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Thread: Any Denon 103 fans here? I have one on the way to me...

  1. #21
    Join Date: Feb 2010

    Location: Northumberland

    Posts: 233
    I'm Martin.

    Default

    Mission accomplished.

    I bunged the Denon onto the tecnoarm and took a wild guess at alignment. Then I measured it with my protractor and found I had it absolutely bang on - perfect!

    Had to keep reassuring myself that 2.6 g really is a suitable tracking weight for a cartridge and not merely a typo!

    Anyway, all's well.

    First impressions:

    (Context: my Jericho horns still don't have any tweeters, so I'm missing out on pretty much everything above 12KHz!)

    Nice.

    Bass is powerful and plentiful with a nice bounce to it.

    Mids are clear and clean, if a little recessed in comparison to the OC9, but plenty of tweaking of arm height, tracking weight etc to go yet, so who knows what might change...

    It all sounds very natural and believable. Perhaps a bit less detail than the OC9 (or it could be a simple case of these being less sparkle in the top end).

    Very impressed so far.

    I really must get those tweeters sorted though - I mean, I really should have bought those first, but I needed a new cartridge and this one just called out to me from the classifeds. What else could I do? . It's all lacking a little, er, sparkle at the moment. But what the heck - I'm 41, so my high frequency hearing is probably history anyway .

    Thus far, the optimum arm height appears to be armtube absolutely parallel to the LP.

    I'm never sure where to set the anti skate on a Rega/Tecnoarm, so have set it at just over half the tracking weight (I can never hear much difference anyway....).

    Plenty more fiddling, fussing and all round anorakish behaviour to follow .

    Cheers

    Martin
    "Music is the space between the notes"
    Debussy.

    "I'd buy me a used car lot and I wouldn't sell any of em
    I'd just drive a different car every day dependin on how I feel"
    Tom Waits

  2. #22
    Join Date: Jan 2009

    Location: London, Canada

    Posts: 189
    I'm Blake.

    Default

    I think it's a great time to be a 103 or 103R owner. The proliferation of information online related to tweaking and elevating the performance of these cartridges over the past few years has literally exploded, offering owners of the 103 and 103R's really affordable avenues to enjoy an ultra highend cartridge at a relatively budget price.

    While the stock 103 and 103R both offer exceptional value for money (with proper tonearm matching-they are bit more sensitive and a bit of an enthusiasts cartridge than many other competing cartridges), they really come into their own with 1) improved and more rigid bodies (ie. aluminum or wood) and 2) an improved stylus.

    I've been running 103R's for the past 4 years or so, starting with the stock cartridge which I thought offered great value for money. When I replaced the plastic body with an ebony body by Uwe about 3 years ago I was shocked at the improved performance. Pretty much every aspect of the cartridge's performance was enhanced. I didn't think it could get much better.

    But it did. About a month and half ago I received an ebony bodied 103R back from Soundsmith with their level 2 retip featuring a line contact stylus and ruby cantiliver. I also had the cartridge "potted" with epoxy at the same time to enhance the structural rigidity of the generator, similar to the process which Zu was using on their rebodied 103/103R's. To say I'm impressed would be an understatement.

    The line contact stylus is extremely sensitive to proper setup and not getting it right will definitely result in a tipped up presentation and tonal balance. But get it right and the line contact, stiff bodied 103R can (IMO and others who have experienced such an animal) compete with the very best, extremely exotic and most expensive cartridges out there.

    There's some criticism of the stock 103 being a bit rolled off and the 103R is supposedly more extended at both frequency extremes as well as offering up a bit more detail. I say supposedly because I've never used a stock 103.

    While the high frequency performance of my 103R's were really enhanced when they were slotted into wood bodies, I was not prepared for what the LC stylus would do.

