I assume you have tried the cartridge, how did it sound and track?
Dang my luck
I ordered a new Denon 103r. It came in yesterday and after I attached it to my headshell and gently removed the guard a noticed the cantilever was leaning visibly to one side. If you look at the pic looking down the cantilever you can see it's not bent but looks like it goes into the body crooked.
https://flic.kr/p/R3Ts5F
https://flic.kr/p/PX4FXh
https://flic.kr/p/R3Ts5F
https://flic.kr/p/PX4FXh
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I had a cartridge with the same problem once. I didn't notice it at first and had mounted it and played it. When I observed it under magnification, I was like, wow. Not good. Surprisingly, the cartridge still sounded good, at least to me anyway. I adjusted the azimuth and this made the cartridge track properly with no problems. I used this cartridge for several years with no other problems. No damage was done to my records. Lesson learned though, I inspect every new cartridge thoroughly before I mount it to the head shell. I'm not saying to keep the cartridge. I would opt for a free replacement from wherever you bought it. |
I can align the cantilever and that is not my main concern, however the stylus seems to be tilted about 2° to the side and That I am concerned about a little bit. I have done a listening test today just a few minutes ago based on realigning the cartridge to the cantilever and it sounds fine, I can't tell if any issues but again it's that 2° side tilt that bothers me, will that cause damage to my records ? |
I contacted the seller (on eBay) and he said to ask Denon if this is normal. He has a very high rating on EBay from many buyers so I thought the risk was low. I have started a return request. I told him I would be happy and just send me another once I return the current one. I guess we will see how that goes. |
@last_lemming if you are referring to two degrees off on azimuth that's at the bounds of acceptable (see here) and may warrant returning |