blake
22-09-2016, 22:50
Just installed one of these on my Jelco 750D (Gyrodec, rebuilt Ortofon MC 20 Super with boron cantilever and microridge stylus) as I'd read good things here about the Oyaide carbon fibre headshell on the Jelco. Was thinking it might also be a better match with my cartridge in terms of being a bit lighter than the stock Jelco and was hoping to be able to use the heavier counterweight and get it right up to the pivot but in the end that did not happen.
After spending 3 1/2 hours setting things up I was met with only the right channel functioning which was not exciting. Fortunately it was just the cartridge leads jamming up against each other and shorting each other out on the left channel-some very minor surgery to separate them and I was off to the races.
New headshell, new cartridge leads-probably still some break-in going on but I'm quite pleased so far listening to records for about 4-5 hours. The improvement is quite noticeable. There's an additional clarity (better separation of instruments-you can hear more into the recording, particularly those that previously sounded a bit dense and murky, and lyrics are more intelligible) and things are just fleshed out a bit more-it's really apparent on things like strings and brass.
Lower frequencies are deeper and better defined. There's also a sense that things are a bit more under control and improvements on really dynamic recordings as a result of that. Surface noise is pushed even further into the background. The top end appears to be more extended as well-it's fine on most recordings but on some it might be just a bit too much, which would be the one criticism I would have. This may even out with a few more hours on the shell and the leads. I may switch out the leads to those which I was using previously at some point but I really hate doing the setup stuff so that may be unlikely :lol: .
$105 U.S. and super quick delivery from Juki on Ebay-he was great to deal with and it was packed to survive a nuclear holocaust!
Fully adjustable for azimuth, which the Oyaide and some of the other Yamamotos are not from what I understand. This was key for me-I would not purchase without azimuth capability. I believe Hugo here described the Oyaide CF headshell as making the standard Jelco headshell sound "broken" by comparison. In the ear of the beholder I suppose but I can almost agree with that. In any event, I've found it to be a worthy upgrade at a reasonable price so far. Highly recommended.
1808918090
After spending 3 1/2 hours setting things up I was met with only the right channel functioning which was not exciting. Fortunately it was just the cartridge leads jamming up against each other and shorting each other out on the left channel-some very minor surgery to separate them and I was off to the races.
New headshell, new cartridge leads-probably still some break-in going on but I'm quite pleased so far listening to records for about 4-5 hours. The improvement is quite noticeable. There's an additional clarity (better separation of instruments-you can hear more into the recording, particularly those that previously sounded a bit dense and murky, and lyrics are more intelligible) and things are just fleshed out a bit more-it's really apparent on things like strings and brass.
Lower frequencies are deeper and better defined. There's also a sense that things are a bit more under control and improvements on really dynamic recordings as a result of that. Surface noise is pushed even further into the background. The top end appears to be more extended as well-it's fine on most recordings but on some it might be just a bit too much, which would be the one criticism I would have. This may even out with a few more hours on the shell and the leads. I may switch out the leads to those which I was using previously at some point but I really hate doing the setup stuff so that may be unlikely :lol: .
$105 U.S. and super quick delivery from Juki on Ebay-he was great to deal with and it was packed to survive a nuclear holocaust!
Fully adjustable for azimuth, which the Oyaide and some of the other Yamamotos are not from what I understand. This was key for me-I would not purchase without azimuth capability. I believe Hugo here described the Oyaide CF headshell as making the standard Jelco headshell sound "broken" by comparison. In the ear of the beholder I suppose but I can almost agree with that. In any event, I've found it to be a worthy upgrade at a reasonable price so far. Highly recommended.
1808918090