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Stylus swapping- bad for the cart?

thedelihaus

thedelihaus

Nocturnal transmissions
SEMI LONG VERSION (jump down to the break for short version)

As I try to narrow down my cart collection (it's going poorly, thanks for asking), I am faced with a few issues.

The goal ideally is to run one cart, two stylii. One quality stylus for cleaned records in good shape, one for questionable, scuffed records salvaged from the thrifts.

My current option is to swap carts and headshells- but this sometimes requires re-balancing the tone arm. Not a deal breaker, but I'd prefer it a bit easier.

The option, as I have mentioned, would be to run one cartridge and keep two stylii around, sliding in the lesser stylus for those rough records, the pricier, nicer stylus for those clean and excellent condition records.

But will sliding a stylus off a cart over and over again cause too much wear or promote damage?

Carts considered are three or for of these possibilities- Ortofon OM, Stanton 681EE, Audio Technica AT 440 MLa, Signet TK7E, Signet TK5Ea.







SHORT VERSION- Will sliding a stylus off a cart over and over again cause too much wear or promote damage?

Carts considered are three or for of these possibilities- Ortofon OM, Stanton 681EE, Audio Technica AT 440 MLa, Signet TK7E, Signet TK5Ea.
 
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I like your plan but the answer may depend on how many times is "over and over again"? Of the cartridges you mention the Ortofon seems to me the best choice as it is easily replaced even while mounted on the arm.
 
I do what you're describing...removing the 14 stylus from my Ortofon TM14 and installing a Pro S stylus for mono records and testing potentially scratchy records. I believe there is no ill effect. The recommended tracking force is different for these two styli, so for me it's not as simple, but...like I said, I do exchange styli very frequently.

I used to do this frequently with an AT311EP, too. I have a Shibata and a 0.7 mil conical stylus that I swapped in and out. No problems there, even though I did swap them frequently. When I discovered Ortofon had a larger conical stylus than AT, I went to the Pro S solution.
 
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The most direct is the Ortofon, which slips on like a "muzzle" in a way, followed by the Stanton, which has the plastic body and then that 8mm "stem" that slides into the body.

The Signet and Audio Technica snap from the bottom and would require a steady hand.


The Grado uses damping goo and I think that would make for a poor repetative cart swap.
 
My Shure M95 became a bit loose on the stylus fit after not so many swaps. I was anal about stylus wear and had bought a new stylus and used the old one for casual listening of not new LPs while I used to slide in the brand new for mint LPs and recording to tape.

I rcall that on some occasions the stylus would slide off and hang almost out of place on the cart.

My 681 seems to suffer mildly from this practice and I have swapped much more times. One thing that can go wrong with the Stanton is mis-alignment of the stylus against the body while pressing the stylus in.
 
I have heard of people saying that their Shure carts get a bit loose with repeated stylus swapping. I can't see this happening on an AT but I do get a little anxious every time I swap the stylus on it as it needs that slight twisting action and I can never remember whether a little more force is needed at the front or back (it's at the front now that I think of it.

I use the two headshell method with an AT-440MLa and a Shure M-91ED. I find that they weigh the same so I don't have to mess around rebalancing. The AT tracks at 1.5g which is a little above recommended for the Shure but I find this is ok for beater and testing records so the TF stays the same also.
 
conversely swapping headshells frequently may make for a loose fit in the arm & then lead to other stresses & problems - I think it was this that led to problems on my TP16 arm

In the long run simple swapping stylus will be a lot cheaper if all you have to do is eventually renew the cartridge
 
Your proposed solution is not one I've tried extensively. I did have a Stanton 981 whose stylus fit became loose over time. Stanton said that their cartridges used a friction fit, and that after so many stylus changes it simply losed its ability to hold the stylus adequately tight. I sent my 981 to them, and they repaired it along with selling me a new stylus.

Your take on the Grado goo seems spot on. A bit of the stuff gets removed with each stylus change, and Grado once told me that after a few stylus changes it's best to get a new body that's still fully packed.

I agree with Bhundu that the AT/Signet design is least likely to suffer from repeated swapping. Then again, it's also more difficult to remove and replace than some others, and you'd likely want to remove the headshell to make the change to avoid excess stress on parts such as the tonearm bearings. Of course, the headshell interface is another mechanical/electrical connection that is also subject to wear and deterioration over time.

How about a two turntable solution, one set up to maximize your pleasure from cleaned records in good shape, and the other optimized for questionable, scuffed records?
 
I'll be going through more stylus swapping in the near future. My first AT440mla has about 600hrs+. I bought a another one second hand about 6 months ago that someone felt was too shrill after 10 hrs. I'll be swapping the new stylus into the old body some time this year to give the new a good 100hrs break in while the old approaches it's later life and it's possible new role.

It will be a nervous time swapping out these stylii but not as much as aligning carts on TP-60 headshells!

If the task is how do we "test" our "new to us" records without them coming in contact with our best stylus. Choices are:

1) A dedicated TT/cart/stylus for testing,through a multi phono preamp section.

2) Multiple carts mounted in swapable headshells.

3) Multiple stylii for the one cart and table.

I can see pros and cons with each and I'm looking forward to if anyone has had problems using the third option often. If not all three would look like valid solutions and would come down to the individual's choice for space, time and ability.
 
REDone said:
conversely swapping headshells frequently may make for a loose fit in the arm & then lead to other stresses & problems - I think it was this that led to problems on my TP16 arm

In the long run simple swapping stylus will be a lot cheaper if all you have to do is eventually renew the cartridge
Click to expand...

For sure. While swapping headshells and the TP-16 I could see that each time I undid and retightened the collar that I was putting stress on the bearings and pivot. Learnt to hold the tonearm shaft steady with the left hand while tightening and loosening with the right.
 
Why not duplicate cartridge you finally decide upon? That way you can swap identical cartridges.
 
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REDone said:
conversely swapping headshells frequently may make for a loose fit in the arm & then lead to other stresses & problems - I think it was this that led to problems on my TP16 arm

In the long run simple swapping stylus will be a lot cheaper if all you have to do is eventually renew the cartridge
Click to expand...

Put the arm in the holder and engage the arm lock. Then swap the head shell. That way you are holding the arm steady and not putting any stress on the pivot.
 
similost said:
Put the arm in the holder and engage the arm lock. Then swap the head shell. That way you are holding the arm steady and not putting any stress on the pivot.
Click to expand...

Thanks - I do & did all that & still had probs - Generally I think its best to avoid frequent removing of the headshell on the TP16 (which btw you have to do to swap carts - so be warned)
 
I got answer for that one..... I got one SS system I use for back ground noise with a tt just for that reason if there ify to the SS system.

the good go the tubes. that swaping is for the birds.
 
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