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Sonus Green stylus replacement?

redondo2018

redondo2018

Active Member
So I got a Sonus Green for basically nothing, but it seems to have the suspension problem that I've read about. I've tried looking for a stylus replacement, but I haven't found anything on the Green stylus. Would I need to get something like a Sonus Bronze? See images (it looks in pretty good shape other than the suspension issue). Also, if I do find a replacement stylus, would this be a better match on a Dual 1219 or a Pioneer PL-530 (both in rotation along with AR XB and Marantz 6100). Thanks!
 

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You might have a real tough time finding another stylus. Sonus has been gone for decades.
You could send it to the Soundsmith for evaluation. It's not expensive, and they might be able to do something about the suspension.
A friend of mine used the high-compliance Sonus Dimension 5 in a Dual 510 and it sounded terrific. I had the turntable in my own system for one afternoon, tried to buy the deck and cart from him after that.
I have a Dual 1219, wouldn't be afraid to use any cartridge in it. That, to me, is the true beauty of Dual turntables. They work well with a wide variety of carts.
 
You don't actually have the Sonus that Sonus called the Sonus Green...
1.JPG
...for which finding reasonably-priced styli (or any styli at all) is a near-impossibility. You have a Sonus that's not really a Sonus but not far off, the SPM-1 p-mount. I don't know which Japanese company made it for Sonus, but it's also known as the Nagaoka IMS P-2000 (also P-2500) [yours is in an adapter so it'll fit your standard-mount turntables].
another P-2000.jpg 3.jpg
Fortunately, it turns out this company also made p-mount cartridges for another long-defunct company called Empire, and their styli are still easily available. I own both the IMS and Empire bodies and have tried the cross-compatibility swap, and it works. The stylus you want is Pfanstiehl-indexed as the 246-DEX and looks like this:
Empire-S485-stylus-md.jpg
It's still available as new-old-stock from thevoiceofmusic.com. About $45 shipped.
 
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wualta said:
You don't actually have the Sonus that Sonus called the Sonus Green...
View attachment 1498375
...for which finding reasonably-priced styli (or any styli at all) is a near-impossibility. You have a Sonus that's not really a Sonus. I don't know which Japanese company made it for Sonus, but it's also known as the Nagaoka IMS P-2000 (also P-2500) p-mount [yours is in an adapter so it'll fit your standard-mount turntables].
View attachment 1498370 View attachment 1498391
Fortunately, it turns out this company also made p-mount cartridges for another long-defunct company called Empire, and their styli are still easily available. I own both the IMS and Empire and have tried the cross-compatibility swap, and it works. The stylus you want is Pfanstiehl-indexed as the 246-DEX and looks like this:
View attachment 1498378
It's still available as new-old-stock from thevoiceofmusic.com. About $45 shipped.
Click to expand...

Ok, that actually make a lot of sense as I was under the impression the Sonus Green was a very high end cartridge and yeah, this is definitely a P-mount. Thanks for the detective work! Now my question is - with that stylus is it a decent cartridge? Should I maybe just hold onto it in case I ever get a p-mount again?
 
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The Sonus Green depicted above is indeed a high-end cartridge, or at least it was in its day (35+ years ago). It's the conical model of the Series II Sonus lineup (Blue, Red, Green). Same body, different styli.

I like p-mount stuff, which, you will find, gets a big steaming load of hate on audio forums (keeps prices low), so yes, someday get a good p-mount turntable. In the meantime, even with the adapter (which adds height and mass, though it's not a dealbreaker), you'll have a very good sounding cartridge with the Empire 246-DEX stylus. Nude diamond, all the audiophile fixin's.

I'm currently using this stylus in Empire and IMS bodies in my p-mount 'tables. There exist standard-mount bodies that accept this stylus as well.
 
Last edited:
wualta said:
The Sonus Green depicted above is indeed a high-end cartridge, or at least it was in its day (35+ years ago). It's the conical model of the Series II Sonus lineup (Blue, Red, Green). Same body, different styli.

I like p-mount stuff, which, you will find, gets a big steaming load of hate on audio forums (keeps prices low), so yes, someday get a good p-mount turntable. In the meantime, even with the adapter (which adds height and mass, though it's not a dealbreaker), you'll have a very good sounding cartridge with the Empire 246-DEX stylus. Nude diamond, all the audiophile fixin's.

I'm currently using this stylus in Empire and IMS bodies in my p-mount 'tables. There exist standard-mount bodies that accept this stylus, but they're almost as hard to find as the Sonus Blue/Green/Red.
Click to expand...

I'm looking at the cartridge now and TBH the stylus looks pretty good - I wonder if when I mounted it was using the wrong force because I thought it was a different cartridge (although I don't usually track heavy)... Any thoughts on what the correct tracking would be with the adapter on (and for that matter, what is it as a p-mount)? Finally, if I do get a stylus, any idea if the $17 Russell aftermarket stylus is any good, or should I just "splurge" for the Empire one? Thanks again!
 
P-mount was a system that was set up so that you could switch cartridges without having to adjust alignment or vertical tracking force. It was a good idea and there are some pretty good P-mount carts around. I used a Pickering TL-2 for a while, it was very good.
You use an adapter to mount the cartridge to a conventional headshell, and you'll have to align the cart and set vertical tracking force.
If you think the stylus suspension has stiffened up, you might be able to set VTF a bit heavier than recommended and play a few LPs, see what happens.
 
Nominal tracking force ("VTF") for any p-mount is 1.25g, but season to taste. Max VTF for the green stylus is 1.5g under normal conditions. Exactly what problem with the suspension have you noticed? Since the Sonus SPM styli like yours weren't made by Sonus, they tend not to have the Sonus Blue/Red/Green hardening problem, although anything is possible with styli that have been knocking or sitting around for 35+ years.

I haven't found generic versions of Empire to be as good, sometimes nowhere near as good, but if money's tight (and I know that pinchy feeling)...
One trick to save money on a genuine stylus: go for the conical (246-D6).

Some of the SPM specs (the only ones I have at the moment):
SPM 3,4,5 specs Capture-a.jpg
 
Last edited:
wualta said:
Nominal tracking force ("VTF") for any p-mount is 1.25g, but season to taste. Max VTF for the green stylus is 1.5g under normal conditions. Exactly what problem with the suspension have you noticed? Since the Sonus SPM styli like yours weren't made by Sonus, they tend not to have the Sonus Blue/Red/Green hardening problem, although anything is possible with styli that have been knocking or sitting around for 35+ years.

I haven't found generic versions of Empire to be as good, sometimes nowhere near as good, but if money's tight (and I know that pinchy feeling)...
One trick to save money on a genuine stylus: go for the conical (246-D6).

Some of the SPM specs (the only ones I have at the moment):
View attachment 1498486
Click to expand...
wualta said:
Nominal tracking force ("VTF") for any p-mount is 1.25g, but season to taste. Max VTF for the green stylus is 1.5g under normal conditions. Exactly what problem with the suspension have you noticed? Since the Sonus SPM styli like yours weren't made by Sonus, they tend not to have the Sonus Blue/Red/Green hardening problem, although anything is possible with styli that have been knocking or sitting around for 35+ years.

I haven't found generic versions of Empire to be as good, sometimes nowhere near as good, but if money's tight (and I know that pinchy feeling)...
One trick to save money on a genuine stylus: go for the conical (246-D6).

Some of the SPM specs (the only ones I have at the moment):
View attachment 1498486
Click to expand...

Ok, I was CERTAINLY tracking it heavier than 1.25g - so that was likely the culprit. I'll throw it onto my Technics SL-B3 as is and see what happens. Thanks!
 
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