Shure M74 CSZ 142-200 --- Pulled From Old Zenith Record Changer

[drp1003]

Hi all,

I came across another old vintage cartridge: Shure M74 CSZ. It's from an old Zenith All-In-One Receiver from the '70s. This particular Zenith receiver has a slightly better record changer/player than what's on my Sanyo All-In-One receiver. These BSR-style record player/changers are nearly 100% interchangeable; this Zenith one fits perfectly in the Sanyo's cutout and even the screws/springs align perfectly. Wiring works as well.

I took off the Shure M74 cartridge and will replace it with one of those cheap AT-91 MADE IN CHINA cartridges you can get for 15 bucks with a conical stylus. The Sanyo is RETRO fun all the way. I use it in the garage. Plays cassettes. LOL. I'll be spinning vinyl soon enough once I work out all the compatibility issues.

Anyway, back to the M74 CSZ. This thing has that removable metal clip/bracket and square body. Type 1? The Type 2's have a plastic body and wedge-shaped bottom, I believe. It looks old. It looks old-timey. I super-glued the metal bracket to the cartridge body (PHOTOS BELOW). The damm thing slips and slides around too much if you ask me. This thing is going to be added to my ever-expanding collection of new and vintage carts that I use on my Pioneer turntable.

Check those old record changers for vintage cartridges before you send them on their way to wherever.

The stylus looks like someone beat on it with a pair of tweezers and crushed the cantilever. It's toast.

I temporarily used another Shure stylus from my M95ED (interchangeable but not a perfect fit) to test the M74. I listened to a Steely Dan record and right away I noticed that it's a lot louder than all of my other vintage carts; it's loud like new Ortofon carts are. Bright yet it has a very well-rounded low end. Kick drums come through nicely. Vocals sing out better than anything. It's a keeper to be --Shure--.

Gonna get a new stylus. Looking for an elliptical diamond with a VTF near 2 grams or a bit higher. Since I can endlessly tweak my setup, I don't really have to go back to a conical tip. Budget or mid-range price only.

Any suggestions would be great...

 

[62vauxhall]

An elliptical stylus is not the be all and end all to me that it once was.

By virtue of the fact that they're old, clip in Shure cartridges appeal to me. I really like old cartridges and endeavour to keep them original. I just pulled the pin on a conical stylus for a 1960's Shure when I could have gotten a compatible eliptical more cheaply and without needing to order from Europe.

It has come to pass that all but one of the turntables I use now have cartridges with conical styli on them, tracking at 3 to 4 grams.

Since the TT's I have, with the exception of one, are also from that same era, it pleases me to use period correct cartridges.

That one exception is a Pioneer PL-630 with a Shure V15 III and it barely sees any use. My Duals, Garrard, BSR and Elac's, with their conicals, do the lion's share of the work.

EDIT: That loudness difference is probably due to cartridge output voltage. The old ones I've encountered were in the 6 to 10 millivolt range. I'm assuming that their lower compliances mean they are moving more magnetic material back and forth so are therefore more energetic. I believe older amplifiers appreciated that.

 

[revox-b77]

Shure M74 is basically the same family as the M70. It is a nice old vintage Shure. You can use the N74 CS stylus and track at 3 ish grams. I would recommend a Shure N75ED or N75EJ replacement.

 

[MCM_Fan]

Your M74 will take any stylus that fits the M75. You have lots of possibilities in both aftermarket and genuine NOS Shure replacement styli.

In the past, especially when they were selling for 12 bucks, I recommended the JICO made EVG light tracking elliptical:



It's a great sounding/tracking stylus, but the problems are two fold. First, with a max. VTF of 1.5g, it's not a good match for your application. Second, JICO stopped supplying product to EVG over a year ago, they are getting hard to find (EVG now uses the same Swiss supplier as Pfhanstiehl) and the price (from the only reliable source I know who still has them in stock) has doubled.