    In essence it revealed that the 103R is indeed rolled off and not particularly extended when it comes to the high frequencies. The conical stylus simply misses a lot of information. Ultimately, though, because the Denons get the tonal balance and density so right in their stock form they are really enjoyable cartridges to listen to. As the hi-fi rags say, their errors are those of ommission rather than commission. I can't think of another hi-fi product that this cliche would apply to more than the Denon 103/103R.

    The improved bodies really help the cartridge just do everything better. The LC stylus then furthers those improvements and adds on a couple that are real show stoppers. The first and most apparent one is the abovementioned increase in high frequency information retreival and extension.

    What's really shocking though, when going to the line contact, is much more information is both retreived and unravelled in the midband where the Denon sounds so "right" to start off with. Complex or dense passages in music are literally transformed, to the point that some (not all but some) recordings are almost recognizeable.

    And providing proper setup, all of this is achieved without loss of musicality or that "organic" quality which Marco refers to.

    The fact that these improvements can be made in stages, ie. wood or aluminum body for $100-$150 and then a new stylus and/or "potting" ($250-$350) following expiration of the stock stylus which is usually good for around 1000 hours makes the whole process, generally speaking, quite affordable with the added bonus of being able to do it over time.

    If you're using a stock Denon 103 or 103R, you owe it to yourself to go further with these cartridges. You'll be shocked at what they're capable of.

    And that goes for you too Marco, with your 103SA! Wear that stylus out and send that cartridge off to Soundsmith or Expert Stylus for all you UK boys!

  3. #23
    Join Date: Jan 2008

    Location: Wrexham, North Wales, UK

    Posts: 110,012
    I'm AudioAl'sArbiterForPISHANTO.

    Default

    Hi Martin,

    Sounds good so far - I really hope it works out for you

    Have you any idea how much mass (extra weight) the stabiliser adds to the 103?

    What you're aiming for is around 17g on the headshell of the tonearm, excluding the weight of the 103 itself: so that's the mass of the Tecnoarm's headshell area added to the weight of the stabiliser.

    If that equates to less than 16.5-17g, then you'll need to add more mass to the Tecnoarm's headshell in the form of adhesive leaded strips, Blu-Tack, etc.

    Listen out for any 'edginess' or distortion when playing difficult/challenging recordings. If you detect any, then most likely there isn't enough mass on the headshell. Try something 'busy' with lots of midrange and high frequency detail. I find some Beatles recordings good for this, or Indie music.

    Getting the mass right will also ensure that bass has the requisite weight and solidity. Don't overdo it though as you'll kill the sound, making it flat and overblown (rather like the effect of dialing in too much VTF).

    The other thing too is not to over-tighten the screws holding the cartridge onto the headshell. These should simply be finger tightened, then gently 'nipped up' with a screwdriver or Allen key, as over-tightening them adds a hard edge to the sound.

    Enjoy and keep us posted!

    Marco.
    Main System

    Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & reg mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat/Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight/Isonoe feet & boots/Ortofon RS-212D/Denon DL-103GL in Denon PCL-300 headshell with Funk Firm Houdini/Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.

    Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp/Denon AU-310 SUT.

    Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.

    CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.

    Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new, by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.

    Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. LDR Stereo Coffee. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.

    Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.

    Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.

    Speakers: Tannoy 15MGs in Lockwood cabinets with modified crossovers. 1967 Celestion Ditton 15.


    Protect your HUMAN RIGHTS and REFUSE ANY *MANDATORY* VACCINE FOR COVID-19!

    Also **SAY NO** to unjust 'vaccine passports' or certificates, which are totally incompatible with a FREE society!!!


  4. #24
    Join Date: Jan 2008

    Location: Wrexham, North Wales, UK

    Posts: 110,012
    I'm AudioAl'sArbiterForPISHANTO.

    Default

    Hi Blake,

    Good post - some useful info there

    And that goes for you too Marco, with your 103SA! Wear that stylus out and send that cartridge off to Soundsmith or Expert Stylus for all you UK boys!
    Well, with the 'SA', I've already got the body-shell sorted, so yes, the next move would be to 'upgrade' the stylus, as you have outlined.

