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Stylus recomendation needed

J

jacks son

Active Member
Hello,
I recently bought a Pioneer PL-540 TT ( at a yard sale ) that came with two carts, both loose. The Shure Me95ED looked new and works great, as does the table itself, very mellow tone on jazz or vocals but sharp enough for rock. The other cart is an Empire 2000 E/111 and is missing it's stylus. I am fairly new to TT's and would appreciate a recomendation for a stylus or even an opinion of wether the Empire cart is worth repair?.


Thanks,

Jacks son :music:
 
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You can fit any of the Empire 2000 and 4000 (and other close relatives) styli to that body...
to give you an idea of differences:
Empire S2000 - Conical VTF 1.5 to 3g lowest compliance
Empire S2000E - Eliptical VTF 1.25-2.5g mid-low compliance
Empire S2000E/I - Eliptical VTF 1-2g mid compliance
Empire S2000E/II - Eliptical VTF 0.75-1.5g mid-high compliance
Empire S2000E/III - Eliptical VTF 0.5-1.75 high compliance

In the originals (which you can still sometimes find) the eliptical stylus used gets finer as you go up the range - with the E/I, E/II and E/II having nude 0.2mil styli, and the E having a bonded 0.3mil

With the kind of arm you have (mid mass, undamped) - I would aim for an E/I if possible as being the best match for your arm.
With aftermarket needles the type of needle used is variable (check the specs) but the compliance should (in theory) follow the same trend as above - so the E/I should be roughly the best match regardless.

If you want to get more exotic, you can also fit a 4000D series stylus to that body - the 4000D series use line contact / shibata style needle - again the 4000D/I is the best match in terms of compliance with that arm - the 4000D/III is the highest compliance version.

Hope this helps

bye for now

David
 
Good find and great way into the dark world of vinyl. Those two cartridges will get you well on your way :)
 
I forgot to mention.... yes the 2000 is a great cartridge - and has a reputation for being one of the more musical designs.... not necessarily the most neutral, or detailed... but very musical!

A very nice cartridge - and its resolution is as good as the stylus you put on it.

bye for now

David
 
Thanks for all the great replies,
Both carts are mounted on headshells and before using the table ( I bought it at a yard sale for $15.00 ) I test ran the table and looked at both the carts with a 30x magnifier. The Shure cart looked as if it had rarely if ever been used and the Empire also looked good but at the end of the stylus cantilever instead of a needle there is just a flat disc. I assumed that the needle tip had been broken off of the Empire and mounted the Shure. At first I only got sound through one channel, but after cleaning the wire connections on both ends, beautiful :music: issued forth.

Thanks again, I will get a stylus for the Empire and give it a try.

Jacks son :D
 
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