Just a note concerning other low cost M75 replacement styli: I directly compared the JICO made EVG to a Pfanstiehl and a Normarh and definitely preferred the JICO made EVG in terms of both sound quality and tracking ability. The Pfanstiehl wasn't terrible in either regard, just not as good as the JICO made EVG. The Normarh was the worst stylus I have ever owned that wasn't physically damaged.

But, have no fear, JICO still sells quality products under their own name. They are a little more expensive, but are well made and of excellent quality (similar construction to the original Shure, including a soldered tie wire). LPTunes is their official North American distributor and the one you are looking for is here:

DETAILS

• • JICO replacement Shure N75B Type 2 stylus
• • 0.7 mil conical diamond tip for high fidelity
• • Made in Japan, genuine JICO® stylus with each stylus quality inspected & sound tested
• • Lightweight aluminum alloy cantilever
• • 1.5 - 3.0 g tracking force

Unfortunately, it's showing up as sold out on their web site. You may try emailing them to see when they will have more in stock.

But, for only 6 bucks more, you can have the real deal from The Voice of Music:



Or, if you don't mind spending a little bit more, an upgrade:



I haven't used this particular Shure, but I have used others that are essentially the same stylus (N93EJ, N72EJ) in a different plastic grip and have found them to be excellent performers when tracked at 2.25 - 2.5g with medium mass tonearms (Technics/Panasonic s-shaped arms for example). If it was me, I'd probably go this route, but since your tonearm seems to prefer a slightly greater VTF, the N75-EC would also be a good choice. Hard to go wrong with genuine NOS Shure products. Get 'em while you can.

 

[drp1003]

An elliptical stylus is not the be all and end all to me that it once was.

By virtue of the fact that they're old, clip in Shure cartridges appeal to me. I really like old cartridges and endeavour to keep them original. I just pulled the pin on a conical stylus for a 1960's Shure when I could have gotten a compatible eliptical more cheaply and without needing to order from Europe.

It has come to pass that all but one of the turntables I use now have cartridges with conical styli on them, tracking at 3 to 4 grams.

Since the TT's I have, with the exception of one, are also from that same era, it pleases me to use period correct cartridges.

That one exception is a Pioneer PL-630 with a Shure V15 III and it barely sees any use. My Duals, Garrard, BSR and Elac's, with their conicals, do the lion's share of the work.

EDIT: That loudness difference is probably due to cartridge output voltage. The old ones I've encountered were in the 6 to 10 millivolt range. I'm assuming that their lower compliances mean they are moving more magnetic material back and forth so are therefore more energetic. I believe older amplifiers appreciated that.

My tonearm (Pioneer PL-518 turntable) is either a medium-HEAVY or HEAVY tonearm depending on who you believe either here at AK or elsewhere. I've tinkered and toiled away on this turntable enough to know that my sweet spot for styli is an elliptical or hyper-elliptical stylus with a VTF right around 2 grams +/- something something. That being said, you just might have convinced me to go with an original SHURE N75B Type 2 conical stylus from LP GEAR. VTF: 1.5g to 3g

 

[62vauxhall]

It's a couple of months after the fact for this thread but I seem to have just wound up with one of those M74 CSZ's.

FWIW, it is not necessary to glue the cartridge onto the clip. The cartridge body goes into the clip ass end first and there's a small tab that supports the top rear edge of the cartridge housing. The cartridge front then snaps into place and then it is securely held in the clip.

Also FWIW, this one has a generic replacement stylus on it. Don't know who's and don't the tip size but it is a near new conical so it's staying put.

 

[62vauxhall]

FORMATTING CORRECTION

It's a couple of months after the fact for this thread but I seem to have just wound up with one of those M74 CSZ's.

FWIW, it is not necessary to glue the cartridge onto the clip. The cartridge body goes into the clip ass end first and there's a small tab that supports the top rear edge of the cartridge housing. The cartridge front then snaps into place and then it is securely held in the clip.

Also FWIW, this one has a generic replacement stylus on it. Don't know who's and don't the tip size but it is a near new conical so it's staying put.