    Thing is though, I'm not sure..... Don't get me wrong, I don’t doubt for one second the results you're hearing in your system and have reported here, but I'm sceptical purely because experience so far tells me that putting a 'posh' stylus on a 103 is somewhat of a mixed blessing.

    I've owned almost every version of the DL-103 since using them in the early 80s, including a 103D and 103M, both of which had special elliptical type styli, and whilst there were clear gains in high frequency detail retrieval, the trade-off was always the loss of *some* of the 103's rhythmic alacrity, 'boogie factor', groovy deep bass, and overall 'fun factor', for a more sober 'hi-fi' sound, which although more crisply etched and detailed, was to my ears ultimately less musically involving.

    You're of course saying that won't happen if a Soundsmith line-contact stylus is fitted, and I accept that, but then, no disrespect, I only have your word for it. I could end up ruining the very characteristics I love about the 103SA to gain traits which I don't consider important for my enjoyment of music and waste a not inconsiderable sum of money in the process, both paying Soundsmith or Expert Stylus for their efforts, and then having to buy another 103SA to recover the type of sonic (and musical) presentation I like...........

    Hardly cut and dried or risk-free, is it?

    The fact is, there is generally *always* some sort of trade-off from changing stylus profiles on cartridges - rarely, if ever, have I heard only positives and no negatives whatsoever, as indeed was the case with my experience of the 103M and 103D.

    This has also always been the case when I've compared cartridges from other manufacturers offering a choice of stylus profiles with the same cartridge, such as the Ortofon SPU and EMT, where in general I've always preferred the conical versions, as these, whilst not being as über-detailed at high frequencies, seemed to have a certain way with music that appealed to me, and which I find highly addictive: call it 'soul', if you like.

    In effect what I'm saying is that conical styli (when used on generators with Alnico magnets, such as with the 103, SPU, EMT, etc) appear to give music certain sonic characteristics that I'm unwilling to sacrifice in favour of more 'sparkle' or high frequency detail retrieval, which undoubtedly line-contact styli excel at.

    This doesn't mean though that I'm settling for a 'rounded-off' sound (far from it!); merely that I don't require the added 'sparkle' generated by the reproduction of more high-frequency detail to 'connect' with the musical message when playing my favourite records.

    It's rather like the effect of super-tweeters on loudspeakers... How many of us use them, and how many of us happily get by without them and enjoy our favourite music regardless, blissfully unaware of any lack of 'treble sparkle' or missing high-frequency information?

    Undoubtedly, super-tweeters add extension to the top end, but not always in an integrated way with the rest of the frequency range, which can then have a negative knock-on effect on the overall 'musicality' of a system. Sometimes they can work very well of course, but I've heard what I've described above with them more often than not.

    Don't get me wrong, I'll certainly give your suggestion some consideration when the stylus on my 103SA wears out, but as I'm seriously considering buying an EMT XSD-15 (conical type), I'm not sure if having a 'posh tipped' 103SA, too, is somewhat of an extravagance.......

    Marco.
    Main System

    Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & reg mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat/Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight/Isonoe feet & boots/Ortofon RS-212D/Denon DL-103GL in Denon PCL-300 headshell with Funk Firm Houdini/Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.

    Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp/Denon AU-310 SUT.

    Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.

    CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.

    Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new, by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.

    Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. LDR Stereo Coffee. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.

    Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.

    Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.

    Speakers: Tannoy 15MGs in Lockwood cabinets with modified crossovers. 1967 Celestion Ditton 15.


    Protect your HUMAN RIGHTS and REFUSE ANY *MANDATORY* VACCINE FOR COVID-19!

    Also **SAY NO** to unjust 'vaccine passports' or certificates, which are totally incompatible with a FREE society!!!


  5. #25
    Join Date: Feb 2010

    Location: Northumberland

    Posts: 233
    I'm Martin.

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Marco View Post
    Hi Martin,

    Sounds good so far - I really hope it works out for you

    Have you any idea how much mass (extra weight) the stabiliser adds to the 103?

