Stylus force gauges (and reliability)

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sj.brodie

Member

Pro Ject Measure it 2

I recently noticed this pro ject guage giving more erratic results (including with new batteries) The 5 gram calibration was resulting in a "pass" each time as normal however I'm highly sceptical of this feature. Adding more weight above the 5 gram weight still results in a pass and a flashing "5 grams" Has anyone else noticed this? Is project cheating us with this expensive tool? I'm considering buying a cheaper one or would that be a waste of money?
 
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The cheaper ones are dead-on accurate and probably made in the same factory as the Project. They retail for about $115 less than Project, too. I've used the no-name Chinese ones for years and they've never let me down.

The Project model seems like an absolute rip-off for what you're getting.

This is what I've got, it's currently 12 bucks on Amazon. Had it for about 5 years now, no issues.

https://www.amazon.com/Neoteck-Digital-Turntable-Backlight-Cartridge/dp/B01N9TRSPC
 
The pro-ject looks like a rebranded cheap generic Asian digital scale - much like dozens of others available online by 'Roksan' and other brands. You can get a no-name for $12 and the same rebaged scale for $150. I second the Riverstone. Ortofon DS-3 would be a more expensive but an accurate and reliable alternative.
 
benricci said:
The cheaper ones are dead-on accurate and probably made in the same factory as the Project. They retail for about $115 less than Project, too. I've used the no-name Chinese ones for years and they've never let me down.

The Project model seems like an absolute rip-off for what you're getting.

This is what I've got, it's currently 12 bucks on Amazon. Had it for about 5 years now, no issues.

https://www.amazon.com/Neoteck-Digital-Turntable-Backlight-Cartridge/dp/B01N9TRSPC
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I have that same one in black. I also have this one I bought in the 70's.
upload_2021-3-16_14-48-17.png

They both work.
 
sj.brodie said:
Pro Ject Measure it 2

I recently noticed this pro ject guage giving more erratic results (including with new batteries) The 5 gram calibration was resulting in a "pass" each time as normal however I'm highly sceptical of this feature. Adding more weight above the 5 gram weight still results in a pass and a flashing "5 grams" Has anyone else noticed this? Is project cheating us with this expensive tool? I'm considering buying a cheaper one or would that be a waste of money?
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I just looked that up. That price is nuts. Who do they think they are? Mercedes?
 
RobRoy said:
I just looked that up. That price is nuts. Who do they think they are? Mercedes?
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I think I was deluded by a myth that "more money results in more accuracy" when shopping for force guages. I've had it for a few years and seems inconsistent and calibration seems a joke. Like I said you can literally apply any weight when calibrating and it says 5 grams....unless mine is broken in which case i still didn't get my money's worth. Reviews and feedback seem to support much cheaper models.
 
The very analog Shure is super reliable; I still use one I bought around 1980. The cheap, Chinese digitals seem accurate but sometimes batteries they come with are garbage and don’t last. That’s when the Shure comes out, at least ‘till I get some new batteries.
 
I've sang praises of this scale many times here for others to check out.
I've been more than 100% happy with mine. It doesn't use more expensive coin type batteries for one. Uses 2 AAA Batteries.
Highly accurate.

But a weighing height of .6" so set it on something like a deck of cards alongside the platter at record height for best accuracy. So simple to do.

You won't likely beat this scale for $15.75.

https://www.oldwillknottscales.com/proscale-lc50.html
 
loudnoises said:
Find the cheapest one you can that looks like this.

View attachment 2164920
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I think that's one of those Canrong Scales, many call them "Can-Wrong". Maybe they all come from canrong? LOL

Anyway, the one I once bought just like that was a disaster, and from a reputable audio dealer as well. Wasn't that cheap either I recall. Luckily, they accepted the return, and refunded my money.
 
I've had it for a few years. Came with a calibration weight. If you get a bad one return it, but when the other option is 1x the price...

It's stylus pressure. 0.1g is precise enough for 99.9% of the vinyl playing populace.
 
sj.brodie said:
Ordered one like this and arriving tomorrow, results should be interesting!
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Hopefully not "too interesting", and you throw it against a wall.
One thing I liked about my Proscale LC-50, I didn't have to do a goddamn thing to calibrate it. Fresh out of the box, it was dead accurate and highly repeatable with every calibration weight my machinist friend Andy threw at it one afternoon.

And Andy, he was really OCD like no one I ever knew, a master machinist. There wasn't much he couldn't make. He once made an operational Table Top Gattling Gun from scratch, was an absolute work of art, fired .22's.
 
MisterDK said:
The very analog Shure is super reliable; I still use one I bought around 1980. The cheap, Chinese digitals seem accurate but sometimes batteries they come with are garbage and don’t last. That’s when the Shure comes out, at least ‘till I get some new batteries.
Click to expand...
Speaking of batteries. Mine came with batteries. It takes two, but it came with three. :)
 
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