ADCOM HC/E II cartridge mothballed 25 years ago.

25 years is a long time. I would expect any elastomer (cantilever suspension) to be degraded by now.

That is my concern but is it warranted?

What?

OP do you think you got a lifetime warranty?

Is my concern warranted?

The cartridge rubber suspension may still be fine! Try it out by playing a record at the recommended tracking force (~2 grams). If it doesn't bottom out it is fine. No need then to buy a new cartridge.

Setup is just the usual procedures for lateral tracking and vertical azimuth.

Keep the stylus clean! I use the AT liquid stylus cleaner and brush.

I revived my AT440ml cartridge I had kept unused for over 20 years. Had no more than 20 hrs on it.

I thought the rubber would be hard, but after I thoroughly cleaned the whole tip/cantilever/rubber suspension and let it break itself in playing a few unimportant LPs.

It sounds surprisingly good. compared to my shure V15Vxmr body/Jico Stylus SAS/boron/brush, it competes with it same as when new back in late 90's.

Next, I put a drop of rubber renew on the suspension that I use for Reel to Reel capstan wheels, belts ...

The suspension can fail, though. it depends on the rubber, and how it was stored, where it orignated from, how it was handled and applied during manufacturing, etc. multiple aspects to the story, in all cases, so one story of failure or success in age of a cartridge is not comparable to another when it comes to predicting specific outcomes for models or brand sources.

Eg, I have here, 5x of the beryllium cantilevered AM40 Signet cartridges, new in the box. their rubber suspensions went hard and they are a write off, regarding the stylus of each. too bad. They are also, basically, an A-T cartridge, by any measure. and of similar age to an AT440. But these ones failed.

The situation has always been, be very very careful when buying a so called NOS AT cartridge/stylus. This also goes for many others. Buy the given cartridge for the body/motor and if the stylus suspension turns out to not be hardened and useless, then consider yourself very very lucky.

then, watch for wear on your records, very very closely, as distortion may creep into the situation far sooner than one might think. the suspension of that NOS unit may have a very short lifespan.

The main reason one might want such a cartridge is the given beryllium cantilevers and hyper elliptical, or shibata or micro ridge stylus. As getting modern equivalents can be very expensive, and even..completely unavailable.

So don’t buy too much into the hype of old NOS AT cartridges, or any others, including older MC carts, without doing lots of due diligence in research.

No free rides!--a functional working brain, used in continual analysis- is always required, as per the norm in all things. throw money at the new, so you can spend brain power and life/time somewhere else.... or use your noggin/brain..in trying to slip the surly bonds of requisite financial input. for their cantilever suspensions are not immortal, and each case is VERY individual and unpredictable until it is actually tested and run out to the ends of their given life, in the now...

One might get lucky at $50 input..or one second later, you or someone else gets burned at $1200 or more being spent.

There is no harm in testing the cartridge using recommended VTF, etc. If it appears to work at all, give it many hours of playing time before you judge it. If you own the Cardas test LP, side1 has tracks that are very useful for reviving cartridges. Tracks 2a,b,and c, I think. Truth is you can never know if it’s good as new, you can only judge it as it performs now.

ADCOM was never known for great sounding phono cartridges, thats not their forte'. Time to get a real cartridge for that DUAL :-) Ortofon, Grado, Audio Technica, come to my mind real quick.

Matt M

Matt M:

Is the Ortofon 2M Red or Blue possible contenders?

Thought on the AT?

jasonbourne52:

I have the AT stylus cleaner on order.

Back in the day, I used RCA's Discwasher for record care. Still have it. I even have the photon blaster, ZeroStat. I managed to light up my finger with it. LOL

Poking around "Jeff's Place," I found a kinds of vinyl traps and so on. Few are known to me. I figure if AT puts their name on it it may be a good product. The record washers look intriguing but I don't have any ideas about them.

I will order vinyl covers for both sleeves and pressings. are there covers for CD cases?

Thank you for your advice!

elliottbnewcombjr:

I'll look into the MG Chemicals 408C Rubber Renue product.

Thanks.

teo_audio:

Very wise thinking, especially on NOS items that can be found. Definitly looking to spend more green on older vinyl and pre-compession CDs.

If the TT motor gives me issues then I may have to consider NOS.

Found one website offering a power cord for the Dual at $25. What a poser!

lewm:

The plan is to give the ADCOM a try. I may be good enough until I have to find a replacement.4

Thanks!

Lastly, concerning static charge.

I have seen many carbon fiber brushes to sweep away static. Bushes, too for cleaning the grooves.

These items that touch the vinyl surface give me the willies. Can these really protect the record surface without harming the grooves?

elliottbnewcombjr:

How many applications of Renue to the stylus rubber suspension are required and how long before between applications? I waiting on Amazon for this conditioner and Schiit Audio for phono preamp.

Btw. Back in the day, I use D3, then D4 for vinyl surface cleansing. I order the AT product for same. Is there a question of product contamination applied to my old Discwasher brush. Finally, can one clean said brush or replace it periodically?

Yes, do try the cartridge. Set it up correctly per the manufacturer’s instructions re VTF and give it some time for the suspension to relax. Listen keenly for mistracking so that you don’t damage your records. You will most likely be fine until you get something better.  Having said that:

That Adcom cartridge was my first MC cartridge during my early years in this hobby; after owning Shure’s and ADC’s. The Adcom is a high output MC and as I should have expected, based on what I know many years later, it did not live up to the hype that many beginner audiophiles fall victim of: that MC’s must be better than MM’s. Few high output MC’s are better than a good MM. For my tastes, the Adcom was not more satisfying than the Shure’s and ADC’s that I had been using. It projected a large(r) soundstage and had good speed, but it was grainy sounding and surprisingly, for a MC of that period, was somewhat dull sounding.  

Good luck!

Thanks, Frogman. I appreciate your response.

I will use the Adcom out of curiosity. Well, my years and ears aren't what they were, I believe I have become more critical in listening. That started with a box set of Julie London. She and others in her small circle were very purposeful in their choice of arrangements, recording artists in the studio, microphone placement, room acoustics, masterings, etc. That box set blew me away. And from there I realized how that same commitment could be found in the recordings engineered by the likes of Rudy Van Gelder. So, 50s and 60s jazz is insanely high quality.

So, I'm looking forward to better and older recordings while avoiding re-masters that often leave the life sucked out of the recordings.

Just before Covid, I picked up a nice second-hand Primaluna integrated amp. Covid has made it impossible to consider pulling the trigger on speakers. So, I unboxed the Dual TT and ordered the Schiit Man2 mm/mc phono preamp. I have a pair of Magneplanar SMG's also in mothballs that more than likely have delaminated their coil structures. And last but not least is a pair of modified Spectrum Loudspeakers Auroras where the drivers have wasted away. I have my doubts about the crossovers. So, this "hobby" is definitely a journey.