    What you're aiming for is around 17g at the headshell of the tonearm, excluding the weight of the 103 itself: so that's the mass of the Tecnoarm's headshell area added to the weight of the stabiliser.

    If that equates to less than 16.5-17g, then you'll need to add more mass to the Tecnoarm's headshell in the form of adhesive leaded strips, Blu-Tack, etc.

    Listen out for any 'edginess' or distortion when playing difficult/challenging recordings. If you detect any, then most likely there isn't enough mass on the headshell. Try something 'busy' with lots of midrange and high frequency detail. I find some Beatles recordings good for this, or Indie music.

    Getting the mass right will also ensure that bass has the requisite weight and solidity. Don't overdo it though as you'll kill the sound, making it flat and overblown (rather like the effect of dialing in too much VTF).

    The other thing too is not to tighten the screws holding the cartridge onto the headshell too much. These should simply be finger tightened, then gently 'nipped up' with a screwdriver or Allen key, as over-tightening them adds a hard edge to the sound.

    Enjoy!

    Marco.

    Thanks Marco

    The Isokinetic stabiliser thing (which is glued to the cartridge) adds about 3.3 g of mass, but I believe the cartridge body (now removed) is about 1.5 g, so the net added mass is about 1.8g (ish). Included with the cartridge was a small black square metal plate, which I assume is designed to add further mass - might try adding that, as I can indeed hear traces of distortion in the mids.

    Cheers

    Martin
    "Music is the space between the notes"
    Debussy.

    "I'd buy me a used car lot and I wouldn't sell any of em
    I'd just drive a different car every day dependin on how I feel"
    Tom Waits

  6. #26
    Join Date: Jan 2008

    Location: gone

    Posts: 11,519
    I'm gone.

    Default

    Stay with it, Martin!

    Does your arm have a detachable headshell? ... If so, get a Sumiko headshell for the Denon. Nice and heavy and works a treat, ime.

    Well, this seems an ideal opportunity for another photo of my re-bodied Denon 103 ...



    Yes, some news for Marco (or have I already mentioned this?) - I've sold the DV17D3 and gone back to the Denon with a sense of musical relief! - less 'sophistication' but more music! Full bodied and loadsa bounce!
    .

  7. #27
    Join Date: Jan 2008

    Location: Wrexham, North Wales, UK

    Posts: 110,012
    I'm AudioAl'sArbiterForPISHANTO.

    Default

    Hi Martin,

    Yes definitely add the metal plate *IF* it is non-magnetic! I can't stress that enough, as otherwise it will ruin the sound, giving music a 'sat on' effect.

    If the metal plate is made from a magnetic material then use small strips of lead flashing for doll's houses, available on Ebay from a number of sources, and fix it to the headshell of the Tecnoarm. Just search on Ebay for details.

    The other thing I can't stress enough is that you MUST have at least 16.5g of mass on the headshell for a 103 to 'work against' in order for it to perform optimally. Anything less than that will show up distortion on some heavily modulated types of music.

    Jerry,

    Yes, some news for Marco (or have I already mentioned this?) - I've sold the DV17D3 and gone back to the Denon with a sense of musical relief! - less 'sophistication' but more music! Full bodied and loadsa bounce!
    I getcha loud & clear, brovva, and totally agree

    Apart from when assessing certain aspects of musical presentation with Lockwood Majors, using Tannoy Monitor Gold drivers, you've got a damn fine pair of ears!



    In all seriousness though, I think that in many ways we're 'in tune' with what we look for in most types of equipment

    Marco.
    Main System

    Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & reg mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat/Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight/Isonoe feet & boots/Ortofon RS-212D/Denon DL-103GL in Denon PCL-300 headshell with Funk Firm Houdini/Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.

    Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp/Denon AU-310 SUT.

    Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.

    CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.

    Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new, by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.

    Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. LDR Stereo Coffee. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.

    Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.

    Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.

