absolutely worth the $180 price, but now that it is $290, I'm not sure that analysis stands.


The questions is, with a mid-range Shure M97xE cartridge on a mid-range Technics turntable, does it make sense to spend almost $300 on an SAS needle, or should I just go for the $80 LP Gear line-contact needle and call it a day? I can afford the $300 SAS stylus, but I'd rather not waste $210 (or would prefer using it elsewhere), if you know what I mean. Would I be better off upgrading the whole cartridge to, say, a $210 Denon DL-1 MK cartridge with elliptical needle, or the Denon plus a similarly-priced $80-$90 line-contact needle? Or would the M97xE cartridge suddenly explode into the performance of a $600-$700 cartridge once the SAS needle is on it?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

Get the line contact one from LP Gear! I was stunned how good it sounded once it was broke in! WELL worth the $$$!!! It's very warm and 'Shure' sounding, but doesn't have the 'damped' high end of the original stylus.
 
For the amount of that SAS you could buy a whole new cartridge and try something completely different. The M97xE is fussy. I have that set up right now on my Garrard and it is the least favorite of the four carts I have for my Lab 80. The Pickering V15 that came with the table is nice, and I just recently picked up a Shure M80e. I love that these older carts are cheap and affordable on eBay especially if they are stuck on a lab 80 head shell.
 
From what I have heard from other Shure users, both the older Shure N95ED (nude 0.2 x 0.7 mil elliptical) and N95HE (nude Hyperelliptical) are both superior to the N97Xe stylus. The originals can sometimes be found on ebay.
 
Now that the SAS for the M97xE is either very costly or unavailable, I would look to the Jico HE or move on.

Never loved the stock stylus but I did get it to sound good a few times.
 
Lawrence-lp said:
What do you mean by "better suited to the Shure cartridge sound?" Why is that? Thanks.
Click to expand...

What do you mean by "better suited to the Shure cartridge sound?"

Sounds like the original Shure cartridge.

Why is that?

Because the HE -hyper elliptical stylus is a Shure designed stylus. :biggrin:
 
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Balifly said:
What do you mean by "better suited to the Shure cartridge sound?"

Sounds like the original Shure cartridge.

Why is that?

Because the HE -hyper elliptical stylus is a Shure designed stylus. :biggrin:
Click to expand...

Thanks! But now I'm even more confused. The listing for the HE stylus you provided says that it is manufactured by JICO. It does have a photo of a stylus with a "Shure" logo on it, but the caption of that photo says "OEM provided for reference, only" I guess to show that it "looks" like a Shure-designed stylus.

It doesn't say so in the listing, but is the JICO-manufactured stylus designed by Shure but not manufactured by Shure? Or does that change your opinion?

Thanks, again!
 
Lawrence-lp said:
Thanks! But now I'm even more confused. The listing for the HE stylus you provided says that it is manufactured by JICO. It does have a photo of a stylus with a "Shure" logo on it, but the caption of that photo says "OEM provided for reference, only" I guess to show that it "looks" like a Shure-designed stylus.

It doesn't say so in the listing, but is the JICO-manufactured stylus designed by Shure but not manufactured by Shure? Or does that change your opinion?

Thanks, again!
Click to expand...

JICO makes/made the HE-hyper elliptical stylus according to Shures design.

The JICO made HE is not nude mounted as the original Shure designed and made HE though.

The JICO made HE is as close to the original Shure HE as one could get in the after market, as far as I know. :)
 
The Jico HE stylus has a major radius of 1.5 mils just like the original Shure stylus did. The VividLine has a major radius of 2.9 mils which is arguably more advanced but will make for a markedly different sound than the original Shure HE. If you are trying to keep as much of the original Shure sound as possible then the HE would be the recommended way to go.
 
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