I'm looking at a stone bodied koetsu which has been retipped by Expert Stylus - are they a decent outfit?
I'm looking at a stone bodied koetsu which has been retipped by Expert Stylus - are they a decent outfit?
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yes, they are very well known. However, there is a very high likelihood that they have fitted their own 'Paratrace' stylus profile and that is different to the one the Koetsu originally came with. I do know that ESCo re-tip a lot of Koetsu's.
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They're very good though their 'traditional' communication methods can be frustrating! One step above carrier pigeon!
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I'm Paul.
Having had various incarnations of the Denon 103 over many years amongst other favoured cartridges I would always eventually move them on as none really cut it in my set up.
Alas, yet again a 103SA came my way and supposedly the best incarnation of the breed, but again it fell short and back in the box until I decided to get the Paratrace treatment as the last stand in owning one as a keeper.
The service was good and I had my cartridge back in approx' one month and upon auditioning I was shocked wondering what Mr Hodgson had done to it.
This was no minor shift in sound or balance but a fantastic leap in clarity and imaging.... No longer is it the bridesmaid against other cartridges in my arsenal but can hold its own in all departments....
Well Mr Hodgson currently has my Ortofon Cadenza Bronze for the Paratrace treatment and I await its return even more so now.... Especially after having a conversation with him informing of BendBound's delight in getting his Black sounding so great.
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I'm Allen.
Yes a decent company ,
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There have been many threads on this subject and this company on forums over the years. Lots of Koetsus (but mainly lower echelon ones) have had the Paratrace stylus treatment. Despite many happy owners and a few unhappy ones, one aspect seems constant. The Paratrace is not a long-lasting tip. Original Ks are quite the opposite; probably the longest lasting.
ESCo have a good rep. (and a long wait) but there are others; Goldring, N.W.A.and (I think) a Dutch one; plus others, I'm sure. VdH murdered a Urushi I was acquainted with years ago, but they stopped doing O.E.M. repairs, I believe.
Sugano San's cart's are not the same as his son's, (from about '04). Each to his own, but the earlier ones tended to be more lush, whereas the more recent cart's, more dynamic. I have/have had two of Sugano Son's but no personal experience on my deck of the earlier ones.
Of course, it depends if it's had a complete refurb. or just the stylus and/or cantilever replaced. Can't say I'd send my Vermillion to ESCo, but that's just cautious me. Trouble is, the genuine alternative is horrendously expensive.
I would like a £1 for every retipped koetsu I've seen for sale after recently having the retip. They obviously don't sound the same afterwards.
Not a comment on expert stylus btw
Last edited by paulf-2007; 22-02-2018 at 19:25.
Bakoon 13r Denon DP80 Stax UA-70 Shure Ultra 500 in a Martin Bastin body with jico stylus, project ds2 digital Rullit aero 8 field coils in tqwt speakers
Office system, DIY CSS fullrange speakers with aurum cantus G2 ribbons yulong dac Sony STR6055 receiver Jvc QL-A51 direct drive turntable, Leema sub. JVC Z4S cart is in the house
Garage system another Sony receiver, cassette deck
System components are subject to change without warning and at the discretion of the owner.
Nah they're just old Ks kept going because no one can afford new ones. Some will have had multiple re-tips and other work.
No one is going to bin a K if they can avoid it.
I had my Transfiguration Orpheus re-tipped by ESCo (I trashed it when it was still very "young") and it came back OK.
Not when they are well regarded and as said a £400 retip will see it sold on in working order. I have actually heard people say that they never sounded the same as before and yes would get more money for a working cart. Maybe someone including the op will get a nice cart for the money, but not as good as a rebuild by koetsu. Personally they do nothing for me.
Bakoon 13r Denon DP80 Stax UA-70 Shure Ultra 500 in a Martin Bastin body with jico stylus, project ds2 digital Rullit aero 8 field coils in tqwt speakers
Office system, DIY CSS fullrange speakers with aurum cantus G2 ribbons yulong dac Sony STR6055 receiver Jvc QL-A51 direct drive turntable, Leema sub. JVC Z4S cart is in the house
Garage system another Sony receiver, cassette deck
System components are subject to change without warning and at the discretion of the owner.