    Speakers: Tannoy 15MGs in Lockwood cabinets with modified crossovers. 1967 Celestion Ditton 15.


    Protect your HUMAN RIGHTS and REFUSE ANY *MANDATORY* VACCINE FOR COVID-19!

    Also **SAY NO** to unjust 'vaccine passports' or certificates, which are totally incompatible with a FREE society!!!


  8. #28
    Join Date: Feb 2010

    Location: Northumberland

    Posts: 233
    I'm Martin.

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by jandl100 View Post
    Stay with it, Martin!

    Does your arm have a detachable headshell? ... If so, get a Sumiko headshell for the Denon. Nice and heavy and works a treat, ime.

    Well, this seems an ideal opportunity for another photo of my re-bodied Denon 103 ...



    Yes, some news for Marco (or have I already mentioned this?) - I've sold the DV17D3 and gone back to the Denon with a sense of musical relief! - less 'sophistication' but more music! Full bodied and loadsa bounce!
    Hi Jerry

    Nah - Tecnoarm is of Rega origin, so no messing with headshells allowed.

    I will definitely persevere - very pleased with the results so far and the 103 seems to like my phono stage.

    Next question will be whether to leave the 103 naked or try one of those fancy new suits for it....

    The preamp is proving an an absolute stonker by the way .

    Cheers

    Martin
    "Music is the space between the notes"
    Debussy.

    "I'd buy me a used car lot and I wouldn't sell any of em
    I'd just drive a different car every day dependin on how I feel"
    Tom Waits

  9. #29
    Join Date: Feb 2010

    Location: Northumberland

    Posts: 233
    I'm Martin.

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Marco View Post
    Hi Martin,

    Yes definitely add the metal plate *IF* it is non-magnetic! I can't stress that enough, as otherwise it will ruin the sound, giving music a 'sat on' effect.

    If the metal plate is made from a magnetic material then use small strips of lead flashing for doll's houses, available on Ebay from a number of sources, and fix it to the headshell of the Tecnoarm. Just search on Ebay for details.

    The other thing I can't stress enough is that you MUST have at least 16.5g of mass on the headshell for a 103 to 'work against' in order for it to perform optimally. Anything less than that will show up distortion on some heavily modulated types of music.

    Jerry,



    I getcha loud & clear, brovva, and totally agree

    Apart from when assessing certain aspects of musical presentation with Lockwood Majors, using Tannoy Monitor Gold drivers, you've got a damn fine pair of ears!



    In all seriousness though, I think that in many ways we're 'in tune' with what we look for in most types of equipment

    Marco.
    yes, a little more mass would help, I suspect. I'll check to see if the metal plate is magnetic....

    Rather pleased so far. Bit of a bargain methinks

    Martin
    "Music is the space between the notes"
    Debussy.

    "I'd buy me a used car lot and I wouldn't sell any of em
    I'd just drive a different car every day dependin on how I feel"
    Tom Waits

  10. #30
    Join Date: Jan 2009

    Location: Essex

    Posts: 31,853
    I'm openingabottleofwine.

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Marco View Post
    Hi Blake,

    Good post - some useful info there



    Well, with the 'SA', I've already got the body-shell sorted, so yes, the next move would be to 'upgrade' the stylus, as you have outlined.

    Thing is though, I'm not sure..... Don't get me wrong, I don’t doubt for one second the results you're hearing in your system and have reported here, but I'm sceptical purely because experience so far tells me that putting a 'posh' stylus on a 103 is somewhat of a mixed blessing.

    I've owned almost every version of the DL-103 since using them in the early 80s, including a 103D and 103M, both with special elliptical type styli, and whilst there were clear gains in high frequency detail retrieval, the trade-off was always the loss of *some* of the 103's rhythmic alacrity, bouncy, groovy deep bass, and overall 'fun factor', for a more sober 'hi-fi' sound, which although more crisply etched and detailed, was to my ears ultimately less musically involving.

