Later styli for the 95E do seem well ground and polished and even the Rega Carbon (posh AT91) has a nice conical finish on it, albeit with more glue than on the finest styli out there
Looking at the current AT catalogue, the 95E and 95EX have identical specs, so whether the EX is more than just a housing colour change I don't know.
The 95E family body has been tweaked at least in appearance these days and the pins appear golden in colour now. In the past, I believe the Linn K5 and K9 used 95E internals (K18 too?) and this was proof enough that a better diamond, cantilever and suspension could work wonders. Going too mad though intrudes on the 500 series and these supposedly DO have a better internal design and coil winding.
As for sound, every time I listen through a 95E I keep wanting a bit more 'air' and 'clarity' up top. The Carbon has a sparkle to it which isn't strictly 'truthful' but it's entertaining and an elliptical tip for this body (Dual DN251E from Thakker - also for one of their own nomenclature) refines this to a similar slightly polite sound as the 95E has. The deck and arm play a large part in this as well and the 95E is one of those that can transform itself for the better in a turntable system way outside it's humble price level.
Sadly, the 500 series seem to be an excuse for a large price increase, the 120E at £79 ten years ago and finishing at around £129 now becoming the 530 at £179 and the 440MLa/MLb having nearly £100 increase to £249 in the 540. have a look (with a translator) to the German Lowbeats site for excellent reviews, measurements too (EEK!) and most important, sound bytes presented of all the cartridges they test..
Thing is, rather than a dull balance with ehf recovery, modern AT's tend to be flat with an ehf peak, which can upset some marginal phono stages on surface ticks and splats. I was told once that Japanese vinyl is softer and appreciates this characteristic, but many modern cartridges tend to be this way and only the old fashioned designs buck the current trend I think.
Tear down these walls; Cut the ties that held me
Crying out at the top of my voice; Tell me now if you can hear me
Just BTW - I have since been told by a reliable source inside AT that the AT95EX stylus has an improved "suspension" compared to the AT95E. This is now a moot point as both are discontinued.
GrahamS - It's not what you hear that counts, it's what you think you hear........
Present Kit: NAD 326BEE, NAD C515BEE CD player, JVC QL-7 DD turntable, JVC Tonearm, Shure M97Ve, Audio Technica AT95EX, Pickering V15, JVC Z1E, Wharfedale Diamond 230s, Visual Rio interconnects and My Ears.
Location: Near Saffron Walden, Essex
Posts: 7,090
I'm Dave.
The new and improved VM95 series has taken over and still very reasonably priced.