    You're of course saying that won't happen if a Soundsmith line-contact stylus is fitted, and I accept that, but then, no disrespect, I only have your word for it. I could end up ruining the very characteristics I love about the 103SA to gain traits which I don't consider important for my enjoyment of music and waste a not inconsiderable sum of money in the process, both paying Soundsmith or Expert Stylus for their efforts, and then having to buy another 103SA to recover the type of sonic (and musical) presentation I like...........

    Hardly cut and dried or risk-free, is it?

    The fact is, there is generally *always* some sort of trade-off from changing stylus profiles on cartridges - rarely, if ever, have I heard only positives and no negatives whatsoever, as indeed was the case with my experience of the 103M and 103D.

    This has also always been the case when I've compared cartridges from other manufacturers offering a choice of stylus profiles with the same cartridge, such as the Ortofon SPU and EMT, where in general I've always preferred the conical versions, as these, whilst not being as über-detailed at high frequencies, seemed to add a certain 'magic' to the way music was reproduced that appealed to me, and which I find highly addictive: call it 'soul', if you like.

    In effect what I'm saying is that conical styli (when used on generators with Alnico magnets, such as with the 103, SPU, EMT, etc) appear to give music certain sonic characteristics that I'm unwilling to sacrifice in favour of more 'sparkle' or high frequency detail retrieval, which undoubtedly line-contact styli excel at.

    This doesn't mean though that I'm settling for a 'rounded-off' sound (far from it!); merely that I don't require the added 'sparkle' generated by the reproduction of more high-frequency detail to 'connect' with the musical message when playing my favourite records.

    It's rather like the effect of super-tweeters on loudspeakers... How many of us use them, and how many of us happily get by without them and enjoy our favourite music regardless, blissfully unaware of any lack of 'treble sparkle' or missing high-frequency detail?

    Undoubtedly, super-tweeters add extension to the top end, but not always in an integrated way with the rest of the frequency range, which can then have a negative knock-on effect on the overall 'musicality' of a system. Sometimes they can work very well of course, but I've heard what I've described above with them more often than not.

    Don't get me wrong, I'll certainly give your suggestion some consideration when the stylus on my 103SA wears out, but as I'm seriously considering buying an EMT XSD-15 (conical type), I'm not sure if having a 'posh tipped' 103SA, too, is somewhat of an extravagance.......

    Marco.
    Good post Marco.

    Generally I would concur; I'm quite content with conical tipped stylii. The vast majority of the musical information lies in the mid band, and this is where, as you have stated, you appreciate the use of a conical tip. Any other shape is unnecessary to track the bass notes, since there the tip radius is very much smaller than the radius of curvature of the groove.

    At high frequencies things are obviously different. Once those wriggles on the record have a radius that approaches that of the styus, the path traced by the stylus becomes more 'abrupt' compared with that of the groove. Ideally of course, the stylus ought have to have the same shape as that of the cutter: a triangular cross section with sharp edges. Unfortunately we can't cut a diamond like that and fit it with sufficient precision so as not to carve up our records; the elliptical or fine-line profiles are the best we can do, and then the cartridges need to be set up with particular care.

    Both the Denon and EMT range were designed for broadcast use. That is, to be sufficiently robust to withstand the rigors of studio use and yet have a sufficiently good performance for quality broadcasts. Remember that FM radio only has a response up to 15KHz, so impeccable top end performance is wasted. It's certainly wasted on me at my age, my hearing becomes 'irregular' beyond 10KHz!

    I'm not sure I would necessarily agree with you concerning the use of Alnico magnets, however I have never spent much time with any cartridge that uses samarium-cobalt or neodymium-boron magnets, such as the Koetsu, Lyra or later Ortofon, so cannot speak from experience.

    Looks like I'd better bring along both my EMTs (conical and fine-line stylii) for you to try, when I next see you.

    Regards
    Last edited by Barry; 07-05-2010 at 09:54. Reason: spelling
    Barry

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